TUTORIALS FOR VFX & MOTION GRAPHICS
Free After Effects Tutorials & More Hosted By: Andrew Kramer
January 22, 2007
• New Light Saber preset with enhanced motion blur
• Obscure the Light Saber when behind Objects
 
 
TUTORIAL NOTES:
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Running Time: 12mins. 35 secs.


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268 RESPONSES TO "LIGHT SABERS V2"

by Dave 02/23/2010
Why on my project werite : Missing Saber_Controls??
Help, i don't know what to do...
by Dan 02/19/2010
I noticed a lot of people are having the same problem I was so I thought I's post the solution I came up with.

You add a new solid and then drag the Preset onto it and get this error:

After Effects warning: Class 'Effect' has no property or method named 'Perspective'
Expression disabled.

Error occured at line 3.
Comp: 'Lightsaber'
Layer:1 ('Gray Solid 1')
Property: 'Starting Thickness'

The saber looks awful (too fat) and basically is useless. Not sure if this will work for everyone, but here is what I did:

To re-create the After Effects preferences file on Windows XP:

1. Quit After Effects.
2. Rename the Adobe After Effects 9.0 Prefs.txt file (for example, to Adobe After Effects 9.0 Prefs.old) in the C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Adobe\After Effects\9.0 folder.
3. Start After Effects. After Effects creates a new preferences file.
4. Try the preset again. It worked for me.
by guu 02/09/2010
hey gu here.andwuu kaymuh i want give you happy ending for all ya hawd wuhk!
by Peter L. Lee 02/03/2010
hallo andrew
you are doing a great job keep going and thanks. video-copilot is really on of the best. all this knowledge for free. fantastic!
right now i'd like to work on your tutorial 20/20b light sabers but i can't find any footage. download includes "only" the presets?
i'd estimate it if you do some more tutorials in cooperation with 3d cinema4d like 3D Crater etc..
greetings
peter
by Geldrith 01/27/2010
Works fine with CS4 just make sure it's in the right folder supportfiles/presets
by Geldrith 01/27/2010
John... Did you set a keyframe for the first frame of the sabre?
If not then the changes will be the same for each frame.
by John 01/22/2010
ok i have watched this tutorial over and over again trying to figure out whats going on wrong, for some reason every time i move onto the next frame to move the lightsaber blade to where it should be for THAT frame i look back to the previous frame and the lightsaber blade has moved! ive been at this for 9 hours (no lie), i am burning with rage because i can't figure out what is happening. please i really want to make a star wars film!
by goran 01/22/2010
BELOW, true.
by David 12/18/2009
This guy (kramer) does not respoend to any of the comments. I wonder why you keep posting and asking about a preset for CS4!!!! Dahh!!!!
by amirul love your tutorial 12/14/2009
Hey kramer, Im using cs4... im confuse on what da hell you clicking lol.i cant find it >.<
by buck 12/10/2009
how can i make a video like this
by jovan 12/08/2009
how can I make this
a
by ben jones 11/18/2009
i thought i would help some people you want to use the saber for adobe after effects cs4,

find the program on the hardrive where it had been installed. then go onto support files and presets. put it in there and it should work fine.

ben jones
;)
by smith 11/11/2009
I just wanted to ask why dont u guys use the motion track function on the program to track the light saber and apply it the the glowing stick.
by DarthTony 11/10/2009
Hello Mr.Kramer.
You are doing a great job keep going so we all can learn ur knowlegde.
Anyway,i am using Adobe After Effects Cs4 and i can't load this one..although is a very good idea this effect with the lightsaber and it would helped me alot with my project...do u have it for Cs4?
Thank you.
by darth rose 11/06/2009
I don't now have ligthsaber sound were I gonna get that.
by darth rose 11/06/2009
I don't want do my comercial with that effect v2
I like more manual.

att. Darth Rose
by ben 11/04/2009
hi,
i got cs4 after affects how do i get it to work on tht?
thnx ben.
by darth rose 11/03/2009
why I cannot download the project of lightsaber v2
by Fernando 10/22/2009
Really cool Your lightsaber i want the plug in, from Chile too (its a coincidence)!!!
by Jaimiko 09/29/2009
Hello! Greetings from Chile, excelent light saber V2.
by matty 09/26/2009
it is so cool
by Ivarento 09/25/2009
Yes, it works in AE cs4
by Max 09/07/2009
please andrew or anyone. Can i have the saber presets for the 6.5 version. send to my email. itsjustmax@yahoo.com
by adam 09/05/2009
dose this stuff work in AE cs4
by Benny 09/03/2009
I love all the tutorials but this probably one of my favourites. Me and my friends are doing a short Star Wars film - see www.bkitch1.350.com/BKitch.htm for more details - my only question is, how do you edit Windows Movie Maker films? Actually, there's one thing I haven't tried, which is saving the movie first - that might actually be it!
by jakhalzmovies 08/20/2009
hey i,m dutch and i watch this tutorial and you say that this not work for after effects cs3 but i have discovered it,s can works in after effects cs3
by N77 08/12/2009


this is really amazing, dute!!!
thanks for sharing your knowledge!
by Roman 08/06/2009
Thanx Andrew for this tutorial.
I'm also would like to ask you to update pluging for CS4!

And it is a good idea to make a tutorial on how to create plugin like this. maybe it would be a bit dry but it would help to learn AAF better!
by Mike 08/02/2009
Thank you and my fellow Star Wars fans for these effects. Thank you Jesus, I mean Mr. Kramer for having this up here. Now I can make my Star Wars videos perfectly. I am greatful to Star Wars. PERIOD! The same with George Lucas.
by Alessandro 08/02/2009
I ask too, if you *please* could upgrade the saber preset
by Ryan 07/24/2009
Great tutorial but the preset does'nt work in CS4 so yeah...

Could you please make this for CS4?
by Phillip 07/18/2009
PLEASE make this for CS4, i will give you FULL credit in my video if you do.
by Mitchell 07/14/2009
Ok.. great tutorial.. but

I added the gray solid over my video, and then dragged the Light_Saber_V2 file onto the video and i recieve this error:

After Effects warning: Class 'Effect' has no property or method named 'Perspective'
Expression disabled.

Error occured at line 3.
Comp: 'Lightsaber'
Layer:1 ('Gray Solid 1')
Property: 'Starting Thickness'

So can anyone help me out? I am running AE CS4. Please do not ignore this comment.


~Mitchell
by Seth 07/12/2009
Hay Tim you just click on the button that says download project.
by tim 07/10/2009
how the heck do you you download it?
by jake 07/09/2009
how do you get after effects
by frank 07/06/2009
how to dow ster wars
by Kennet 07/01/2009
@Cameron: for sound, just google lightsaber sound and you should be able to find some sound effects that you can import into AE and mix together. I found some good ones here: http://www.theforce.net/fanfilms/postproduction/soundfx/saberfx_fergo.asp
by Cameron 06/27/2009
Hey can anyone tell me how to add the lightsaber's sound effects?
by Remington 06/15/2009
Hey andrew, thanks again. For everyone above, it does work on CS4. Do you think that motion tracking would work for this andrew? if you just put 2 red dots on your saber or something? maybe it would just be easier to rotoscope it, but its just an idea.
by luke0978 06/12/2009
Mr Kramer you are the god of all effect gods thank you!!!! :)
by Abdi 06/03/2009
Please andrew is there anyway to get this on CS4??!!!!

great tutorial, it just wont work though!!
by Jurgen 06/02/2009
very nice work! To finish it of you might try to let the opacity decrease on fast movements like u can c on the actual footage.

By the way I'm using CS4 and it works perfectly.

Thanks from Belgium
by william Q 05/30/2009
hey wats up i love your tutorials but just wondering will this work for the newest verion??
please reply

by Geyner 05/29/2009
Hi there Andrew, the problem I have is that the lightsaber i'm using (stick) shows after I do the mask, how can I get rid of it?
by zac 05/26/2009
when will the one for 6.5 come out???
by kevin 05/24/2009
hi i have cs4 and when i try to use this it says im missing files, do i need a specific plug in for this and iff so which one.
by kevin e 05/24/2009
hey i downloaded it and every time i try to use it the program says theres something missing, do i need a plug in cuz i have riot gear, real clouds, bullet time,and one more, i have cs4, is there something else i need
by MT 05/23/2009
hi im getting AE 7.0 does it work on standard or just pro
by john 05/22/2009
hi! how do you apply this to my plug ins. it doesn't seem to work. i have after effects cs4
by MrNocturne 05/19/2009
Hey, Thanks for the awesome tutorials. I found that if I motion tracked 2 points in my footage (The base of the blade and the tip) then assigned the trackign data to null objects, I could then link the position of the null objects to the start and end points on the 'saber' Thus speeding up the process of manipulating each frame. Unfortunately you need really good footage. It works best for relitavely still shots with subtle sabre movement.
by nicky 05/18/2009
where i put the lightsaber folder in which folder?
by Alex 05/18/2009
But I have AE 6.0
by Mick 05/18/2009
hi, if i download the projest in user presets i cant fing it back on adobe, plz help me :(
by Stalmation 05/12/2009
Thank's Andrew, very cool effect. Here is my result
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiJVhoVF8iU
by Adam 05/10/2009
I don't have glow!
Please help me Andrew!
by Ivan 05/08/2009
Hi andrew...i am doing a project with the lightsaber, and it last 10 seconds, but i dont know how to make the mask in all the video, i just make it in one part of the video, anyway i want to know how to do it in a 10 second video...thanks...i wait for your answer.
by niklas 05/02/2009
hey andrew your tutorial is the best on the net.
But my adobe effect 7.0 pro can't use it, it says the files is missing.
i get the spots i each end of the saber, but no saber. You are a very kind man if you gelp me here :D
- maybe a newer version or something?:D

niklas sweden
by stev-o 04/25/2009
Hey Andrew,

I have Adobe After Effects CS3 and it doesn't seem to allow me to paste the folders or even the .ffx files into the presets folder. Is there a way around this problem?
by noob 04/24/2009
where to download this light saber
by pym 04/22/2009
whoever likes starwars go to this link



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl4fazc-hU0
by Jonathan 04/06/2009
How can I get the lightsaber on my compeuter?
by JBantha 03/28/2009
Thanks a lot! I've just made probably the worst lightsaber video ever, but this is one of a kind tutorial that even a rookie like me could get1 XD

again: THANK YOU SO MUCH! ^^
by Mads 03/28/2009
hey andrew your tutorial is the best on the net.
But my adobe effect 7.0 pro can't use it, it says the files is missing.
i get the spots i each end of the saber, but no saber. You are a very kind man if you gelp me here :D
- maybe a newer version or something?:D
by alma 03/19/2009
Hey andrew in adobe after effects the saber blur looks like the original lightsaber please help
by ashton 03/17/2009
i love lightsabers im getting mine on monday i am getting ten of them
by ryan 03/17/2009
hey um how do i download it!?
thanks
by Light_saber 03/17/2009
Thanks alot, i love all your tutorial's This 1 is GREAT!

:D
by gethin 03/16/2009
Everything worked out in the end. At a distance, the saber's glow tends to meld into each other. Going frame by frame it looked wierd, but watching it back in realtime it looked fine. Here is how it turned out....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEdr4cHokKM

Thanks Mr Kramer
by Thunderstud 03/14/2009
I was wondering if you knew how to import the file into a CS4 production premier package? I cannot seem to get it to work.
by THEDARKSIDE 03/14/2009
what version is this
by THEDARKSIDE 03/14/2009
WHICH version is this
by Calvin 03/11/2009
Hey thanks for another cool tutorial.. check out this movie i made it has a couple of light saber scenes in it..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK9y9a29kg8
by Fred 03/11/2009
Hey Mr. Kramer,

I am having a problem. When I try to import the saber glow into my project, It does not look anything like yours in the tutorial. It is bigger and brighter and makes it not look like a lightsaber anymore. It just makes it look like a big blob in the background.

Help?
by Jack 03/09/2009
Thanks a lot for this! It really saves time and looks really good. The tut was really easy to follow and helped me learn about AE while i made a sweet light saber video! The precomp thing at the end also was a real help! THANKS!!!!
by Carlos 03/03/2009
Hello, Exellent tutorial but I still cant find the lightsaber pressetV1 or V2.
I would like V2 where can I find it?

Thanks
by Skif 02/27/2009
im having some difficulty with the playback, every time i hit 0 on my keypad, it does a "rendering frame XX of XX" and its not in real time. Often times it wont render the whole animation either. im using CS3/vista, any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance
by MT 02/23/2009
u said u were going to upgrade it to be used for adobe 6.5 cause thats all i got. plz plz plz plz plz tell me if it has been upgraded i have adobe 6.5 standard so yah get back to me
by Gethin 02/21/2009
Hello I love the tutorials and everything has worked fine for one saber, but I was hoping someone out there could help me with a problem I have with two. I did my first saber in red, and everything was fine. I started the second one in green and everything was fine until the two sabers came close to each other and the red one turned green too. I tried precomposing the red first, and then I rendered it, but the green values are still transfering to the red saber on the layer below. Does anyone know how to work around this? Thanks. And a special thanks to Mr Kramer, Love your work.
by john 02/08/2009
hi my name is john and i watched your video light sabers v2 and i wanted you to email me at tombforever@aim.com and tell me how to down load that thing because i couldnt figure it out.
by EdgeoFmaX 01/25/2009
WOW!! Thank to you Andrew!!!
by Eric 01/25/2009
Hey i have had this preset before and i was great, i recently had to reformat my pc and reinstall AE, but when i reinstall the preset it gives me the error "This contains 4 references to missing effects. Please install the following effects to restore these references. (Alpha Levels", "Simple Choker." I am using AE Pro 7.


what do you think could be the problem
by Chris 01/24/2009
hey u might think this is a stupid question but...


were do u download tht program??

by Stanley Napiza 01/22/2009
Hi Andrew,
Ive been watching your tutorials for quite some time now, what ive been so focused about is this lightsaber tutorial and the demon face tutorial.
I have this crazy idea of a movie my friends and I want to make heres the link http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=oas02e
by Jacob Behunin 01/22/2009
This doesnt seem to work in After Effects CS4.
V1 seems to work fine. But not V2
by shadow 01/21/2009
what FX do you use if two light sabers collide
by babydeathfather 01/19/2009
can you use it in real life by a self made lightsaber
by Kevin 01/18/2009
Hey

I have probelm...

I did everthing that the tutorial said but it didn't work

I line up the lightscaber in AE and it looks great, but when i export the video the lightscaber is not lined up

Please help

Kevin
by Josue Romero 01/15/2009
um when i downloaded it didnt leyt me open it.
how am i suppose to open it????
by max 01/15/2009
do i have to buy something to do that?
by gunn 01/08/2009
hi i am knew to thiss and i was wondering what program/s to use to run this
by Andrew Tran 01/07/2009
A message to Michael, The download can be downloaded right next to the video button.
by Michael 01/06/2009
In AE CS3 Pro the motion blur for the lightsaber does not work for me!! any tipps??
by matthew a 01/05/2009
are the file downloads free
by brandx96 12/27/2008
do u have it with cs4? i really need it for cs4. :) love your tutorials.
by MyChEmIcAlRoMaNcE 12/23/2008
love it
by Lunatic 12/21/2008
thanks very much!
by nat 12/03/2008
how do i get this on my computer
by kevin 12/03/2008
how do i get this on my computer and were do i get the drivers? help please send mail via youtube go to www.youtube.com/haloguy00 please
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