Multiple layer editing

[campbellma]

Is there a way to adjust effects for multiple layers with the same effect? I have a glow effect on 11 layers, and I want to make them all the same value with key frames.  However, when I select all of the layers, it will only let me adjust the intensity one layer at a time.

[gregb98056542 · Accepted solution]

An Adjustment Layer will allow you to place an effect on one layer, and that effect will be applied to all layers below it.  Here's the help page on it -

http://helpx.adobe.com/content/help/en/after-effects/using/creating-layers.html#adjustment_layers

You can also precompose the layers and then apply the effect to the resulting composition.  Here's the help page on that topic -

http://help.adobe.com/en_US/aftereffects/cs/using/WS3878526689cb91655866c1103906c6dea-7ed7a.html

There are some great free tutorials on CreativeCow.com to help you get to be a power user of After Effects.  Adjustment Layers and Precomposing are some of the basic tools that will really give you a lot of power in your projects.

[Andrew Yoole]

Another option is to use expressions to link to a single expression controller, or to the effect on a Master layer.  Just activate expressions for the given parameter, then pickwhip it to the matching control on the Master layer, or to your Expression Controller.

[campbellma]

I want to adjust the glow intesity which apart of the glow effect. An Adjustment wont isolate the glow intensity, becuase it effects everything. The master layer/expressions technique is a little beyond my skill set, the only expression I know is wiggle. Pre composing worked great! and was what I needed. Thanks for the replies.

[Pat481]

Is there any reason why selecting multiple layers and changing a value on an effect doesn't change that value for all of them? Seems to be assumed behaviour, and i can't think of a downside for the user.

[Szalam]

Pat481 wrote:

Is there any reason why selecting multiple layers and changing a value on an effect doesn't change that value for all of them? Seems to be assumed behaviour, and i can't think of a downside for the user.

This does work for layer properties like position, scale, etc., but it doesn't do it for effects. The problem is that you could have several Glow effects applied to one layer, two Glow effects applied to another, and one Glow effect to a third layer. When selecting all three of those layers, which Glow effect would be getting changed on the layers with multiple effects?

[Pat481]

Change all of them. Why inconvenience 80% of the users using the most common use case because there is a small percentage of users where it wouldn't work for, which would just require them doing what you have to do now anyway, changing them all individually. I notice that apple motion allows this if you individually select each effect once by one, not sure if this is a point for or against my argument.

[campbellma]

If you have 3 glow effects on layer one, and one glow effect each on five other layers, an you only want to change specific ones, I guess you could just select the ones you want to change and increment them up or down. Sounds like a reasonable request.

[Szalam]

Sounds good to me.

If it sounds good to you too, file a feature request and explain in as much detail as possible how you would want this to work. The more people who file, the higher on the priority list it will go: Feature Request/Bug Report Form