aescripts + aeplugins

John Collins

whats that script you run that lets you Look at All Layers in the custom view instead of it being the typical mess? is that part of this?

its at 2:50

thanks,

Paul Tuersley

Hi John, That's a feature built in to AE. You access it from the "View" pulldown menu.

John Collins

thanks.

Phil Hew

I was transferring all my plugins across to a new computer and pasted in the wrong code for multiplane, multiplane accepted it for some reason, but it's erroring out everytime I try to start it up. I tried deleting the plugin and installing a new one, but it continues giving me a line 1 error. For whatever reason, the plugin is calling the script from somewhere on my mac and I don't know where this is. I've tried searching possible places, but haven't found anything yet. Would like to reset multiplane somehow and repaste the correct serial. Cheers.

Paul Tuersley

Hi Philip, Could you let me know what the exact error message is? From your description, it may be a problem with the registration stored in your preferences file. Could you locate your AE preferences file and send a copy to me at [email protected] so I can work out what's happened here?

In CS6 there's a Reveal Preferences button in Preferences > General. Otherwise you'll find them at:

(Mac OS) /Users/<username>/Library/Preferences/Adobe/After Effects/10.0/Adobe After Effects 10.0-x64 Prefs

(Windows) \Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\After Effects\10.0

To try to fix it, quit AE, then open the prefs file in a text editor. Search for 'ptscripts' and remove the line 'pt_Multiplane_Registration'. Save, restart AE and try launching the script again.

Phil Hew

Hi Philip, Could you let me know what the exact error message is? From your description, it may be a problem with the registration stored in your preferences file. Could you locate your AE preferences file and send a copy to me at [email protected] so I can work out what's happened here?

In CS6 there's a Reveal Preferences button in Preferences > General. Otherwise you'll find them at:

(Mac OS) /Users/<username>/Library/Preferences/Adobe/After Effects/10.0/Adobe After Effects 10.0-x64 Prefs

(Windows) \Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\After Effects\10.0

To try to fix it, quit AE, then open the prefs file in a text editor. Search for 'ptscripts' and remove the line 'pt_Multiplane_Registration'. Save, restart AE and try launching the script again.

OKAY! That was where it was! Thanks a lot! That's fixed it nicely. Got mixed up with all my different serials and copied in the wrong one.

Paul Tuersley

Hi Philip, Glad it worked. It shouldn't have accepted the wrong code in the first place though. I'll see if I can figure out what you did. I don't suppose you made a copy of your prefs before you edited them?

eduardo marin

Hello Paul! i want to buy this plg in but unfortunatley this site doesnt let me buy the script, i already sent emails and i need urgently this scipt is there any other way i can buy this? BTW i am from mexico, i dont know if that might be the problem, cheers!

Lloyd Alvarez

Please open a support ticket if you are having issues with the site and we can help you directly.

Stephen Barrante

Hi Paul. Script is working great. Quick feature request - it would be great to specify either a One or Two-Node camera. As of right now it creates a Two node automatically. Thought maybe if I made a One-node first, all subsequent cameras would be the same, but not the case.

adam Martin

Hi Paul,

I upgraded my computer recently and have just been re-installing all my software... but having copied the pt_multiplane.jsx file into the scripts folder, and restarting AE, it isn't showing up in the Window menu...

...Thoughts?

Thanks!

Paul Tuersley

Hi Adam, You copied it into the ScriptUI Panels subfolder? And restarted After Effects afterwards?

Paul

Anil Devran

I just purchased pt_Multiplane and it freezes AE showing beachball on launch
Any suggestions? Thanks

 AE CC 2014 Latest Update -OSX Mavericks

Paul Tuersley

It's probably getting stuck trying to check for any updates on launch due to your company network/firewall. It should continue if you leave it for a minute or so, at which point you should open the script's [ ? ] help window and uncheck 'Check for updates on launch'.

Let me know if that fixes it.

Paul

Anil Devran

Yes it works now..
Thank you.

It's probably getting stuck trying to check for any updates on launch due to your company network/firewall. It should continue if you leave it for a minute or so, at which point you should open the script's [ ? ] help window and uncheck 'Check for updates on launch'.

Let me know if that fixes it.

Paul

Miika Turunen

Does this work on AE CC2015?

Paul Tuersley

Hi Miika, Yes it works. It seems the random distribution option isn't very random but it was that way in CC 2014 too. I'll have an update out soon to address that, but for the most part it works fine.

Factory Media

Hi Paul,

How do I use this plugin the way you have in your tutorial where no nulls are created, but instead the experssion is just applied to the layer instead of a null parented to the layer? 

Thanks, 

Paul Tuersley

It will apply the effect using nulls if the layers have previously been scaled / repositioned or has animation, as this is the only way it can work while retaining those existing values.

If for example, you've imported a layered photoshop file and use pt_Multiplane having not moved any of the layers, it will not use nulls. Of course, you also need to make sure 'Always use nulls' isn't checked.

Factory Media

Hi Paul,

How would you apply the expression to a layer to use an existing camera and not create a new one? 

Also, thanks for the speedy response for the previous question, appreciate it. 

Thanks, 

Paul Tuersley

It depends if that camera has been rotated or anything like that. If not, you could just select a lens preset that matches your existing camera, apply multiplane then delete the camera that was created.

If your existing camera has been rotated or moved, you can do the same thing, but before deleting the new camera, bake in the muliplane, parent all the layers to the new camera, apply the transforms on that camera so it matches your existing camera, and then delete the new camera.

Anders Sundstedt

Hey Paul,

Doing a new project using this tool now, have you got any advice in how to best and quickest photoshop the photographs into the layers needed.

I've done some before but I'm curious what order you do it and I noticed you have a soft edge in some places in the demo scene, any advice on the methods you use to photoshop them etc. and if you work from back to front and how to decided how much to overlap etc. ?

I've mainly done accurate cuts in PS and painted in behind with tools in PS, but I'd love to know your process on it.

Thanks,

Anders

1 License owner.

Paul Tuersley

Hi Anders, I think I did that demo file in After Effects, using clone paint and masks, then exported as a PSD for the demo. I like that you can carry on adjusting things while seeing the multiplane results and it's easier to play around with having multiple masks with different feather amounts. But Photoshop is definitely a better tool, with things like the healing brush being very useful.

I would always work from front to back, make a copy, use layer masks to remove everything but the foreground element (while still being able to adjust that mask to get some of it back if necessary), then painting that element out of the original, make a copy, etc.

Ground planes are the hardest thing to get working well due to the obvious limitations of the process, so the more layers the better here so the multiplane effect isn't so obvious. Sometimes I'll even use a separate process for the ground, projecting it onto a 3D ground plane by placing a point light at the camera's start position, and using a small copy of the image just in front of the light/camera set to cast Shadows Only and with Light Transmission on 100% (comp settings, advanced options shadow res to max) Quite fiddly to set up and you need to take care about the settings of all the layers for whether they receive lights and shadows or not.

I've been doing multiplanes since before AE had 3D layers and you total had to fake it, and pt_Multiplane was the ultimate result of manual techniques I'd been using up to that point. Eventually you just instinctively know the best ways to approach any given image and which areas you need to spend more time on.

Hope that helps.

Paul

Ondřej Štindl

Hi Paul,

will your great tool work with the Malty's Simple Camera Rig? I tried it, but both scripts makes its own camera and I don't know how I could merge it to one.

Ondřej

Paul Tuersley

There's nothing special about the camera that pt_Multiplane creates, but it is important that you use one with a lens preset / zoom value that matches the one used when applying the multiplane. I can't imagine it would be hard to make the rig camera match that, although I'm not really familiar with that script.

Emerson Cordeiro Junior

Hi, Paul Tuersley. I really like your script. You have to continue to update it?

It would be nice if when you positioned the layers using the null, he came with the name's layer.

Emerson Cordeiro Junior

 Hi, Paul Tuersley. I really like your script. You have to continue to update it?

It would be nice if when you positioned the layers using the null, he came with the name's layer.

Paul Tuersley

Hi Emerson, Sorry for not replying sooner. Yes naming the nulls after the layer they're parented to is a good idea. I'll look into adding that in the next update.

David Navas

Hello Paul,

Will this work with animated tga sequences as layers?

Please let me know.

And BTW congratulations for the script. looks awesome!

cheers,
David

Paul Tuersley

Hi David, That should be fine. I can't think of any reason why it wouldn't work. You can always download it as a trial first if you wanted to check.

David Navas

Thank you Paul !

Aya Hatano

Hi Paul, If I set layered Photoshop in AE using pt_Multiplane on my mac, then I want to open the file at work on PC, does it still work? or I need to purchse another pt_Multiplane for pc as well... 

Paul Tuersley

Hi Aya, No you won't need another copy in that case. You can open and work on a project with layers previously set up by pt_Multiplane without having it installed.

Aya Hatano

Awesome! Thanks for your response! 

carlos juliao

Hi Paul,

First of all, FANTASTIC plugin,
it has been very useful to me and my colleagues on a number of different projects

My question for you is what is the difference between the Distribution options?

Specifically: random & fully random.

Random seems to be strangely similiar to EvenSpacing and fully random seems to be the only true random option

Im unsure im missing something, or perhaps my setup is generating incorrect results,
but i cant seem to understand or be able to tell the advantages or benefits of using one over the other

If you could provide some clarification, I would greatly appreciate your assistance.

thank you

Carlos

Paul Tuersley

Hi Carlos, Random will respect the current layer order, so it selects x number of random values, then sorts them in order before applying them to the layers, ensuring upper layers will always be in front of lower layers. Fully random doesn't respect layer order and just applies a random value to each layer.

If Random is producing similar results to Even Spacing then I think that's just a case of how random works, producing a range of values that will ultimately be fairly evenly distributed, but it will always be less even. You may have multiplane layers where it would be an absolute dealbreaker to have the sort order altered but you still want some randomness in the distribution.

It does explain this in the help window instructions under Distribution but I know nobody ever reads those!

Tyler Jordan

Hey Paul, I LOVE PT Multiplane. Can you please update it for 2019? Thanks so much for your work.

Paul Tuersley

Hi Tyler, it already appears to work fine in CC 2019 but I've now updated the compatibility info on the webpage / manager app to reflect this.

Dave Hess

Excellent! Running it on CC 2020, no problems.

Brendan Regan

Hi Paul! I'm getting an error when running PT Multiplane on AE v18.2.1 - "Unable to execute script at line 6. Null is not an object." - after this error, a  window is created but no controls are shown. I would love to know if there are any work-arounds for this - It's odd, it works perfectly on my personal laptop with the same version of AE, this only happens on my work computer - same thing is happening to a coworker. 

Kevin Welch

in AE 2020, if I launch the program without a network connection, I get an error that reverts me back to a trial version status. Even if I paste in my license key, it won't accept it unless I'm online. I get online, open AE, and the key is there when I check the '?' menu. I close AE, disconnect from the the network, and relaunch. Back to trial version status.

Thoughts?

Paul Tuersley

Hi Kevin, that does seem strange. It doesn't do any online checks for the license. Please open a support ticket about this so we can communicate properly, and let me know what OS you're running on.

jonas järmén

does it work on 2022?

Paul Tuersley

Hi Jonas, The quick answer is 'probably yes'. I see no reason why it wouldn't but I haven't had a chance to check yet. Probably quicker to just click the Try button to download the trial and try for yourself, but I'll let you know once I've checked.

Anthony Korkidakis

Hello. Question - i purchased this because I need to multiplane elements into an already existing scene. i.e. I solved the camera of a scene and created a camera, and now I would like to have objects multiplaned in that scene. i can't seem to make it work. is there something I can do to make this work? thanks!

Paul Tuersley

Hi Anthony, I would make a note of your existing camera's zoom, create a new comp or import a layered comp with your new multiplane layers and add a new camera, setting it to the correct zoom in the new camera dialog. Then apply pt_Multiplane to these layers in this new comp.

Drop this new multiplane comp into your existing comp and turn on both the 3D and 'continuously rasterise' layer switches, and also copy/paste that new camera into your main comp. Parent the multiplane precomp layer to this camera and then set the position / rotation values of this camera to the values of your original camera at the time you want these multiplane layers to be seen in their original framing. This should align your multiplane to your existing camera on this frame, and you can now delete the pasted in camera.

I go over a similar example from 6 mins into the tutorial video on the product page. In that example I copy in all the multiplane layers after baking rather than keeping them in a precomp, but the general idea is the same.

I realise it's a bit tricky to do this and am currently looking at ways to make it easier in a future update.

Dan Wilde

Hi Paul,

Love your scripts, especially Multiplane.

Unfortunately I've had to uninstall it for now because it keeps asking me to enter the licence every time I fire up after effects.

Does any one else have this problem? and if so does anyone know how to solve it.

I'm using the latest version of the script and running AE 23.1 on an M1 Macbook pro. I think it was working fine on v23.0 but AE automatically updated itself. The script itself works fine when I enter the licence it's just annoying to have to enter it every time I turn the program on that's all.

Thanks!

Paul Tuersley

Hi Dan,

I've just released a v2.87 update that has the latest licensing code which I think should fix this. I believe it could be an issue related to newer MacOS's rather than AE versions, but this is just from my own testing rather than getting any support tickets about it. Please do open a support ticket if you're still having problems as this comments section isn't the best place to track and communicate about support issues.

Dan Wilde

Thanks Paul! Everything is working fine again with the latest update. Cheers

Paul Tuersley

Glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know.