Which feature is used to animate properties over time in Adobe After Effects?

The feature used to animate properties over time in Adobe After Effects is keyframes. Keyframes serve as markers that define the start and end points of any transition in your animations. By placing keyframes on different frames in the timeline, you can specify values for properties such as position, scale, rotation, opacity, and more at those specific points in time.

As you set keyframes, After Effects interpolates the values in between, creating smooth animations. This allows you to bring life to static images and control how elements change over the duration of your project. The power of keyframes lies in their ability to facilitate complex animations through temporal changes in properties with precise control over the timing and easing of those animations.

Other features mentioned, such as Effects Control, Layer Parenting, and Pre-composing, play various roles within After Effects but do not specifically address the function of animating properties over time. Effects Control manages the parameters for applied effects on a layer, Layer Parenting establishes a hierarchical relationship between layers for movement and transformation, and Pre-composing allows you to group layers into a single composition for easier manipulation and management without directly serving the function of animating properties.