This tutorial is on how to change the color of a Solid over time in After Effects. It’s just over 2 minutes so take a look and let me know if this is what you do to accomplish this or if you do something different.
Recapping the Tutorial
Create a Solid and Change the Color
First you need to create a new Solid in After Effects. Use the keyboard shortcut Command+Y (Mac) or Control+Y (PC). Give the Solid a name and make it the Comp size then click OK.
To change the color of a solid in After Effects, select the solid then use the keyboard shortcut Command+Shift+Y (Mac) or Control+Shift+Y (PC). Change the color then click OK.
Change the Color of a Solid Over Time in After Effects
Let’s say you want to change the color of the solid over time.
Go to the Effects & Presets panel. Type in Fill to find the Fill Effect. Take it and drag it onto the solid in the timeline. The color defaults to red. Don’t worry!
Move the time position indicator in the timeline to where you want to transition to start. Select the layer of the solid and find the Effects Control panel. Change the color from red to whatever you want it to be. Click the Stopwatch icon next to Color.
Move the time position indicator in the timeline to where you want the transition to end. Change the color in the Effects Control panel. Repeat these two steps as needed if you want to change the color more than one time.
Scrub through the timeline to view the results.
If you want to view where the keyframes are on the timeline in case you want to adjust the timing or delete them then select the layer of the solid and hit the “U” key. This keyboard shortcut is the same on Macs and PCs. It shows the properties of a selected layer that have keyframes on them. If you hit the “U” key twice in a row rapidly it’ll show any property that has been changed on a layer (this is super useful to me!!).
That’s it. You should now know how to change the color of a solid over time in After Effects.
Suggested Viewing: Change Color of One Letter in Text in After Effects
Since releasing this tutorial I’ve made a ton more tutorials for After Effects, Avid Media Composer, Premiere Pro, Media Encoder, and Photoshop. I appreciate any input you have to make these tutorials better. If there’s anything you want me to show you let me know below in the comments section. Remember to subscribe to get notified when there’s a new post here on Edit Video Faster.