Don't Miss Out! The Following Sales end Tonight, November 30th 2009 at Midnight!
Total Training has trained millions on how to use the industries most popular software titles.
Brush up on your favorite programs this holiday season! Choose from Adobe CS3 and CS4 training, 3D Studio Max, and Maya training titles. Complete software training by industry experts, both online and on DVD.
Through November 30, 2009, get Boris Continuum Complete 6 AE, Boris Continuum Complete 6 FxPlug, and Boris XML Transfer for just $995, a $2,289 value if purchased separately.
This bundle gives you the award-winning Boris Continuum Complete effects collection for Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, and Apple Final Cut Express. Boris Continuum Complete 6 AE and FxPlug versions, and Boris XML Transfer Bundle. In addition, you receive Boris XML Transfer, a new plug-in that allows you to seamlessly transfer an Apple Final Cut Pro program sequence to Adobe After Effects.
Save 50% on Imagineer mocha and mocha shape for Final Cut (Node-locked).
For all of November 2009, mocha for Final Cut and mocha shape for Final Cut is 1/2 off list pricing. Offer is for node-locked licenses only.
FurnaceCore plug-ins include grain tools, automated dirt detection and removal, slow motion using our advanced motion estimation technology, motion blur, flicker reduction and a tool to match colour grades between shots.
NewBlueFX Video Essentials I: Just as every painter needs a canvas, brush, and paint, no video editor should be without NewBlue Video Essentials. This valuable collection of tools features a set of 10 video effects designed to make your workflow more efficient.
NewBlueFX Video Essentials II: Use this collection of ten indispensable effects to solve frustrating problems and add luster to your productions, all with intuitive yet powerful controls. The NewBlue Video Essentials II collection features 131 presets in 10 different plugins that brings video magic to the desktop.
In Professional Training for Primatte Keyer Pro, Angie Mistretta demystifies the complex and powerful Primatte Keyer Pro plug-in from Red Giant Software, which can pull the matte, adjust spill suppression, handle color correction and handle the entire process of keying and matte creation.
Available in 3 Formats All included. Download them all if you wish. All project files are also included.
Flash based video with menus
Quicktime Movies
iPod/iPhone video
This training tailored to busy professionals (and those who don't read manuals). It is meant to get the viewer started and comfortable with the plug-in within just a couple of hours. The training does not cover every single feature of the plug-in, but inspire you to look deeper into the tool (or the manual, if needed!) Toolfarm listens!
We output multiple formats of this training because that is what customers said they wanted... your opinion counts. Please take our short training survey and register to win this training along with the full catalog from the Toolfarm Expert Series. Be honest, we can take it. Take the Survey Now!
5 Days Only! Act now to save 25% on Red Giant and Trapcode Suites -- Offer Ends October 5, 2009
Already a great value, the Red Giant and Trapcode Suites are now priced even lower for a limited time! If you own any product in the Magic Bullet Suite, Trapcode Suite or Pro Keying Suite collections, you have the key to unlock the door to a complete Suite. Take this opportunity to save an additional 25% on your purchase of a complete Suite. Enter Coupon Code NL25SUITES to redeem your discount.
The sale runs through tonight, October 5, 2009 at 11:59 PM PST (California). To find out when the sale ends in your time zone, visit our contact page with a clock.
5 Days Only! Act now to save 25% on Red Giant and Trapcode Suites -- Offer Ends October 5, 2009
Already a great value, the Red Giant and Trapcode Suites are now priced even lower for a limited time! If you own any product in the Magic Bullet Suite, Trapcode Suite or Pro Keying Suite collections, you have the key to unlock the door to a complete Suite. Take this opportunity to save an additional 25% on your purchase of a complete Suite. Enter Coupon Code NL25SUITES to redeem your discount.
The sale runs through Monday, October 5, 2009 at 11:59 PM PST (California). To find out when the sale ends in your time zone, visit our contact page with a clock.
We are currently having a sale on the Red Giant Pro Keying Bundle, which includes Primatte Keyer Pro and Key Correct Pro. It's an incredible deal at 50% off because they are such great tools. Primatte Keyer is designed for designers not programmers so it is very visual. There are big buttons to click and you can drag around your mouse to select the colors you want to key out and to adjust your matte, as opposed to tweaking sliders. Key Correct includes tools like Smooth Screen, which evens out your greenscreen, making your foreground easier to key, without worsening spill. Great tools! The sale is over on June 15, next Monday.
If you missed the podcast I did for Red Giant TV last month about Primatte Keyer and Key Correct Pro, check it out here. It's not just another "here's how to use the tools" type of video, but I get deep into keying technique with tips to optimize your keying potential.
We are currently having a sale on the Red Giant Pro Keying Bundle, which includes Primatte Keyer Pro and Key Correct Pro. It's an incredible deal at 50% off because they are such great tools. Primatte Keyer is designed for designers not programmers so it is very visual. There are big buttons to click and you can drag around your mouse to select the colors you want to key out and to adjust your matte, as opposed to tweaking sliders. Key Correct includes tools like Smooth Screen, which evens out your greenscreen, making your foreground easier to key, without worsening spill. Great tools! The sale is over on June 15, next Monday.
If you missed the podcast I did for Red Giant TV last month about Primatte Keyer and Key Correct Pro, check it out here. It's not just another "here's how to use the tools" type of video, but I get deep into keying technique with tips to optimize your keying potential.
Red Giant Pro Keying Suite Half Off, Includes Key Correct Pro and Primatte Keyer
Frizzy hair? Semi-transparent glass? This bundle of Primatte Keyer Pro 4.0 and Key Correct Pro lets you tackle the toughest keying challenges with confidence and in record time. Begin by using Key Correct Pro's pre-key tools to prep your footage for keying in the powerful Primatte Keyer, then touch up your mattes in Key Correct Pro for pixel-perfect results within After Effects. Includes Key Correct Pro, and Primatte Keyer Pro.
Back in January I presented the "Top 10 Must-Have Plug-ins for Adobe After Effects" at MGFest in Chicago. The presentation was only 22 minutes so that really didn't give me much of a chance to show off the capabilities of the plug-ins and I wanted to do a feature on this for Toolfarm with lots of movie samples.
Several people have asked me about the list and wanting to republish it, so here it is. (If you want to republish the list, go for it, just please link back to Toolfarm). First, a bit about the criteria and some notes.
The plug-in should be a single plug-in and so I tried to avoid big plug-in packages when possible. There will be notes included about the product when needed. The plug-in had to be unique, fast, powerful or something I've used a lot and it fits into my workflow. If it hit 3 of the criteria, I would consider it for the list.
This is MY opinion, not because I was paid to say this or because the plug-ins come from a manufacturer that gives us higher margins. It's very tough to seem unbiased, but I want you to know, it is all my opinion here.
These are in no particular order (but I do have a clear favorite).
The list was created in January 2009 and a few new plug-ins that I really like were not included in the list. I guess they'll have to wait for 2010.
Without further ado.....
1 Red Giant Primatte Keyer
Description: A Perfect Key the First Time! The simplest, fastest green-screen tool available that even extracts keys from challenging DV and low lit sources by sampling the background color and clicking.
Why I Like It: With my book about keying (Greenscreen Made Easy) out on the market, I've been doing quite a few seminars on keying. People always ask which keyer I like the best. I've been showing Primatte quite a bit and did two presentations at NAB at the Red Giant booth. I find that Primatte is easy to show because of how it works. It's not a matter of fiddling with a bunch of numbers to get the right settings, but dragging around your mouse and clicking big buttons. It works in a very visual manner, which is perfect for artists (who aren't engineers). Also, Primatte has everything I need in one tool.
Easy to use and very fast
Built in DV Deartifactor, Spill Suppression, Color Matching and Light Wrap
Description: ReelSmart Motion Blur Pro automatically tracks every pixel in a sequence and blurs based on calculated motion.
Why I like it: Again, with the greenscreen book, I've realized how incredible this tool really is! Have you ever tried to key footage with motion blur? Not too easy and the results aren't usually very good. You can shoot with a high shutter speed but then you lose all of that natural looking motion blur. This is where RSMB steps in and adds that natural looking footage back into your shot, without blurring the whole frame, just the movement in the video.
Also great for compositing 3D, which I have in the example below.
RSMB has adjustable tracking points for problematic footage
Description: Telcine-style color correction within After Effects, Premiere Pro & Final Cut Pro, giving you full creative control over the color and look of your images.
Why I like it: Color Finesse gives you total control of image, much more than just curves, levels, hue/saturation. You can make adjustments in HSL, RGB, CMY, and YCbCr color spaces, and have individual control over shadows, midtones, and highlights, as well as overall correction.
Has 32 Bit Float support... so why is this important? It allows you to have much more flexibility and allows AE to be used in higher end productions and more cinematic work. You will have more contrast between your blacks and whites. For details on working in 32-bit Float, check out Stu Maschwicz's article on 32-bit float workflow in AE on fxguide.
It ships with After Effects so it won't cost any extra.
Cost: $595 (Buy | No demo at Toolfarm, but you probably already have it if you have AE)
Sample: Just a couple of screenshots...
4 Red Giant Knoll Light Factory
Description: Light effects from John Knoll for photo-realistic sunsets and motion graphics.
Why I like it: Maybe this is just the kid in me, but plug-ins get bonus points for being fun to play with and easy to use and KLF is both. With KLF, you get natural looking lens flares and loads of great presets that are customizable. I really like the fact that you can set up an obscuration layer so that when an object moves in front of the flare, it dims or turns off.
Tons of variety for one type of effect (not a one trick pony)
Use presets or the Lens Editor to build your own flares.
Auto tracking
As with all of the Red Giant products, one license works in multiple host applications on one machine, so you don't need to buy multiple copies.
Description: Create 3D text and primitives without having to learn a 3D program.
Why I like it: I've attempted to learn a true 3D program and give up after about 30 minutes. I have bad depth perception (that's why I used to hit so many things with the car). ProAnimator makes it so easy to create slick looking 3D elements directly in AE and with a short learning curve. I picked up the plug-in quickly without using the manual (that is how I roll).
Nice presets
Track the After Effects camera and lights
Export wireframe versions for that techie, futuristic computer environment look
Description: 3D Particle system that produces various natural effects like smoke, fire and sparks and also organic and techie-style graphical effects that are very useful for motion graphics design.
Why I like it: I love how it looks and all of the presets. I'm a sucker for presets. I don't read manuals so presets help me get going. I just modify them until I get something I like. Particular has loads of fantastic presets, plus you can preview them and what you've created realtime in the Effect Controls window.
Particular is tightly integration with AE's Camera & lights - oh, wait until you see version 2!
Particular has a complex physics engine, allowing you to fully control your particles, again, new improvements in v2.
Inexpensive, especially considering all it can do. Particular is one of those tools you can use on a multitude of jobs and it will never get old.
Description: Damage creates an extensive variety of digital and/or analog defects/errors in your footage.
Why I like it: It's another plug-in that is fun to play with! I've used the plugin for many creative purposes - interference with a hologram popping on, a luma matte for a gradient wipe, and grungy moving backgrounds and grungy text. My favorite part is the little blue button that randomizes the effects. The effects do have a TON of sliders so it's not always clear on what needs to be adjusted to get the effect needed, and that little blue button is just what I need to get started. The plug-in is very fast for previews and renders and is CHEAP at just $99. Also, one license works in multiple hosts on a single computer (AE, FCP, PPRO, Combustion).
Description: Remove an object from your shot quickly without much work.
Why I like it: I showed Motion Key as part of BCC5 at NAB08 and found that this plug-in absolutely blew people away. If you've ever had to rotoscope something out of a clip of video, you know how tedious and un-fun it can be. Motion Key takes all the work out of it by using Optical Flow technology. It's now sold by it self as a single unit and is also included with Boris Continuum Complete 6.
Description: Academy Award winning keyer. It is simple to use and is particularly good at tackling reflections, semi-transparent areas and hair.
Why I like it: I know, two keyers on the list! What gives? You know I recently worked on a book, right? I have used a lot of keying tools in the past 2 years! Keylight is a very powerful keyer and when others can't do the job, Keylight can usually handle it. It is easy to use, fast and has built-in spill suppression. Keylight gives several ways to view the matte/key, and it's included with After Effects, so most of you already own Keylight. Also, Toolfarm also put out some great training for Keylight called Professional Keying with Keylight, that I highly recommend picking up.
Samples: I thought I'd just put the trailer for the Keylight training up. It will give you a good idea about what the plug-in does.
10 Red Giant Magic Bullet Looks
Description: Define the style of your video or film, regardless of on-set conditions, with powerful imaging tools.
Why I like it: This is my favorite plug-in of the lot. It is extremely easy to use, as the interface was designed for artists, not engineers. It comes with a huge library of Looks that are fully customizable and savable. It's lightning fast because of GPU acceleration. It can make video with flat lighting look amazing and it's also great for matching your foreground and background when compositing greenscreen. I use this on pretty much everything, including photos.
Cost: $399 (Buy | Try) Quick Looks now available for $99 (presets only).
Samples: Here's one from our German friend at MyToolfarm.
And here's a promo for a greenscreen contest that I used Looks on the webcam shots to spice them up.
Late Entry: Boris Continuum Complete 6.0 3D Object Filters
Description: 5 new plug-ins in BCC6 that extrude text, paths and eps/Illustrator files.
Why I like it: Easy to use and very fast (hardware accelerated). It works with the native AE camera and lights and everything except the text type window is in the native AE Effect control window. There are loads of options and loads of presets. All bevels can be customized with paths and did I mention the real-time previews? This will certainly make the 2010 top 10 list (but who will I bump?!)
Samples:Here's the finished video shown at the Boris FX Booth at NAB09.
Here's a tutorial I put out a couple of weeks ago.
And here's a tutorial I did for Boris FX. I plan to do a few more tutorials on these fan-diddly-tastic plug-ins.
Honorable Mention: Noise Industries FxFactory Pro
Description: Revolutionary VFX package with over 300 hardware accelerated plug-ins
Why I like it: I really was going for no big packages but just individual plug-ins in this list however, this one is a little different. Why is it different? With FxFactory, you can create your own FxPlug effects for Final Cut Studio without writing any code. Okay, I know this is for FCP and not AE, but, it's still an excellent package of plugins that are VERY fast and have unlimited expandability (you can download more plug-ins at the FxMarket).
As you've probably heard, our One Day Sale is actually a week of One Day Sales. It starts Monday, November 17 and runs through Friday, November 21. First up....
Monday, November 17, 2008 Only - 12am PST - 11:59pm PST
Primatte Keyer serial number will work in Adobe After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion 3, and Avid Xpress Pro. Key Correct Pro is After Effects only.
Red Giant Primatte Keyer
Red Giant Software Key Correct Pro
In addition to the Red Giant and Trapcode Bundles, we're offering Complete training for Trapcode Particular from Class on Demand. (DVD | Download) Learn more about the sale here.
I was invited to the June Motion Picture Collective Meeting on plug-ins. It was held at Pratt Institute in New York City.
I got there about 45 minutes early and there was no one there! After about 30 minutes I started to worry that I came to the wrong place. As I was walking around I ran into Wes Plate of Automatic Duck. We chatted for a bit and then people started to roll in.
The pizza, sponsored by Sony, was incredible. Seriously, some of the best I've ever had. I had some veggie concoction, but Michael Vitti, head of MoPic Collective told me they also had some Cajun Shrimp pizza, but they only ordered one pie. Sounds fantastic!
The meeting started with an introduction and then Frank Garfi and Marc Fratto talked about their film Zombies Anonymous. Two words: Gratuitous violence. Their talk was pretty interesting though. They've taken the zombie story and flipped it around, making it a statement about how Arabs were treated after 9-11.
After that, Juan Martinez and Andrew Shipsides talked about Sony's EX Cameras.
Wes Plate from Automatic Duck came up and presented his products. Since there were so many editors in the audience, there was a lot of interest in his FCP products, especially.
My turn. Right before the show began, we were told we have an extra 15 minutes to fill. My presentation was planned to be exactly 20 minutes! Haha. I began asking the audience some questions about editing technique vs. software knowledge and then talked about Toolfarm. I presented Boris Continuum Complete and as usual, people are blown away by the Motion Key filter. I also had quite a bit of interest in the BCC Pan & Zoom filter which gives the Ken Burns style effect. I had a bit of time at the end, so I quickly showed Red Giant's Primatte Keyer, since keying seems to be a hot topic lately.
Next Michael Vitti showed Zaxwerks ProAnimator, then Jason Diamond showed Red Giant Magic Bullet Looks, which is always a crowd pleaser. I can't help but think that Zombies Anonymous could have benefited from a touch of Looks! Jason did a great job of presenting Looks and demo'd with some footage from a music video he had recently finished.
They also had an auction that night with tons of stuff.
Anyway, it was a good meeting and it was fun to get to New York City again. Thanks Michael Vitti for the invitation and the shirt. I love free shirts! It was great to see everyone in NYC, especially my old buddy Jim G. of the Toolfarm Expert Forum and Chris Tack, one of my former students who headed out to NYC after graduation. I also met quite a few new people from the NYC area. I saw Mario Lopez at a hot dog stand too! He's buff!
David Basulto shows how he used multiple keyers in Apple Motion, including Red Giant Software Primatte Keyer Pro 4. He cuts in FCP and brings it into Motion. His footage is shot over a green sheet and pretty badly lit. He shows several keyers, but Primatte Pro takes care of the job the best.
One awesome thing about Red Giant plug-ins are that you buy a single license and it will work in multiple host apps on the same computer! It supports After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Motion and Avid.
San Francisco, CA, April 10, 2008 - Red Giant Software, publisher of a line of professional desktop tools including the award-winning Magic Bullet™ technology will show five new products at the upcoming NAB Convention in Las Vegas, NV (April 14-17, 2008). Visit the Red Giant Software booth- SL2128A to see demos of Trapcode Horizon, Instant HD Pro, Radium Glow, Magic Bullet Steady, and Primatte Keyer Pro 4.
Trapcode Horizon is a plug-in designed specifically for After Effects users doing 3D work. Are you tired of figuring out how to get your camera to match your virtual background? Well, we have a simple solution for you. With the help of Trapcode Horizon, you can generate motion in 3D in a true 3D space. Now that's beautiful! Priced at $99 this product will ship in Q2 2008.
Instant HD Pro is designed to deliver the highest possible quality conversion for SD to HD. Its advanced tool set offers sharp, motion-compensated de-interlacing and de-noising; advanced pan and scan; and a super-resolution algorithm for providing actual resolution enhancement in an editing application. All these features are combined into one plug-in with an easy-to-use preset menu for choosing the right HD and 2K output formats. Priced at $399 this product will ship in Q2 2008.
Radium Glow will be a new package of plug-ins to create glowing areas in an image, based on the brightest parts of the frame. The four plug-ins are Glow EZ, a simple plug-in with limited controls, Glow with advanced controls and masking, Glow Edge for creating glows only on the edges of an image or around text, and Glow Depth which will create the Glow based on a secondary z-depth or depth buffer layer. Priced at $99 this product will ship in Q2 2008.
Magic Bullet Steady will include two new plug-ins for Final Cut Pro 6 and After Effects CS3 (Mac and Windows). The stabilizer function removes unwanted camera movement and drift with a software-based 2D translation that is near real-time. Also, included in this set is a tool to reduce visible noise and grain in DV sequences produced by digital video cameras, camcorders, TV-tuners, digitizers of film or analog video. Priced at $199 this product will ship in Summer 2008.
Primatte Keyer Pro 4 is a professional green screen tool that extracts keys from any color background quickly and easily. Version 4 brings new levels of power and speed to After Effects and Avid, and for the first time, Final Cut Pro. New features include easy-to-use Auto setup, which creates an almost-perfect key with one click. Powerful features allow Primatte Keyer Pro to overcome keying challenges such as uneven lighting, compression artifacts, subtle shadows, and edge light contamination. Best of all, Primatte Keyer Pro works right on the timeline. Available now for $499 new or $199 as an upgrade.
About Red Giant Software: Red Giant Software LLC is a San Francisco-based company that develops professional tools for digital video production. Products are available as plug-ins for popular video editing and effects applications including After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Motion, Premiere Pro, and Avid. All tools are based on production-proven technology developed by visual effects veterans.
Claudia Crask of SF Cutters sent me some info about the next SF Cutters next meeting is Tues August 28th at dvGarage, 785 Market $5 at the door. Doors open at 6:30 pm, concluding about 9:45 pm.
Sean Safreed of Red Giant is making a limited stop national tour to show off the new Magic Bullet Looks, Trapcode plug-ins which have recently been updated to Final Cut Pro/Motion and Primatte Keyer with Mac and Windows versions.
As part of Magic Bullet Looks you get Magic Bullet LooksBuilder, a stand-alone application that lets you pre-visualize looks on set or anywhere, using a JPEG or TIFF image. Look presets are portable and load into any of the editing hosts, so the same Looks you create on set are the same looks you finish with in the editorial suite. It's no longer necessary to have a complicated finishing system.
Magic Bullet Looks provides hundreds of options with one click. You can get some insight into this new release by reading creator Stu Maschwitz's blog.
Total Training has trained millions on how to use the industries most popular software titles. 
Through November 30, 2009, get Boris Continuum Complete 6 AE, Boris Continuum Complete 6 FxPlug, and Boris XML Transfer for just $995, a $2,289 value if purchased separately. 
After that, Juan Martinez and Andrew Shipsides talked about Sony's EX Cameras.
Next Michael Vitti showed 
