User Guide Cancel

Enhanced HDR support

Search
After Effects

After Effects

Open app
  1. After Effects User Guide
  2. Beta releases
    1. Beta Program Overview
    2. After Effects Beta Home
  3. Getting started
    1. Get started with After Effects
    2. What's new in After Effects 
    3. Release Notes | After Effects
    4. After Effects system requirements
    5. Keyboard shortcuts in After Effects
    6. Supported File formats | After Effects
    7. Hardware recommendations
    8. After Effects for Apple silicon
    9. Planning and setup
  4. Workspaces
    1. General user interface items
    2. Get to know After Effects interface
    3. Workflows
    4. Workspaces, panels, and viewers
  5. Projects and compositions
    1. Projects
    2. Composition basics
    3. Precomposing, nesting, and pre-rendering
    4. View detailed performance information with the Composition Profiler
    5. CINEMA 4D Composition Renderer
  6. Importing footage
    1. Preparing and importing still images
    2. Importing from After Effects and Adobe Premiere Pro
    3. Importing and interpreting video and audio
    4. Preparing and importing 3D image files
    5. Importing and interpreting footage items
    6. Working with footage items
    7. Detect edit points using Scene Edit Detection
    8. XMP metadata
  7. Text and Graphics
    1. Text
      1. Formatting characters and the Character panel
      2. Text effects
      3. Creating and editing text layers
      4. Formatting paragraphs and the Paragraph panel
      5. Extruding text and shape layers
      6. Animating text
      7. Examples and resources for text animation
      8. Live Text Templates
    2. Motion Graphics
      1. Work with Motion Graphics templates in After Effects
      2. Use expressions to create drop-down lists in Motion Graphics templates
      3. Work with Essential Properties to create Motion Graphics templates
      4. Replace images and videos in Motion Graphics templates and Essential Properties
      5. Animate faster and easier using the Properties panel
  8. Drawing, Painting, and Paths
    1. Overview of shape layers, paths, and vector graphics
    2. Paint tools: Brush, Clone Stamp, and Eraser
    3. Taper shape strokes
    4. Shape attributes, paint operations, and path operations for shape layers
    5. Use Offset Paths shape effect to alter shapes
    6. Creating shapes
    7. Create masks
    8. Remove objects from your videos with the Content-Aware Fill panel
    9. Roto Brush and Refine Matte
  9. Layers, Markers, and Camera
    1. Selecting and arranging layers
    2. Blending modes and layer styles
    3. 3D layers
    4. Layer properties
    5. Creating layers
    6. Managing layers
    7. Layer markers and composition markers
    8. Cameras, lights, and points of interest
  10. Animation, Keyframes, Motion Tracking, and Keying
    1. Animation
      1. Animation basics
      2. Animating with Puppet tools
      3. Managing and animating shape paths and masks
      4. Animating Sketch and Capture shapes using After Effects
      5. Assorted animation tools
      6. Work with Data-driven animation
    2. Keyframe
      1. Keyframe interpolation
      2. Setting, selecting, and deleting keyframes
      3. Editing, moving, and copying keyframes
    3. Motion tracking
      1. Tracking and stabilizing motion
      2. Face Tracking
      3. Mask Tracking
      4. Mask Reference
      5. Speed
      6. Time-stretching and time-remapping
      7. Timecode and time display units
    4. Keying
      1. Keying
      2. Keying effects
  11. Transparency and Compositing
    1. Compositing and transparency overview and resources
    2. Alpha channels and masks
    3. Track Mattes and Traveling Mattes
  12. Adjusting color
    1. Color basics
    2. Color management
    3. Color Correction effects
    4. OpenColorIO and ACES color management
    5. Enhanced HDR support
  13. Effects and Animation Presets
    1. Effects and animation presets overview
    2. Effect list
    3. Effect Manager
    4. Simulation effects
    5. Stylize effects
    6. Audio effects
    7. Distort effects
    8. Perspective effects
    9. Channel effects
    10. Generate effects
    11. Time effects
    12. Transition effects
    13. The Rolling Shutter Repair effect
    14. Blur and Sharpen effects
    15. 3D Channel effects
    16. Utility effects
    17. Matte effects
    18. Noise and Grain effects
    19. Detail-preserving Upscale effect
    20. Obsolete effects
  14. Expressions and Automation
    1. Expressions
      1. Expression basics
      2. Understanding the expression language
      3. Using expression controls
      4. Syntax differences between the JavaScript and Legacy ExtendScript expression engines
      5. Editing expressions
      6. Expression errors
      7. Using the Expressions editor
      8. Use expressions to edit and access text properties
      9. Expression language reference
      10. Expression examples
    2. Automation
      1. Automation
      2. Scripts
  15. Immersive video, VR, and 3D
    1. Construct VR environments in After Effects
    2. Apply immersive video effects
    3. Compositing tools for VR/360 videos
    4. Advanced 3D Renderer
    5. Import and add 3D models to your composition
    6. Import 3D models from Creative Cloud Libraries
    7. Image-Based Lighting
    8. Extract and animate lights and cameras from 3D models
    9. Tracking 3D camera movement
    10. Cast and accept shadows
    11. Embedded 3D model animations
    12. Shadow Catcher
    13. 3D depth data extraction
    14. Modify materials properties of a 3D layer
    15. Work in 3D Design Space
    16. 3D Transform Gizmos
    17. Do more with 3D animation
    18. Preview changes to 3D designs real time with the Mercury 3D engine
    19. Add responsive design to your graphics 
  16. Views and Previews
    1. Previewing
    2. Video preview with Mercury Transmit
    3. Modifying and using views
  17. Rendering and Exporting
    1. Basics of rendering and exporting
    2. H.264 Encoding in After Effects
    3. Export an After Effects project as an Adobe Premiere Pro project
    4. Converting movies
    5. Multi-frame rendering
    6. Automated rendering and network rendering
    7. Rendering and exporting still images and still-image sequences
    8. Using the GoPro CineForm codec in After Effects
  18. Working with other applications
    1. Dynamic Link and After Effects
    2. Working with After Effects and other applications
      1. Export After Effects project as Premiere Pro project
    3. Sync Settings in After Effects
    4. Creative Cloud Libraries in After Effects
    5. Plug-ins
    6. Cinema 4D and Cineware
  19. Collaboration: Frame.io, and Team Projects
    1. Collaboration in Premiere Pro and After Effects
    2. Frame.io
      1. Install and activate Frame.io
      2. Use Frame.io with Premiere Pro and After Effects
      3. Frequently asked questions
    3. Team Projects
      1. Get Started with Team Projects
      2. Create a Team Project
      3. Collaborate with Team Projects
  20. Memory, storage, performance
    1. Memory and storage
    2. How After Effects handles low memory issues while previewing    
    3. Improve performance
    4. Preferences
    5. GPU and GPU driver requirements for After Effects
  21. Knowledge Base
    1. Known issues
    2. Fixed issues
    3. Frequently asked questions
    4. After Effects and macOS Ventura
    5. How After Effects handles low memory issues while previewing

Learn about previewing your work in HDR to view exactly how it will appear on HDR-capable high-end monitors once exported.

  Use new beta features

Enhanced HDR support is now available for testing and feedback. Try it now in After Effects (beta).

Get started

On this page:

When working with HDR (High Dynamic Range) content, previewing them in HDR is crucial to ensure your final project looks as expected on a wide range of display devices, such as HDR-capable high-end monitors. With the latest After Effects (Beta) version 25.2x72, you can accurately view your HDR projects on HDR-capable hardware. This update allows you to import HDR media, place it in a composition, and preview your work in HDR on your monitor or using external hardware. This way, you get an accurate view of what the final output will look like when exported.

Note:

For HDR colors to be displayed in HDR, you will need an HDR display, and your operating system HDR display setting enabled.

Create an HDR project

  1. Launch After Effects and create a new project.

  2. Go to File > Project Settings to set your Color options.

  3. In the Color tab, do the following:

    • In the Color Management section, set Color Engine to Adobe color managed.
    • In the Color Settings section, set Bit Depth to 32 bits per channel and select a Working Color Space that supports HDR, such as Rec.2100 PQ.
    Project Settings dialog box is open and under the Color tab the settings are updated to preview HDR content.
    Use the Project Settings dialog box to adjust the settings for previewing HDR content.

  4. Now import a supported HDR file into After Effects. 

  5. Check in the Project panel if the color profile of your HDR footage is correctly recognized.

  6. If the profile isn't correctly detected, you can use the Interpret Footage option. To launch the dialog box, select the footage in the Project panel, right-click, and select Interpret Footage.

    The Interpret Footage dialog box is open and the Override Media Color Space is set to P3 D65 PQ.
    Use the Interpret Footage option to adjust the Color Management and Color Settings if they aren't detected correctly.

  7. In your composition viewer, select the Show Channel and Color Management Settings   icon and enable Use Display Color Management.

    The Show Channel and Color Management Settings is open and enable Use Display Color Management is checked.
    Use the Enable Display Color Management options to ensure color space consistency across various devices.

  8. Once done, you are now previewing the HDR footage in After Effects.

Color managed formats in After Effects

Here are the formats that are currently supported:

  • Quicktime Prores SDR
  • H264/HEVC
  • MXF: XAVC
  • AVC
  • XAVC-H
  • Raw formats: ARRI, Canon, Sony, ProRes, and Red

Previewing with Transmit

After Effects also supports previewing your HDR content through Transmit.

Preview to a secondary monitor

If you're using an HDR display directly connected to your computer, enabling Mercury Transmit to that monitor will automatically send an HDR signal. If your monitor supports several HDR modes, make sure to select the appropriate one.

The Enable Mercury Transmit is checked and device selected to view compositions on an external display.
Mercury Transmit lets you view your compositions on an external display, such as a video monitor connected via third-party hardware like Blackmagic or AJA devices.

Preview to a display using a hardware interface

If you're using Mercury Transmit with dedicated hardware, such as Blackmagic or AJA devices, you will need to select the proper profile in the device settings.

Third-party hardware support

Support for AJA and Blackmagic will be added in the future. If you are using an HDR-compatible AJA device, you can already select the 10-bit HLG profile to display HDR out of After Effects.

More like this

Additional resources

Help us to make the next releases of After Effects our best yet.
Submit feature requests, view, track, and vote for issues/feature requests using the After Effects beta support community.

Get help faster and easier

New user?

Quick links

View all your plans Manage your plans
View quick links
Hide quick links

Legal Notices    |    Online Privacy Policy