How do you add lighting and shading to smoke and fire effects in After Effects?

1 Generate smoke and fire

The first step is to generate your smoke and fire elements using a particle system or a plugin. After Effects has a native particle system called CC Particle World, which can create basic smoke and fire effects with some customization. However, if you want more control and realism, you can use a third-party plugin like Trapcode Particular, which has more options and presets for creating smoke and fire. You can also use stock footage or pre-rendered elements from online libraries or other sources.

2 Add color and contrast

The next step is to adjust the color and contrast of your smoke and fire elements to match the scene and the mood. You can use the Curves, Levels, or Hue/Saturation effects to tweak the brightness, contrast, and color balance of your elements. You can also use the Tint effect to add a color tint to your elements, or the Colorama effect to create a gradient map. For example, you can use a warm orange tint for fire and a cool blue tint for smoke.

3 Add glow and blur

The third step is to add glow and blur effects to your smoke and fire elements to make them look more natural and organic. You can use the Glow effect to create a soft halo around your elements, or the Stylize > Glow effect to create a more intense and stylized glow. You can also use the Fast Blur or Gaussian Blur effects to soften the edges and details of your elements. You can also use the Radial Blur or CC Radial Fast Blur effects to create a motion blur effect for your elements.

4 Add shadows and highlights

The fourth step is to add shadows and highlights to your smoke and fire elements to create depth and realism. You can use the Drop Shadow effect to create a simple shadow for your elements, or the CC Light Sweep effect to create a directional highlight. You can also use the CC Light Rays or CC Light Burst effects to create rays of light from your elements. You can also use the CC Radial Blur or CC Radial Fast Blur effects to create a volumetric light effect for your elements.

5 Add ambient occlusion and reflections

The fifth step is to add ambient occlusion and reflections to your smoke and fire elements to make them interact with the environment and the objects in the scene. You can use the CC Ambient Occlusion effect to create a subtle shading effect for your elements, or the CC Composite effect to blend your elements with the background. You can also use the CC Environment or CC Sphere effects to create reflections for your elements, or the CC Glass or CC Plastic effects to create a refractive distortion for your elements.

6 Add noise and grain

The final step is to add noise and grain to your smoke and fire elements to make them look more realistic and less digital. You can use the Noise or Fractal Noise effects to add some random variation and texture to your elements, or the Add Grain or Match Grain effects to match the grain of your footage or background. You can also use the Turbulent Displace or Displacement Map effects to create some distortion and movement for your elements.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?