Composite Wizard
MacDirectory - Trey Yancy Read more
Holomatrix
“The developers have obviously spent hours figuring out the best way to create the holodeck look, and the process is instantaneous. Choose the plug-in from the menu and—wham-o—you’re done.”
Layers Magazine - Marcus Geduld Read more
"There are many tools within After Effects that can help you to achieve the same look, when compounded atop each other and adjusted with expressions…but this is highly time consuming and to be honest, not all of us are After Effects whizzes. Red Giant has built many effective plug-ins that 'take the tech' out of the creative process, and Holomatrix is another fine example of this."
Microfilmmaker - A.J. Wedding Read more
"The resulting effects can be quite stunning, in my opinion, and with an absolute minimal effort."
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
"Holomatrix is a good choice to save time and effort."
Pixel - Petr Hamšík
"For 29 presets and a huge selection of alterable parameters, $99 is very reasonable."
Pro Video Coalition - Kevin P McAuliffe Read more
Key Correct
“ I also used Red Giant Software's Key Correct 16-bit Spill Killer along with the all important Light Wrap in my final composites really helped to marry the elements."
Discovery Channel's 'American Chopper' - Melanie Franciosi, VFX artist, The Ebeling Group Read more
“…The edge tools in Key Correct enabled us to maintain a natural look on the big, layered composites all while keeping render times manageable."
ABC's 'Lost' TV show - Kevin Kutchaver, President, Himani Productions Read more
Keying virtual backgrounds for Hellevator: "Key Correct Pro (from Red Giant Software) aided in dispersing green spill, [when the green screen is reflected onto the subject] and softening up jagged edges." (See page 2 of article)
Broadcast Newsroom - Heath McKnight Read more
"Used in tandem with Primatte Keyer, Key Correct provides some of the most powerful tools for fine-tuning a composite shot. However, the name of the suite is a bit misleading. Many tools, such as Light Wrap and Edge Blur are not just for keying, and can be the secret ingredient when marrying CG elements to live action footage. Key Correct is quite often an integral part of my compositing workflow."
Danmation.com - Dan Blank, Director Read more
“Every time I do a green screen – and I do a lot – I use Key Correct... Key Correct really comes into play when the lighting on the green screen isn’t ideal and you have to start massaging the keys. Key Correct gives you the tools to deal with noise in the alpha, filling holes that happen in the foreground... I want everything to be photo-realistic so people don’t know it’s a greenscreen."
InSecurity TV series - Jack Tunnicliffe, Owner, Java Post Production Read more
Keying Suite
"Key Correct and the rest of Red Giant's Keying Suite allowed us to shoot Ben flying through the air, and then quickly and convincingly composite him into the shot of him hitting the ground. And then, not to mention, putting a huge foreboding spaceship over my house."
Plot Device movie - Seth Worley, Director Read more
"The majority of the time, the shots will have some problems such as uneven lighting, noise... or bad spill. Both Primatte Keyer Pro and Key Correct Pro can help address some of those issues." (Watch Episode #18 of RGTV)
- Michele Yamazaki, author of 'Greenscreen Made Easy' Read more
Knoll Light Factory
"The fact alone that you can have available to you the same incredible flare technology that John Knoll created at ILM for stunning effect in movies, is just plain awesome. You can make the ordinary look extraordinary in your motion graphics or film work. And, you have incredible control of every aspect, from creation to animation."
Rederocity - Nick C Sorbin Read more
Tutorial: Beam Me Up! How to Make Your Own Transporter [Using Magic Bullet Looks and Knoll Light Factory]
Blogcritics - Ed Driscoll Read more
"If you want the best results you need to use Knoll Light Factory."
Digital Arts - Neil Bennett
5 Cows (out of 5)
"When it comes to lens flare no one does better than Red Giant Software's Knoll Light Factory."
Creative Cow - Aharon Rabinowitz Read more
"I am now a big fan of Knoll Light Factory. While the focus of the plug-in is narrow, it's impact on a scene can be significant. Motion Graphics needs a little flash, and this plug-in provides it in a big way. Ease of use, fast renders, the huge amount of presets and stability of the program make it a perfect choice for directors, editors and motion graphic artists."
Renderosity - Ricky Grove Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Knoll Light Factory
Knoll Light Factory for Photoshop
“[Knoll Light Factory has] a lot of really neat settings."
Photoshop User TV - Matt Kloskowski Read more
"... Knoll Light Factory 3.0 is designed to create lens flares and other lighting effects, including lasers, explosions, and suns. Its most common use in photography might be to enhance lights such as lamps, streetlights, sky elements, or candle flames, but I'm sure you can think of others. I like to use it for runway fashion photography to add sparkle to spotlights that just might otherwise be a distraction."
Shutterbug magazine, Digital Innovations - Joe Farace Read more
"I believe Knoll Light Factory for Photoshop is an excellent and valuable addition of a photographer’s tool chest. If you shoot jewelry, or anything else that can do with a bit of visual spice like a subtle or dramatic lens flare, this plug-in does the job while leaving you in control of the end-result in ways that I have yet to see with other plug-ins that offer comparable functionality."
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
"After working with Light Factory for a few hours, you'll discover that comparing Light Factory with the Lens Flare filter is like comparing MacPaint (or Microsoft Paint) with Corel Painter... For example, when photographing a backlit bride, the real light source produced nasty chromatic aberrations on the captured image. With Light Factory, I was able to add the desired light coming over the shoulders of the bride[.]"
NAPP (part of Photoshop User) - Dave Huss Read more
Knoll Light Factory is focused on creating lens flare effects, one of the most commonly used effects in both photography and film... As you may know, Photoshop does contain a Lens Flare filter, but it is extremely limited in ability... I chose Knoll's lens flare plug-in for this article, because it is one of the most powerful and customizable lens flare plug-ins on the market.
Shutterbug magazine - Anthony L. Celeste
Read more Reviews & Awards for Knoll Light Factory for Photoshop
Magic Bullet Arsenal
"Arsenal is easy to use and supports the presentation of both still images and video."
Creative Planet Network - Oliver Peters Read more
Magic Bullet Colorista
Red Giant has placed two of its color design applications - Colorista and LUT Buddy - inside the color production pipeline of production house Stargate Studios, which provides film and TV production and post services used by such shows as ABC's "Pan Am" and "Revenge," and AMC's "The Walking Dead." "Television production in Hollywood is rapidly shifting into more of a feature film workflow, wherein images are captured and delivered in a logarithmic color space," said Stargate vfx supervisor Chris Martin. "What this means for Stargate Studios is, we need to have powerful tools able to handle a wide variety of color workflows. Red Giant fits that bill for us perfectly."
Varity - Peter Caranicas Read more
"AE users will certainly want [Magic Bullet] Colorista, as will anyone looking for consistent colour-correction tools."
Digital Arts - Neil Bennett Read more
"...anyone looking for a cross-application, cross-platform colour correction tool would do well to take a close look."
Mac User - Ben Frain Read more
"My conclusion after working with [Magic Bullet] Colorista is that you can benefit from using this Magic Bullet plug-in if you’re running several different applications."
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
9.3 (out of 10)
"...the folks at Red Giant have decided to make things easier for filmakers, by giving them many of the most powerful tools found in the professional grading packages, while removing a lot of the confusing controls that were rarely used."
Microfilmmaker - Jeremy Hanke Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Colorista
Magic Bullet Colorista II
"Color correction/color grading is really coming into its own these days with more quality cameras than ever before and affordable color grading tools everywhere you look. Colorista II adds a powerful new option to the mix … with no import/export/round-tripping!"
Studio Daily - Scott Simmons Read more
Best Buy Award
"Overall, if you're interested in advancing from color correction to color grading, Colorista II is a great place to start."
Digital Arts - Barry Stead Read more
Best of Show DV Black Diamond Award Winner - NAB 2011
DV - NewBay Media Read more
"The versatility of the secondary masking/keying and the many controls Colorista II has to offer is amazing. It introduces much of the power of a full-blown color correction application in a single filter. Most other plug-in companies are just catching up to the original Colorista with their own color correction filters, but Red Giant has raised the bar again with Magic Bullet Colorista II."
DV - Oliver Peters Read more
"If you’re a fan of Colorista 1 then you’ll definitely want to spend the very reasonable $99 to upgrade to Colorista II. If you’re new to the game entirely then the $299 purchase price is well worth it as this is a full featured color grading tool that is leaps and bounds better than its predecessor (which was already a good tool) and leaps and bounds better than a lot of competitors."
Pro Video Coalition - Scott Simmons Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Colorista II
Magic Bullet Cosmo
"There were also a few shots where our ridiculously beautiful actors were subjected to harsh light. Cosmo impressively allows you to rid of blemishes and signs of age, but in our case, we were able to use it to make something already perfect, like our wonderful actress Lydia, look even perfecter."
Plot Device movie - Seth Worley, Director Read more
Magic Bullet Denoiser
"But is it any good? Well, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I just ran it at its default setting."
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
"The great thing is that the Magic Bullet Denoiser installs and works great at just its own default settings whether you are using Final Cut Pro or Adobe After Effects... Magic Bullet has created an exceptional plug-in at an agreeable cost which will not fail to do the job it was intended to do. That it is so much easier to use now makes it my number 1 go to noise reduction plug-in."
Ken Stone - Steve Douglas Read more
"A new tool is Magic Bullet Denoiser. It’s a comprehensive noise reduction tool that can be as simple as using one slider, but also includes more advanced tools for motion compensation, film versus video and color channel tuning."
DV - Oliver Peters Read more
"Last night I made the best purchase I’ve made this year: Magic Bullet Denoiser... [B]ased off of first impressions with this software, this is the best $99 dollars I’ve spent on postproduction software this year. I’m excited to try these on more clips I’ve shot to test out the plugin. In particular, the fine tuning on this software looks fantastic."
The Red Owl Blog - Thomas Baurain Read more
"It seems that the default settings when you first drop it on a clip are quite nice... If you have noisy footage then give the free download a try as it might make some unusable footage usable again. In a perfect world of shooting we wouldn’t need to denoise but it’s nice to know tools like these are available when we need them."
ProVideo Coalition - Scott Simmons Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Denoiser
Magic Bullet Frames
8.8 (out of 10)
"Now you can buy Frames as a standalone package for $199, which is an incredible value for everything you get here. Not only are you getting the best 60i to 24p conversion tool available, but you're also getting four other plugins! That boils down to $40 per plugin, which is quite a bargain considering their high quality and usefulness."
Microfilmmaker - Ryan Graham Read more
"Magic Bullet software that can actually remove the interlace artifacts from 1080i footage to the point that one would be very hard pressed to identify the original interlaced acquisition format. This software has been used in numerous motion pictures to “enhance” standard interlaced video to be intercut into film projects on movies that I’m sure, you the reader, have seen and been completely fooled by."
Digital Post Production - Ron Johnson
"I believe Magic Bullet is the best product in its class because their philosophy is right. It is the only product I know of with such an extreme emphasis on quality, and they deliver it."
Color Studios - Steven Galvano, Designer
"…The last link in the chain of the ‘micro budget’ DV filmmakers’ armory. Overall, the software offers a way to create an ‘authentic’ film look for a DV movie while ensuring maximum quality in the finished product.”
Landing Light - Nigel Stanton Warren, Co-director/Producer
"For the last decade one of the most common questions I've received from After Effects users is: "How do I make my video look like film?" That question now has a final, absolute, definitive answer: Magic Bullet... This is a true 'Holy Grail' product, something no serious professional should be without."
Total Training Inc. - Brian Maffitt, Chief Creative Officer
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Frames
Magic Bullet Grinder
"Grinder is a handy tool to simplify your post-production video conversion".
Technology Tell - Bill Stiteler Read more
"Overall Magic Bullet Grinder is a great little tool. We’re only at version 1.0 so there’s a lot of room to grow. It can help make the life of the DSLR videographer a bit easier because you don’t have to think too hard about what you are doing. You use a simple interface to quickly perform a desired task. And best of all it’s affordable."
Pro Video Coalition - Scott Simmons Read more
"At $49 Magic Bullet Grinder [is] a great, little utility that can come in handy in many different ways. At 1.0, I hope it grows to add some of the ideas I’ve suggested, but even with the current features, it makes life easier in so many different ways."
Digital Films - Oliver Peters Read more
"There’s really no simpler way to convert DSLR footage for edit than that."
Studio Daily - Scott Simmons Read more
"[E]diting, add timecode and generate proxies, all in a single, time saving pass. Batch processing and multi-threading mean quick, pain-free conversion so editing can start even while shooting on location."
POST Magazine - Christine Bunish
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Grinder
Magic Bullet Instant HD
"Red Giant's asking price seems like peanuts considering the usefulness of this software."
PC Pro - Peter Wells Read more
"Realistically, you can't expect the results to fool everyone but, the outcomes are excellent."
DV - Mark Christiansen Read more
"...it will definitely be one of my go to tools!"
Filmaking Central - David Basulto
"Almost as fast as its name implies, Red Giant Software Instant HD scaling plug-in re-sizes footage quickly, up-converting digital video to a variety of high-definition formats."
American Cinematographer - Doug Bankston
"Pros: Easy to use, great quality output, little to fine-tune, many formats/sizes supported.”
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Instant HD
Magic Bullet Instant HD Advanced
"My bottom line is that [Red Giant] succeeds. Instant HD Advanced fits the bill just as they advertise. They have provided a simpler workflow, faster results and a higher quality output to an already excellent and useful editing tool."
Kenstone.net - Steve Douglas Read more
Magic Bullet Looks
"Magic Bullet Looks is a stalwart of the post production plug-ins world. It has been around for a long time and provides unique tools with a unique interface to produce some really cool looks."
ProVideo Collation - Scott Simmons Read more
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
"One of the scenes in [The Curious Case of Benjamin Button] is a fable told by Cate Blanchett. We were looking for ways to set this scene apart and decided to give it an old movie look, since it’s a movie-within-a-movie. To that aim, we settled on treating these shots with Magic Bullet Looks. The final version that appears in the film was processed through [Adobe] After Effects where we ‘baked in’ the effect. There are also a few other scenes throughout that received a little Magic Bullet love," said Angus Wall, editor of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Videography - Oliver Peters Read more
Editor's Choice
"- the best effects are the ones the audience doesn't see. In that respect, Magic Bullet [Looks] really is magic."Computer Video - Peter Wells
Best Buy
"The LookBuilder has one of the best designed interfaces around."Digital Arts - Neil Bennett Read more
Mac User - Peter Wells Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Looks
Magic Bullet Mojo
MacFan - Albert Zeeman Read more
"Absolutely priceless, it's perfect for the amateur, but also for the professional who wants to get a good result quickly and with minimal investment.”
Macfor Dummies - Read more
Best Buy Award
“[Magic Bullet] Mojo is an excellent, swift tool for day-to-day colour correction tasks, and is affordable enough even for those who don’t work with live-action footage regularly.”
Digital Arts - Neil Bennett Read more
"It's a simpler, trimmed-down version of the suite. Need to warm the color temperature of your actor's skin while making shadows and backgrounds cooler? Simple. A single slider adjusts both elements in unison...It's pretty cheap too, which makes a reasonable excuse for an impulse buy."
Millimeter - Dan Ochiva Read more
"Another tool worth noting in the Looks Suite is Magic Bullet Mojo. This is a slider-controlled, color grading tool based on VFX director Stu Maschwitz’s model of “memory colors” - often used in blockbuster films... This makes it an easy-to-use color grading tool for those who don’t want to get bogged down with curves or lift/gamma/gain adjustments."
DV - Oliver Peters Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Mojo
Magic Bullet PhotoLooks
"This is the go-to image stylizing tool for video editors and photographers alike. Nearly every tool in the kit is here, from grading to lens effects. It’s the easiest way to bring life to lackluster photographs."
Creative Planet Network - Oliver Peters Read more
"[Magic Bullet] Photo Looks takes the hassle out of creating unique-looking images."
Advanced Photoshop - Josie Reavely
"The results [of Magic Bullet Photo Looks] are impressive." (translated from German)
Macwelt (Macworld Germany) - Mike Schelhorn Read more
"It is very easy and the results look fantastic. Of course you could do these kind of things with Photoshop's built-in tools, but it would take you longer... What I especially like is this: if you've created a certain look, you can save that as a preset and use it on other images... Here comes the coolest part: you can use the presets on video too!" (translated from German)
Calvin Hollwood Blog - Calvin Hollywood Read more
"[M]agic Bullet PhotoLooks is such a breath of fresh air. It improves on core Photoshop image functions with an interface approach that’s entirely modern... This is every inch a professional post-processing tool, rather than a simple bag of tricks."
MacWorld (UK) - Karl Hodge Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet PhotoLooks
Magic Bullet Quick Looks
Pro Editing @ Home - Kevin McAuliffe Read more
"So if you do want to extend the range of appearances available to your favourite professional-grade video editing app, Magic Bullet Quick Looks offers decent value."
Trusted Reviews - James Morris Read more
Essential Final Cut Pro Plug-Ins
"This is a fantastic idea for editors looking to easily and affordably get into Magic Bullet's amazing suite of tools and plug-ins. Once you purchase, download and install the plug-in, it appears under the Effects Tab, in the Video Filters folder. It's only one filter and you drop it onto the video you want to change."
Broadcast Newsroom - Heath McKnight Read more
Magic Bullet Steady
PC World - Neil Bennett Read more
“As for [Magic Bullet] Steady’s antishake abilities, you may wonder why you need them when both After Effects and Final Cut Studio’s free Motion 3 app already offer similar features. The simple answer is that Magic Bullet Steady is quicker and easier to use.”
Mac|Life - Helmut Kobler Read more
“The Steady filter is fairly intuitive, easy to apply and considerably quicker than Final Cut's Smooth Cam filter.”
Los Angeles Final Cut Pro User Group - Steve Douglas Read more
Magic Bullet Suite
"Magic Bullet is an advanced, yet easy-to-use application that gives video footage more of a film look."
HD Video Pro - Neil Matsumoto Read more
More than just a suite of useful plug-ins to dip into, v11.3 of the Magic Bullet Suite provides an entire color grading ecosystem that will expand your everyday work with After Effects and NLEs. Well worth it to add to your tool chest or an upgrade if you already have it.
NYC Production & Post News - Joe Herman Read more
"The power, performance and versatility of Magic Bullet Suite 11.1 is very impressive, especially at $799. It delivers a very powerful suite of post tools in a well-integrated environment"
Bill Anderson Photography - Bill Anderson Read more
"Magic Bullet Suite is an impressive collection of effects and tools at a bargain price” and "Keying Suite 11 is excellent value for any user planning on keying work. As always, good lighting and understanding of green screen theory is more important than the filter you use, but once you’ve shot, you couldn’t ask for a better way of keying from within After Effects."
Metro (AU) - Christopher Kenworthy Read more
"It takes a lot for plug ins to stand out amongst the competition but Red Giant’s Magic Bullet suite not only stands out from them, but it leaves them behind in it’s dust."
MacTrast - Toby Lawrence Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Magic Bullet Suite
Movie Looks
"For a couple of bucks, you can't beat it!"
MattMediaPro - Read more
Nick Campbell's Vintage Film for Looks
"[W]hat really makes Nick Campbell’s Vintage Film for Looks intriguing are the After Effects templates included, which simulate a strip of 35mm film, a snapshot or an SX-70 photo on a table. Anyone with just a modicum of After Effects experience should quickly be able to replace the stock photos in the templates with their own still or video images (with or without additional Looks tweaking) to jump-start a stylish title or montage sequence."
Pajamas Media, Edglings - Ed Driscoll Read more
Noir
"If you are looking for an app to do its work fast and you do not care for the extra features, then the $2.99 for Noir Photo are definitely well spent."
Appotography - PU Read more
"It's almost too simple. After I used the App a few times I was left wanting for more! That's not a bad thing, it just means that the App was so easy to use that I almost felt like I must be missing something."
BestAppSite - Terry White Read more
"The results are pretty stunning and look to be able to transform boring everyday shots into moody movie masterpieces."
The Next Web - Matthew Panzarino Read more
"I've already fallen in love with Noir -- a universal app for giving your photos a cinematic look by converting the image to black and white or a tinted monochrome and adding dramatic lighting."
TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog - Chris White Read more
PlaneSpace
Digital Jiuce - Kevin P. McAuliffe Read more
"If you're making your own 3D boxes in AE 5, you know it can be done, but what a hassle... With these, cubes and other 3D geometric objects are just a click away."
Digitalvideoediting.com - Ko Maruyama
"3D Assistants [product's former name] is for working in After Effects' 2.5D environment... 3D Assistants has pre-set arrangements that are big time savers for complex scenes."
Millimeter magazine, Plug-in Roundup - S. D. Katz
Plastic Bullet
"Plastic Bullet is a great photo app that does something the others don’t…it simply makes all photos look great!"
Gary-Paul: A Creative View of the World - Gary Paul Read more
It’s very simple to use and allows you to select a range of preloaded, graded presets. I love the way the app randomly softens sections of the frame and makes them appear as though they were exposed to light leaks in the camera.
National Geographic - Cotton Coulson Read more
ScottKelby.com - Scott Kelby Read more
"The appeal of Plastic Bullet is twofold - firstly, there are a crazy amount of filter effects to choose from, so you're bound to find something that appeals - and secondly, the 'shuffle' approach to selecting your desired filter is effortless and fun. Addictive in fact."
dpreview.com - Kelcey Smith Read more
“Almost by magic, a mundane picture becomes art. This is the strength of this application. It's automatic but effective.”
Sympatico - Sandra Bellefoy Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Plastic Bullet
Plastic Bullet OSX
"You can’t argue with a price of less than $5 and it can produce some really stylish and entertaining results.”
Digital Photography Enthusiast - Duncan Evans Read more
"But somehow the "clickyerdy click" method of plastic bullet is just great, just press and wait till it’s cool and every time the outcome is different, just like with a real toy camera."
- Frank Dorhoff Read more
PluralEyes
The overall impression is that this software simply works, each time.
3D World Magazine - Christopher Kenworthy Read more
As editors deal with an ever-increasing, diverse spectrum of media sources, a tool like PluralEyes is an essential part of the kit. It was a no-brainer on day one, but even more so in this new and improved version.
Creative Planet Network - Oliver Peters Read more
"PluralEyes is simply one of the best inventions since digital video."
TV Technology - Geoff Poister Read more
"I'm in love with the new version of PluralEyes and definitely recommend it to everyone who has ever spent time syncing audio."
http://vimeo.com/51196303 - Lowell Brillante, The Video Genius Read more
"Although there are tools for fine tuning, most of the time Plural Eyes works instantly and accurately without any tweaking. You don’t even need to label your shots and audio. Drop everything in and let it worry about the details."
Computer Arts - Chris Kenworthy Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for PluralEyes
Primatte Keyer
"My favourite plugin for keying, a real life saver."
Film Riot - Ryan Read more
"Primatte Keyer offers excellent results, and does so almost instantly."
3D World - Chris Kenworthy
"I had never done green screen work, but took a workshop at NAB and learned all I could. You can use the Keying filters in FCP, but a much better product is Primatte Keyer 4 by Red Giant Software. It makes popping the key simple and effective and as close to one button removal as you can get."
Digital Journalist - PF Bentley, World-renowned photographer Read more
"I was pleasantly surprised at how the software intuitively predicted what I wanted to key out and what I wanted to retain from my selections. There were also a whole new set of edge and spill tools that were very helpful."
The Ebeling Group (TEG) - Melanie Franciosi, Lead Compositor, American Chopper promo
"Primatte Keyer delivers the most consistent, high-quality results for the widest variety of shots. If you need to key hair, or an actor wearing the same color as the background, Primatte Keyer is the solution."
Steam - Scott Bryant, Senior Creative Director, Foo Fighters music video
Psunami
"Yes, it only does one thing, but it does it well. Very convincing underwater footage can be created with Psunami when combined with volumetric light and caustics."
Millimeter - Steve Katz
"We've explored a number of ways to create water effects from scratch for still and motion graphics. But there are innumerable situations where simple displacement maps and lighting effects, like those we've learned, won't do the trick. And so we turn to effects plugins that promise to take over where our manual skills leave off. Today we look at one such plugin--Digital Anarchy's Psunami for Adobe After Effects."
Digital Producer - Dave Nagel Read more
This opening was an overhead shot with the title rolling on the waves. The angle changed as the camera came closer to the water, then into it, then under with the titles reflecting both the change in angle and distance. As the camera sank beneath the waves the text, now overhead, was reversed but still rolling with each swell and wave. How did he manage this? Well, all was accomplished using a remarkable piece of software.
KenStone.net - Steve Douglas Read more
Let's say you have a $100 million budget for your movie and you need to make the world's most famous ocean liner steam across the screen. Or let's say you have a somewhat lower budget -- like $1,000, and you need to make the world's most famous ocean ;liner steam across the screen. Solution? Psunami, of course.
NewEnglandFilm.com -
Radium Glow
"Radium Glow takes the term "glow" to another level."
Animation Artist - David Basulto Read more
"Radium Glow is a must have for any Motion or After Effects user. It is an extremely solid, highly customizable tool that will add amazing “glows” to your footage. We give it 5/5 stars for abilities and price (just $99!)."
Filmmaking Central - David Basulto
"To see where Radium Glow has the edge over the built-in AE Glow, I tried a few comparison tests, using motion graphics samples and some high definition footage."
Gray Machine - Harry Frank Read more
Simon Walker's Weddings & Events for Looks
Red Giant has all these Guru presets for Magic Bullet Looks and we actually used -- for romance -- Simon Walker's Wedding & Events presets. This [creates a] highly diffused, warm romance feel and look.
Plot Device movie - Seth Worley, Director Read more
Stu Maschwitz's Rebel Epic for Looks
" “Stu Maschwitz’s Rebel Epic for Looks” is a bundle of 28 additional looks that were designed to mimic some of the stylized blockbuster movies, such as Mission Impossible, Saving Private Ryan and Transformers... His set of pre-built looks are wild and stylized and yet, as with all the presets, easy to apply and adjust to suit your tastes."
New England Film - Peter Bohush Read more
Text Anarchy
Text Anarchy is itself a whole world of effects... [A] set of three particle-based plug-ins that are useful for various types of animation of geometric shapes... Gridsquares is an impressively versatile effects generator.
Spectrum - David Duberman Read more
"I am amazed at the number of controls that the plug-in provides and the complexity of effects that it can create... At first glance, Text Anarchy 2 represents an amazing collection of text effects with more possible adjustments than any creative professional would ever want. The documentation is remarkably extensive and well written. The plug-in is basic enough that a user can become productive immediately... This one is a must have."
Kenstone.net - Ned Soltz Read more
"There are some slick, psychedelic animation possibilities lurking not too deep within this plug-in set, but for the most part, it includes some of the most utilitarian - and in some cases, essential - third-party offerings available for After Effects."
MacAddict magazine - David Biedney
"If you need to create hip text effects, such as those in "The Matrix" or on The Weather Channel (nothing hipper than that)... Designed to make the random text elements used in backgrounds of commercials and films, [this set] provides the quickest way to create and control these text elements. Although you can use keyframes for precise control, the three effects have numerous settings so the user doesn't need to set hundreds of keyframes."
NE Film, newenglandfilm.com - Peter Bohush
Working with text is an important but often overlooked aspect of video editing and compositing... [These] filters provide some original and pro effects to video and animations... Try animating text that trails off into space or flows down a drain, and other psuedo-3D effects, without multiple layers or keyframing.
Computer Arts UK -
Read more Reviews & Awards for Text Anarchy
ToonIt
ToonIt! 'Roto Toon' mimics the effect that I've been seeing on TV a lot lately... With ToonIt!, you simply apply this filter and your video looks like a hand-colored cartoon... No other plug-in out there does this cartoon look as well.
Studio Monthly - Marc Franklin Read more
"Most large video-effects filters collections – and many NLEs – include filters that claim to turn real-world footage into cartoon. However, every one we’ve seen has been rubbish. ToonIt isn’t perfect, but it’s the best we’ve seen so far..."
Digital Arts - Neil Bennett Read more
“You have surely seen the many commercials on television and in film where the actors have been transformed to cartoon versions of themselves. [ToonIt] is a real time saver for anyone who wishes to recreate much of the cartoon like effects that seem so ubiquitous as of late."
Kenstone.net - Steve Douglas Read more
Tutorial: Create a Custom Cartoon Effect with Red Giant ToonIt (requires a Premium Content subscription)
Studio Monthly - Sean Safreed Read more
"I really enjoy using ToonIt and I am happy to include it in my After Effects arsenal. The amount of different looks I can create with the four filters is amazing. The interface is easy to use and customizable."
DMN Forums - David Basulto
Trapcode 3D Stroke
"I used Primatte when I shot the biscuits against green screen - and I used Particular to explode the Biscuits, the popcorn, the hearts that bleeds of the bulls butt! The fire from the jetpack was also particular generated… Smoke on the broken car also particular (that's a versatile plugin I tell ya ;) The confetti… again Particular - echo space for the teapots… Particular for the lasers - the halo was 3D stroke… la, la la's from the policewomen particular, stars and confetti at the end again particular.
Broken Antler - Watson & Oliver - Ben Adam-Harris Read more
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
9 (out of 10)
"With the Trapcode 3S Pack, Red Giant Software has once again proven that it's one of the top plugin companies out there."
Microfilmmaker - Ryan Graham Read more
"Full-featured, fast, and come with good support and a large user community."
SF Cutters - Rich Young Read more
Tutorial: Create Animated Titles with Trapcode in Final Cut Pro
Studio Monthly - Sean Safreed Read more
Trapcode Echospace
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
"Trapcode’s Echospace plug-in is one of those tools that’s so useful, you want to cry, “Why isn’t this built into After Effects."
Macsimum News - Dennis Sellers Read more
Trapcode Form
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
"Trapcode Form offers plenty of bang for the buck." (Access to Review requires a Premium Content subscription)
Studio Monthly - David English Read more
8 (out 10)
Microfilmmaker - Ryan Graham Read more
Tutorial: Creating Design Elements in Trapcode Form (requires a Premium Content subscription)
Studio Monthly - Harry J. Frank Read more
Trapcode Horizon
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
"While Trapcode Horizon is great with panoramic photography, it can also be used for projecting layers of masked objects. More than a one-trick pony, Horizon provides a playground for the imagination."
MacDirectory - Trey Yancy Read more
“Trapcode Horizon is a great companion to the other 3D plugs such as Particular and Form, etc.”
- Aldy Waani Read more
"This is a must-have plug-in for 3D environments inside After Effects.”
Motionworks - John Dickinson Read more
Trapcode Lux
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
Tutorial: How Trapcode Lux Rocks Your Lighting Setup
AV Video Producer - Kevin McAuliffe Read more
"Instantly your scene goes from Ho-Hum, to Oh-Boy!... I give Lux a Strong Buy recommendation."
Digital Producer Magazine - Stephen Schleicher
"Simple to apply, renders quickly, works beautifully, and makes all your 3D scenes look great. You'd need to argue long and hard about why you wouldn't want Lux in your Effects menu."
Computer Arts Magazine -
Trapcode Mir
"While Trapcode Mir utilizes OpenGL to speed things up, I was able to zip through my projects quickly...I’ve never ended up with the same look twice and am creatively challenged by what I can create in Mir."
ProVideo Coalition - Jeff Foster Read more
“If you're already familiar with Form, you’ll find Mir a breeze to use.”
macProVideo - Toby Pitman Read more
“There’s nothing else quite like Trapcode Mir on the market, and it’s outstanding value for money.”
3D World Magazine - Christopher Kenworthy Read more
Trapcode Particular
Broken Antler - Watson & Oliver - Ben Adam-Harris Read more
"To really get an idea of just how powerful this tool is, one needs only to watch recent music videos and commercials—it’s all over the place."
Animation Magazine - Todd Sheridan Perry Read more
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
Best Buy Award
"If you haven’t already got it, add Trapcode Particular 2 to your must-have list."
Digital Arts - Neil Bennett
"The best [After Effects] particle plug-in. Period...$99 upgrade price is a no brainer."
Kevin McAuliffe - Digital Media Net Read more
Read more Reviews & Awards for Trapcode Particular
Trapcode Shine
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
9 (out 10)
Microfilmmaker - Ryan Graham Read more
"Well, I'm sold on Shine. And for tightwads like myself, Shine's low price tag and fast render times make it, well... shine."
Creative Cow - Dave LaRonde Read more
"Full-featured, fast, and come with good support and a large user community."
SF Cutters - Rich Young Read more
Trapcode Sound Keys
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
“It is perfect for making complex animations driven by audio, without having to manually set hundreds of keyframes….Sound Keys can be an extremely addictive.”
Digital Media Online - Paulo de Andrade
Trapcode Starglow
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
9 (out 10)
Microfilmmaker - Ryan Graham Read more
"Full-featured, fast, and come with good support and a large user community."
SF Cutters - Rich Young Read more
Tutorial: Create Animated Titles with Trapcode in Final Cut Pro (requires a Premium Content subscription)
Studio Monthly - Sean Safreed Read more
Trapcode Suite
Creative Cow - Jim Harvey Read more
"Any of these plug-ins are a great buy because all the developers are committed to updating and improving the software as well as working to make laborious digital tasks very easy. Each also has a large amount of parameters to tweak, making wide-ranging experimentation a given... It's hard to go wrong with any of these amazing plug-ins."
Millimeter - Franklin McMahon Read more
Warp
"The quality of the results can of course not be discussed; they’re simply excellent if not perfect."
IT Enquirer - Erik Vlietinck Read more
"...for reflexions and for setting up 2D planes in 3D, this plug-in is a good choice."
Digital Production (Germany) - Andrea Zerr
“Warp is a fantastic product. I use it all the time. Warp corner pinning is way more than a corner pin... In Warp, you have the flexibility to exactly match the motion blur of the footage and sell the effect.”
Java Post Production - Jack Tunnicliffe, Owner Read more
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