Aescripts Easy Bake 1.0.3: A Comprehensive Review and Tutorial
Aescripts Easy Bake 1.0.3: The Ultimate Guide
If you are an After Effects user who works with expressions and keyframes, you know how powerful they can be for creating dynamic and complex animations. But you also know how frustrating they can be when they slow down your project performance, complicate your project structure, or limit your project output.
Aescripts Easy Bake 1.0.3
That's why you need Easy Bake, a tool that converts expressions to keyframes faster, simpler, and with more control than ever before. Easy Bake is a collaboration between Khanyu Inc. and Zack Lovatt, two experienced After Effects developers who have created many popular aescripts tools.
In this article, you will learn everything you need to know about Easy Bake, including:
What are expressions and keyframes in After Effects?
How to use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes?
Why use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes?
Tips and tricks for using Easy Bake effectively
By the end of this article, you will be able to use Easy Bake like a pro and take your After Effects projects to the next level.
What are expressions and keyframes in After Effects?
Before we dive into Easy Bake, let's quickly review what are expressions and keyframes in After Effects.
Expressions are snippets of code that you can apply to any layer property in After Effects. They allow you to link properties together, create random or procedural animations, control values with expressions, and much more. Expressions can save you a lot of time and effort, and open up endless possibilities for your animations.
Keyframes are markers that you can set on any layer property in After Effects. They allow you to record the value of a property at a specific point in time, and create animations by interpolating between keyframes. Keyframes can give you precise control over your animations, and let you edit them easily by adjusting the timing and values of the keyframes.
Both expressions and keyframes have their advantages and disadvantages, depending on the situation and the desired result. Here are some of them:
Expressions
Keyframes
+ Can create complex and dynamic animations with less keyframes
+ Can create simple and static animations with more keyframes
+ Can link properties together and make them react to each other
+ Can isolate properties and make them independent from each other
+ Can control values with mathematical functions and variables
+ Can control values with graphical curves and handles
- Can slow down the project performance and render time
- Can clutter the project structure and timeline
- Can depend on external scripts and plugins that may not be available or compatible
- Can be hard to share and edit with others who may not have the same settings or preferences
- Can be hard to fine-tune the timing and values of the animations
- Can be easy to fine-tune the timing and values of the animations
As you can see, expressions and keyframes are both useful tools for creating animations in After Effects, but they also have their limitations. That's why sometimes you may want to convert expressions to keyframes, or vice versa, depending on your needs. And that's where Easy Bake comes in handy.
How to use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes?
Easy Bake is a tool that allows you to convert expressions to keyframes in After Effects with just one click. It also lets you unbake keyframes back to expressions, ignore layers and properties from baking, optimize your keyframes, and more. In this section, we will show you how to use Easy Bake step by step.
Installing and launching Easy Bake
The first thing you need to do is to download and install Easy Bake from aescripts.com. You can either buy it for $29.99 or try it for free for 7 days. Once you have downloaded the zip file, unzip it and run the installer. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the installation.
To launch Easy Bake, open After Effects and go to Window > Extensions > Easy Bake. This will open a new panel in your workspace. You can dock it anywhere you like, or keep it as a floating window.
The Easy Bake interface
The Easy Bake interface is simple and intuitive. It consists of four main sections:
The top section shows the version number of Easy Bake, a link to the aescripts website, a link to the user guide, and a button to check for updates.
The middle section shows the list of layers and properties in your current composition that have expressions applied to them. You can select or deselect them by clicking on the checkboxes next to them. You can also filter them by name or type using the search box at the top.
The bottom section shows the options for baking, unbaking, ignoring, optimizing, and baking in bulk. You can toggle them on or off by clicking on the buttons next to them. You can also access more settings by clicking on the gear icon at the bottom right corner.
The status bar shows the progress and status of your baking process. It also shows any errors or warnings that may occur during the process.
Baking expressions to keyframes
To bake expressions to keyframes with Easy Bake, follow these steps:
Select the layers and properties that you want to bake from the list in the middle section. You can select multiple items by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the bake option is enabled in the bottom section. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the bake button at the bottom right corner. This will start the baking process.
Wait for the baking process to finish. You will see a progress bar in the status bar, as well as any errors or warnings that may occur. You can also cancel the baking process by clicking on the cancel button.
When the baking process is done, you will see a confirmation message in the status bar. You will also see that the expressions in your selected layers and properties have been replaced by keyframes in your timeline. You can now edit or delete the keyframes as you wish.
Congratulations, you have successfully baked expressions to keyframes with Easy Bake!
Unbaking keyframes to expressions
If you want to undo the baking process and restore the original expressions, you can use the unbake option in Easy Bake. To unbake keyframes to expressions with Easy Bake, follow these steps:
Select the layers and properties that you want to unbake from the list in the middle section. You can select multiple items by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the unbake option is enabled in the bottom section. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the unbake button at the bottom right corner. This will start the unbaking process.
Wait for the unbaking process to finish. You will see a progress bar in the status bar, as well as any errors or warnings that may occur. You can also cancel the unbaking process by clicking on the cancel button.
When the unbaking process is done, you will see a confirmation message in the status bar. You will also see that the keyframes in your selected layers and properties have been replaced by expressions in your timeline. You can now edit or delete the expressions as you wish.
Congratulations, you have successfully unbaked keyframes to expressions with Easy Bake!
Ignoring layers and properties from baking
If you want to exclude certain layers and properties from the baking process, you can use the ignore option in Easy Bake. To ignore layers and properties from baking with Easy Bake, follow these steps:
Select the layers and properties that you want to ignore from the list in the middle section. You can select multiple items by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the ignore option is enabled in the bottom section. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the ignore button at the bottom right corner. This will mark the selected items as ignored.
You will see that the ignored items have a red icon next to them in the list, indicating that they will not be baked or unbaked. You can also see how many items are ignored in the status bar.
If you want to unignore an item, simply select it and click on the ignore button again. This will remove the red icon and make it available for baking or unbaking.
Congratulations, you have successfully ignored layers and properties from baking with Easy Bake! Why use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes?
Now that you know how to use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes, you may wonder why you should use it in the first place. What are the benefits of using Easy Bake over other methods or tools? In this section, we will answer these questions and show you why Easy Bake is the best tool for converting expressions to keyframes in After Effects.
Speed up your project performance
One of the main reasons to use Easy Bake is to speed up your project performance and render time. Expressions can be very useful for creating dynamic and complex animations, but they can also be very demanding on your computer resources. Every time you play back or render your project, After Effects has to evaluate and calculate the expressions for every frame. This can slow down your project significantly, especially if you have a lot of expressions or complex expressions.
By baking expressions to keyframes, you can reduce the load on your computer and make your project run faster and smoother. Keyframes are much easier for After Effects to process than expressions, because they are fixed values that do not change over time. Once you bake your expressions to keyframes, you do not need to worry about the expressions anymore. You can play back or render your project without any lag or delay.
Simplify your project structure
Another reason to use Easy Bake is to simplify your project structure and make it easier to share and edit. Expressions can be very useful for linking properties together and making them react to each other, but they can also be very complicated and confusing. Sometimes you may not remember what an expression does, or where it comes from, or how it affects other properties. Sometimes you may have expressions that depend on external scripts or plugins that may not be available or compatible with other versions of After Effects.
By baking expressions to keyframes, you can eliminate the dependency on external scripts and plugins, and make your project more self-contained and portable. You can also make your project more clear and organized, by removing the unnecessary expressions and keeping only the keyframes that matter. You can share or edit your project with others who may not have the same settings or preferences as you, without any hassle or confusion.
Control your project output
A third reason to use Easy Bake is to control your project output and fine-tune your animations as needed. Expressions can be very useful for controlling values with mathematical functions and variables, but they can also be very hard to fine-tune and adjust. Sometimes you may want to change the timing or values of your animations, but you do not know how to modify the expressions or what effect they will have. Sometimes you may have expressions that generate random or procedural animations that are not consistent or predictable.
By baking expressions to keyframes, you can gain more control over the timing and values of your animations, and edit them as you wish. You can use the graphical curves and handles in After Effects to adjust the speed and ease of your animations, or use other tools such as Ease and Wizz or Flow to add more style and flair. You can also ensure that your animations are consistent and predictable, by removing the randomness or variability of the expressions. Tips and tricks for using Easy Bake effectively
By now, you should have a good understanding of how and why to use Easy Bake to convert expressions to keyframes in After Effects. But that's not all. Easy Bake also has some advanced features and options that can help you use it more effectively and efficiently. In this section, we will share some tips and tricks for using Easy Bake like a pro.
How to optimize your keyframes with Easy Bake
One of the drawbacks of baking expressions to keyframes is that it can create a lot of keyframes, especially if you have complex or long expressions. This can clutter your timeline and make it harder to edit or adjust your animations. That's why Easy Bake has an option to optimize your keyframes after baking them.
The optimize option in Easy Bake can remove unnecessary keyframes and smooth out your animations, without changing the overall result. It can also reduce the file size and memory usage of your project, and make it faster to load and save. To use the optimize option in Easy Bake, follow these steps:
Select the layers and properties that you want to optimize from the list in the middle section. You can select multiple items by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the optimize option is enabled in the bottom section. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the optimize button at the bottom right corner. This will start the optimization process.
Wait for the optimization process to finish. You will see a progress bar in the status bar, as well as any errors or warnings that may occur. You can also cancel the optimization process by clicking on the cancel button.
When the optimization process is done, you will see a confirmation message in the status bar. You will also see that the number of keyframes in your selected layers and properties has been reduced, and your animations look smoother and cleaner.
Congratulations, you have successfully optimized your keyframes with Easy Bake!
How to bake your whole project or nested precomps with Easy Bake
Sometimes you may want to bake your entire project or selected precomps with expressions to keyframes, instead of doing it layer by layer or property by property. This can save you a lot of time and effort, especially if you have a large or complex project with many expressions. That's why Easy Bake has an option to bake in bulk.
The bake in bulk option in Easy Bake can batch process your entire project or selected precomps with expressions to keyframes, with one click. It can also apply the same options and settings to all the items, such as baking, unbaking, ignoring, optimizing, etc. To use the bake in bulk option in Easy Bake, follow these steps:
Select the compositions that you want to bake from the project panel in After Effects. You can select multiple compositions by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the bake in bulk option is enabled in the bottom section. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the bake in bulk button at the bottom right corner. This will open a new window where you can choose which layers and properties to include or exclude from the baking process.
In the new window, you can see a list of all the layers and properties with expressions in your selected compositions. You can select or deselect them by clicking on the checkboxes next to them. You can also filter them by name or type using the search box at the top.
When you are done selecting the items, click on the OK button at the bottom right corner. This will start the baking process.
Wait for the baking process to finish. You will see a progress bar in the status bar, as well as any errors or warnings that may occur. You can also cancel the baking process by clicking on the cancel button.
When the baking process is done, you will see a confirmation message in the status bar. You will also see that the expressions in your selected compositions have been replaced by keyframes in your timeline. You can now edit or delete the keyframes as you wish.
Congratulations, you have successfully baked your whole project or nested precomps with Easy Bake!
How to use Easy Bake with other popular aescripts tools
Easy Bake is not only a great tool by itself, but also a great companion for other popular aescripts tools that you may use in your After Effects projects. Easy Bake can work well with other aescripts tools such as Rubberhose, Duik, Ease and Wizz, and more. In this section, we will show you some examples of how to use Easy Bake with other aescripts tools.
How to use Easy Bake with Rubberhose
Rubberhose is a tool that allows you to create and animate flexible and dynamic character limbs with simple shapes and expressions. It is a very fun and easy way to create cartoon-style characters in After Effects. However, sometimes you may want to convert the expressions that Rubberhose generates to keyframes, for various reasons. For example, you may want to speed up your project performance, simplify your project structure, or control your project output.
To use Easy Bake with Rubberhose, follow these steps:
Create and animate your character limbs with Rubberhose as usual. You can use the Rubberhose panel to adjust the settings and options of your limbs.
Select the layers and properties that you want to bake from the list in the middle section of Easy Bake. You can select multiple items by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on them.
Make sure that the bake option is enabled in the bottom section of Easy Bake. You can also enable or disable other options as needed.
Click on the bake button at the bottom right corner of Easy Bake. This will start the baking process.
Wait for the baking process to finish. You will see a progress bar in the status bar, as well as any errors or warnings that may occur. You can also cancel the baking process by clicking on the cancel button.
When the baking process is done, you will see a confirmation message in the status bar. You will also see that the expressions in your selected layers and properties have been replaced by keyframes in your timeline. You can now edit or delete the keyframes as you wish.
Congratulations, you have successfully used Easy Bake with Rubberhose!
How to use Easy Bake with Duik
Duik is a tool that allows you to create and animate realistic and complex character rigs with inverse kinematics and expressions. It is a very powerful and versatile way to create realistic-style characters in After Effects. However, sometimes you may want to convert the expressions that Duik generates to keyframes, for various reasons. For example, you may want to speed up your project performance, simplify your project structure, or control your project output.
To use Easy Bake with Duik, follow these steps:
Create and animate your character rigs with Duik as usual. You can use the Duik panel to adjust the settings and options of your rigs.