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How Do I Make Text See Through in After Effects?

Published in After Effects 2 mins read

You can make text appear see-through in After Effects by adjusting its opacity or using the matte feature.

Using Opacity

  1. Select your text layer.
  2. Open the "Opacity" property in the timeline or the "Effect Controls" panel.
  3. Adjust the opacity value to make the text more or less transparent. A lower opacity value means a more transparent text.

Using a Matte

  1. Create a shape or image layer that you want to use as a matte.
  2. Select the text layer.
  3. Go to the "Track Matte" property in the timeline or the "Effect Controls" panel.
  4. Choose "Alpha Matte" from the dropdown menu.
  5. Select the matte layer from the "Source" dropdown menu. This will make the text transparent wherever the matte layer is transparent.

Example: If you want to create a text overlay on a video, you can use a matte to make the text appear only on specific areas of the video.

Practical Insights:

  • Opacity: A simple and effective method for creating a see-through effect.
  • Matte: Offers more control and precision for specific transparency effects.
  • Experiment with different matte shapes and images to achieve various visual styles.

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