After Effects is amazing for creating visual effects and motion graphics. However, like any powerful software, rendering projects can be a time-consuming process. If you’ve ever sat in front of your computer, impatiently waiting for a project to render, you know how frustrating it can be. To the point where you will doubt yourself if you optimized your work enough. In this article we’ll give some tips on how to speed up your rendering process!
The basics
The CAPS Lock Key
Surprisingly, a simple thing such as turning on the CAPS LOCK can help accelerate the rendering speed in After Effects. When rendering, After Effects shows a preview of the project. While this might seem useful, it actually doubles the workload for your computer. By enabling CAPS LOCK, you freeze the preview, ensuring that your computer focuses solely on the rendering task rather than providing a simultaneous preview.
Close Unnecessary Applications
Just like human multitasking, a computer running multiple applications at once may struggle to perform optimally. To speed up rendering, ensure you close all unnecessary tabs and applications. This action allows your computer to allocate more resources to After Effects, thereby speeding up the rendering process.
Optimize Motion Tile Output
Motion tile is a powerful effect, but it can be resource-intensive. If you’re using the motion tile effect, check your output width/height. An excessively high setting can slow down rendering. The typical range is between 300 and 500, so adjust accordingly to optimize performance. Don’t go overboard with this effect and make sure to only set the width and height to your needs.
Smart Use of Caching
If your render is getting stuck at a particular part of the video, caching can be a savior. Cache that part of the video in full resolution to overcome the issue. Alternatively, you could cache the entire video in full resolution before rendering to speed up the process. Remember, caching is like giving your computer a head start, so use it wisely!
Maximize After Effects RAM Capacity
Another simple yet effective way to speed up rendering is by increasing After Effects’ RAM capacity. Go to Preferences > Memory… and lower the RAM reserved for other applications to the lowest possible setting. This will allow After Effects to utilize more system memory, thereby speeding up rendering.
Turn on Cache Frames When Idle
This feature enables After Effects to render compositions automatically when left idle. Ensure that the Preview Resolution of the composition window is set to Full to maximize the benefits of this feature. By doing so, the frames already cached will reduce the final rendering time.
Beyond the Basics
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s dive into some additional options to speed up your rendering process.
Use a Solid State Drive (SSD)
SSDs are much faster than traditional hard drives when it comes to reading and writing data. Having your After Effects project on an SSD can significantly improve rendering times.
Leverage the Power of GPU
After Effects can utilize your GPU to speed up rendering and add more power to your processing capabilities. Make sure your GPU is updated and properly configured in your After Effects settings.
Purge Memory Regularly
Over time, After Effects builds up temporary cache files. By going to Edit > Purge > All Memory & Disk Cache, you can clear these files and free up your system memory, potentially speeding up rendering.
Enable Multi-Frame Rendering
Multi-frame rendering allows After Effects to render multiple frames simultaneously, leveraging the power of your CPU’s multiple cores. To enable it, navigate to Edit > Preferences > Memory & Performance.
