The After Effects Illusionist

11

THE MATTE EFFECTS

The Matte effects category is tied with the Paint effects category for the fewest effects. There are only two effects here, the Matte Choker effect and the Simple Choker effect. This category might have been called the Choker effects, although that does sound a little violent for Adobe.

The primary focus of the Matte effects is transparency or, more specifically, the alpha channel of a layer. They are usually used in conjunction with the Keying effects. The Matte effects restore holes in a layer (typically caused by keying) and can also eat away at the edges of a layer.

There are two concepts common to both effects, so we'll cover them here before proceeding. The first concept is that of spreading. Spreading is when you ...