After Effects: How to Make a 2D Photo Into a 3D Video

Let’s learn how to make a 3D video from a 2D photo using Photoshop and After Effects. We’ll break down each step in an easy-to-follow manner, ensuring you can bring your images to life with dynamic 3D effects. Whether you’re a hobbyist or an aspiring professional, this tutorial will help you create these amazing moving photos. So let’s dive in!

Tutorial Assets

You’ll need one of the following resources to complete this project and create the 3D photo effect:

• Young African woman walks alone on European street
• Young man wearing winter clothes in the street

1. How to Create a Depth Map in Adobe Photoshop

Before we begin to turn our 2D image into a 3D video in Adobe After Effects, we need to first create a depth map of our chosen photo. Creating a depth map is a crucial step because it allows you to define the spatial relationship between objects in your image.

This gradient helps After Effects understand how to simulate depth and perspective, making your 3D effect more realistic and dynamic.

Step 1

Let’s get started by launching Adobe Photoshop and opening your chosen photo. From there, go to Filter > Neural Filters (Alt-Control-F) to access the Neural Filters panel.

Step 2

From there, select Depth Blur from the list of options, which will simulate the effect of depth of field in your images, creating a sense of three-dimensionality. 

Step 3

Once you’ve selected it, you should be able to see how the effect changes the look of your chosen photograph.

Step 4

Select Output Depth Map Only at the bottom of the panel, and then select OK to apply.

Step 5

By using a depth map, where different shades of gray represent various distances from the camera, Photoshop can blur elements based on their distance. This technique mimics the natural focus and blur seen in real-world photography, where objects further from the focal point appear out of focus.

Export your new depth map, and then let’s take it into Adobe After Effects!

2. How to Make a 2D Image 3D in Adobe After Effects

Step 1

Now let’s learn how to make a 2D image 3D. Import both the original photo and the depth map into a new project in Adobe After Effects. Then create a new composition from the original photo by Right-Clicking on the photo and selecting New Comp From Selection.

Step 2

Click and drag the depth map into the composition and place it on top of the original photo. Then click on the Eye Icon to hide the layer.

Step 3

Select the original photo and apply a Displacement Map. You can find this by typing it in the Effects & Presets panel or by going to Effect > Distort > Displacement Map.

Step 4

In the Effects Control panel, for Displacement Layer select the Depth Map from the dropdown menu.

Step 5

In the next dropdown box, select Effects & Masks.

Step 6

Change both the options for Horizontal and Vertical Displacement to Luminance.

Step 7

From there, you can then animate and alter the values for Max Horizontal Displacement and Max Vertical Displacement to give the illusion of a 3D animation.

Step 8

This is best used subtly, as larger values will cause the image to stretch in unnatural ways.

Step 9 

To alleviate this, you can add a Gaussian Blur to the Depth Map and increase the blurriness. This effect can be found in the Effects & Presets panel or by going to Effect > Blur and Sharpen > Gaussian Blur.

Step 10

Alternatively, you can separate the subject altogether by introducing another layer in the composition. Remember to make sure that the subject has been exported as a PNG to give it a transparent background.

Step 11

This layer will not be affected by the 3D effect, but it will allow you to use multiple subjects.

3. How to Create the Animation

Step 1

Now that you have everything set up, all that’s left is to create the keyframes for your animation.

To do this, move the playhead to the starting point in the timeline and set the initial keyframe values for Max Horizontal Displacement and Max Vertical Displacement. For this example, we’ll go with an initial value of 0 for both, so that the image looks like the original photograph. This will also create your first two keyframes in the timeline.

Step 2

Now, move the playhead to the next point in time. The further in time you move, the slower the animation will be. So play with how far along you want your next keyframe to be depending on how slowly you want the animation to play and how long you want it to last. In this example, I’ve moved it to 5 seconds.

Step 3

Once you’ve decided on the next point in time, change the values for Max Horizontal Displacement and Max Vertical Displacement until you’re happy with the amount of movement you’ve created. This will create your final two keyframes.

Step 4

From there, press the Spacebar to preview your animation. You can then make adjustments to the timing of your animation by adjusting the keyframe placements. Or adjust the amount of movement by changing the values for Max Horizontal Displacement and Max Vertical Displacement.

4. How to Render the Animation

Step 1

Once you’re happy with the way your animation looks, you’ll want to render it into a final video. Click on your composition in the Project panel to select it.

Step 2

Go to Composition > Add to Render Que (Control-M) to open the Render Queue panel at the bottom of the screen.

Step 3

Click on the blue text next to the Render Settings. Ensure it is set to your desired quality.

Step 4

Click on the blue text next to Output Module to adjust the output settings. Choose the appropriate format (e.g. QuickTime, MP4, etc.) and codec.

Step 5

Click on the blue text next to Output To to select the destination and file name for your rendered video.

Step 6

Click the Render button in the top-right corner of the Render Queue panel. After Effects will begin rendering your animation. And that’s how to make a 2D image 3D!

Awesome! You’re Finished!

Congratulations! And that’s how you can turn a 2D image into a 3D video using Adobe After Effects. Feel free to use multiple subjects or your own photos to create your own 3D videos.

In the meantime, I hope you’ve found this tutorial useful, and I’ll see you next time on Envato Tuts+!