How Do I Turn an After Effects Animation into an ILDA Laser File?
To turn an After Effects animation into an ILDA file, export supported vector shapes as Lottie JSON or .lottie, import that file into BeamTracer Animation Studio, and check its motion and colors. Leave SAFETY → ILDA FILES → POINTS on SCANNER-SAFE, then use DOWNLOAD ILDA. A static SVG supplies artwork you can animate separately.
Hi, I'm Trina with BeamTracer.com. The preparation starts in your composition. A clean path and a rotation keyframe are useful starting points because you can compare their exported motion with what you intended. Add detail after that small test survives the trip into laser lines.
An original Lottie test animation imported into BeamTracer: 90 frames at 30 fps. This silent capture demonstrates the BeamTracer import, not an After Effects export session.
Should I export Lottie or SVG from my artwork?
Use Lottie when you need supported shape animation to carry its keyframes into BeamTracer. Use SVG when you need a static vector drawing and plan to add motion in Animation Studio. BeamTracer's source picker accepts .svg, .json, and .lottie; it does not open an After Effects .aep project.
| What you want to carry | File to prepare | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Animated shape paths and transforms | Lottie JSON or .lottie | Motion, colors, frame count, and ignored features |
| A logo or outline without its original timeline | Static SVG | Path geometry, placement, and any motion added in BeamTracer |
| A finished raster movie | A video for a video workflow | Tracing differs from importing vector keyframes |
Renaming a video or project file to .json does not convert it. SVG import also does not promise to preserve arbitrary web animation, scripts, or an After Effects timeline. If you already have a Lottie file, the Lottie-to-laser guide covers the import controls in more detail.
How should I prepare the After Effects composition?
Prepare a short composition around shape paths and ordinary position, scale, or rotation keyframes. Check the exporter's compatibility list, then check BeamTracer's imported result. These are two separate checks: an effect supported by a Lottie player can still be omitted from the laser drawing.
Start with a logo outline, a rotating symbol, or a small set of moving curves. Keep a copy of your original composition before simplifying it. Convert any lettering you need as laser geometry into shape outlines, and inspect those paths after export. Raster footage and a glow treatment cannot serve as the vector outline itself.
LottieFiles lists shape layers and transform animation among its supported features, while its compatibility guidance limits effects and excludes After Effects 3D cameras and lights. Consult its current supported-feature guide for your exporter setup.
In BeamTracer, image and text layers, effects, masks, track mattes, and expressions are not drawn as their After Effects appearance. Use baked keyframes when the motion depends on an expression. The LOTTIE panel reports ignored features so you can return to the source and simplify the affected part. A converted text outline is shape geometry; a text layer still needs that conversion.
Avoid building the first test around a dense filled illustration. Laser output follows paths, and every extra segment adds work to the frame. A small animation makes it easier to notice a missing curve, a reversed rotation, or an unexpected color.
How do I export the Lottie file from After Effects?
With the LottieFiles plugin installed, open Window → Extensions → LottieFiles, select Export, and render the composition you want. Save the resulting .json or .lottie file locally and preview it before importing. The plugin's export instructions describe the current controls and save behavior.
- Save a copy of the After Effects project with your prepared vector composition.
- Open Window → Extensions → LottieFiles and choose Export.
- Select the composition and run its Render action.
- Save the completed
.jsonor.lottiefile to your computer. - Preview the file and compare its paths and motion with the composition.
- Open BeamTracer Animation Studio and drop it on SOURCE.
- Check the imported result, then use DOWNLOAD ILDA after the checks below.
If the plugin fails before producing a file, resolve its export error in After Effects. A missing font, footage dependency, or unsupported effect belongs at that stage. If the Lottie plays correctly elsewhere but differs in BeamTracer, read the imported layer's LOTTIE information and compare the affected shapes.
What should I check in Animation Studio?
Check PROPERTIES → LOTTIE for the frame count, frame rate, duration, and ignored features. Play the timeline and compare an early frame with a later one. Then check the source colors and artwork scale before exporting the full animation.
This example contains a rotating magenta star and a fixed cyan ring. The panel reports 90 frames at 30 fps, or three seconds. The layer plays from its start at the file's frame rate and loops for the layer's duration. Check the layer duration as well as the original file duration when you arrange a longer scene.
The importer accepts files up to 10 MB and plays up to 1,800 source frames. A longer animation is truncated; the panel tells you when that happens. Split a long composition into manageable sections if you need all of its source frames.
Use TRANSFORMS to fit the artwork to the canvas. Open COLOR to check whether you want the file's source colors or one selected color for the whole layer. Laser strokes do not reproduce every screen compositing effect or filled surface you saw in After Effects.
How do I export and inspect the ILDA animation?
Leave POINTS on SCANNER-SAFE under SAFETY → ILDA FILES, then click DOWNLOAD ILDA. Open the downloaded file in ILDA Viewer and inspect its frames before trying physical output. For the spatial preview, select 3D, open SCENE, choose CINEMA under BEAM MODE, and use the orbit camera preset.
SCANNER-SAFE fits the exported points to the selected budget. Review any complexity notice and compare the fitted drawing with the original.
The same exported ILDA artwork in Cinema with the orbit camera. This is a software preview, not a recording of a projector.
The export is ILDA Format 5 and contains laser frames. It does not embed the composition's music. Confirm that your destination player supports the format, and configure playback timing there. The source's 30 fps helps you understand the animation; it does not automatically configure every ILDA player.
A scanner preview and a point-budget check cannot approve a real projection setup. Use the laser safety guide for the physical-output requirements. For closer file inspection, follow the ILDA frame and Cinema walkthrough.
Why is part of my composition missing?
Read the LOTTIE panel first, then compare the exported file with the original composition. Missing text or raster layers need vector preparation; omitted effects need a simpler path-based design. If the drawing loses fine detail only after fitting to the point budget, simplify the artwork and inspect another export.
Keep the smallest working version beside your full composition. Add one feature at a time and reimport the file. That gives you a specific layer or operation to revise when a later export changes the picture.