Feature Focus: Customize Transparency Grids and Panel Background Colors

Version 25.1.41 of After Effects Beta introduces support for customizing the Transparency Grid and Background Color for the composition, footage, and layer panels. 

 
Our latest update introduces two helpful new features that will improve the way you design and preview your visual compositions. With the ability to adjust transparency grids and customize panel background colors, you will now have more granular control over the appearance of your workspace. This will allow you to customize the design context to better match the destination of your graphics! 

Adjusting the size and colors of the transparency grid behind your composition elements can enhance visibility by providing better contrast against various elements. This makes it easier to distinguish transparent areas from the rest of your design. Additionally, customizing the grid colors to match your personal preferences or project requirements can make your workspace more comfortable and efficient. You can use a very dark grid to be able to simulate how your artwork will look on a dark background while still clearly seeing your layer’s transparency edges. Working on a black logo and needing to keep an eye on your alpha edges? Set your transparency grid to light and work with confidence. Customizing the size will let you better regulate the transparency visualization you need no matter your comp resolution.  
 

You can also customize the appearance of the empty fallow area (fallow area is the grey background panel around your composition) in the Composition, Layer, and Footage panels by setting a background color of your choice. You can select from five different shades of gray presets, or you can choose a custom color to match your needs, providing a more personalized and visually efficient workspace. Creating a video that will be shown on a webpage with a white background? Change your fallow area and you can see how your design will look in context while you work. This color is also used for the Extended Viewport in the Advanced 3D engine which gives you even more options to make sure you have the visual clarity you need while working. 

Getting Started 

Transparency Grids: Modify the grid size (choose among small, medium, and large squares), and the grid colors (with the option of creating your custom grid color). 
 

1. Mac OS: In the Application Menu, go to ‘After Effects (Beta)’ -> ‘Settings’ -> ‘Grids & Guides’ or use the keyboard shortcut: Command + Option + ‘:’ and navigate to ‘Grids & Guides’
   
2. Windows: Go to ‘Edit’ -> ‘Preferences’ -> ‘Grids & Guides’ or use the keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + Alt + ‘:’ and navigate to ‘Grids & Guides’
   
3. Modify ‘Grid Size’ and ‘Grid Colors’ in the ‘Transparency Settings’ section 

Panel Background Colors: Customize the appearance of the empty fallow area in the Composition, Layer, and Footage panels by setting a background color of your choice. 

1. Right-click anywhere on the empty fallow around your composition in the Composition, Footage, or Layer panels; from the context menu, select Panel Background Color OR, In the Application Menu, go to ‘View’ -> ‘Panel Background Color’ 
2. Select from the five different shades of gray presets or select “Select Custom Color” to use a different color
   
3. Select “Custom” if you want to choose the background color you last used 

Known Issues and Feature Limitations 

1. An identical Panel Background Color applies to the Composition, Footage, and Layer panels. It is not possible to use different background colors for the three panels. 
2. Custom Transparency Grid colors are not retained when the color choice is switched to a predefined color or to another custom color. Please tell us if this capability would help you.  

Please give this new functionality a try and let us know how it is working for you. We are excited to hear feedback on accessibility of the features, the presets provided, and anything else about the features that impact your experience.