I'm attempting to create a backlit logo (without ridiculously overdone godrays or lightrays) similar to the image below. I would then like to have the light pulse to 100% (100% is equivalent of the lighting effect in the image) and then back down to 0. I have NO idea where to start.
1 Correct answer
Here is a file demonstrating one way to do it: 11235_backlittext.aep.zip
Pull it apart and have a look at how it was done.
Many of the light layers are tied together with expressions so that editing one thing on the bottom layer (such as Opacity) means all the other light layers follow it. That way, you only have to animate one thing. 
I made this project in about five minutes, so it is really simple to do. However, as Mylenium says, you really need a solid foundation in AE before you can even do s
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Replies
Here is a file demonstrating one way to do it: 11235_backlittext.aep.zip
Pull it apart and have a look at how it was done.
Many of the light layers are tied together with expressions so that editing one thing on the bottom layer (such as Opacity) means all the other light layers follow it. That way, you only have to animate one thing. 
I made this project in about five minutes, so it is really simple to do. However, as Mylenium says, you really need a solid foundation in AE before you can even do simple things like this. Andrew Devis has a great series of videos on getting started in AE. It's an old series, but the foundational basics haven't changed much since he made it. The first video in the series is somewhere on this page: https://library.creativecow.net/tutorials/adobeaftereffectsbasics/3
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