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Adobe After Effectsfor Windows

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Adobe After Effects: Award-winning industry-standard video effects software

Adobe After Effects for Windows is the software of choice for adding effects and animations to videos. You can create visual effects, motion graphics, remove objects, add weather effects, and much more. If you can imagine it, then you can probably make it happen in After Effects.

What is Adobe After Effects used for?

Adobe After Effects stands as a popular pick among other 2.5D animation software, serving as the go-to tool for professionals engaged in animation, visual effects, and motion picture compositing. Widely utilized in film, television, and web video production during the post-production phase, After Effects offers a diverse array of effects that empower users to manipulate imagery with finesse. This software allows seamless layering of video and images, facilitating the creation of captivating visual narratives. Notably, the program has evolved through 50 different versions, with each iteration showcasing enhanced functionality. The culmination of its excellence was recognized in 2019 when Adobe After Effects was honored with an Academy Award for scientific and technical achievement, underscoring its indispensable role in the industry.

Can you get After Effects on Windows?

Yes, you can. It’s not available from the Microsoft Store, so you need to go to the Adobe website and download it from there. However, because it’s packed with top effects and animation tools, you should check Adobe’s recommended specifications before downloading.

Is there a free version of After Effects?

There’s no free version of the app, but you can get a seven-day free trial. 

Once the trial expires, you’ll need to pay a monthly fee for After Effects.  However, it is more cost-effective if you subscribe to the whole Adobe Creative Cloud Suite

Is 4GB RAM enough for After Effects?

Adobe’s website indicates that at least 16GB of RAM is required, but they recommend 32GB. Remember, this is an industry-standard program, you should pay attention to the recommendations for other components, including hard disk space, GPU, and monitor resolution.

Adobe After Effects system requirements

As mentioned above, 4 GB of RAM is not enough to run Adobe After Effects. Many things happen at the same time when you try to edit or create multimedia, that is why the program needs more resources. Here are the system requirements for Adobe After Effects:

Minimum

  • Processor: Intel or AMD Quad-Core Processor
  • Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10 (64 bit) versions 1909 and later.
  • RAM: 16 GB of RAM
  • Graphics Card: 2 GB of GPU VRAM (Adobe strongly recommends updating to NVIDIA driver 472.12 or later when using After Effects. Drivers prior to this have a known issue which can lead to a crash.)
  • Hard disk space: 15GB of available hard-disk space; additional free space required during installation (cannot install on removable flash storage devices)
  • Monitor Resolution: 1920 x 1080
  • Internet: Internet connection and registration are necessary for required software activation, validation of subscriptions, and access to online services

Recommended

  • Processor:  8-Core or above for Multi-Frame Rendering recommended
  • Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10 (64 bit) versions 1909 and later
  • RAM: 32 GB recommended
  • Graphics Card: 4GB or more of GPU VRAM recommended
  • Hard disk space: Additional disk space for disk cache (64GB+ recommended)
  • Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 or greater display resolution
  • Internet: Internet connection and registration are necessary for required software activation, validation of subscriptions, and access to online services

Is there an alternative to After Effects?

There are alternatives, but none of them have the same feature set as Adobe’s offering. If you’re looking for a free option, Blender is open-source software that supports functions including 3D pipeline, animation, and game creation. A paid alternative is the Hitfilm Pro and is an excellent program. It’s aimed at professional directors and has a similar feature set to After Effects.

Our take

Adobe After Effects is the software of choice for post-production effects, editing, and animation. It’s a super-powerful toolkit for video creation that’s used by top professionals in the film industry. 

If you want complete freedom for your creative concepts, then this is the software that you need. With plenty of training resources for new and experienced users, there’s not too much of a learning curve.

Should you download it?

Yes, as none of the alternatives have as many fantastic features.

Highs

  • Free seven-day trial
  • Powerful, industry-standard tools
  • Intuitive interface if you’ve used other Adobe products
  • Well-attended support channels
  • Lots of free and paid tutorials available

Lows

  • Lots of tools can be overwhelming at first
  • Very demanding on RAM
  • High volume of storage needed for output files

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Adobe After Effectsfor Windows

23,.4

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