Product Trapcode Suite 2008
Made by Red Giant Software
Price Boxed or download: $799
Pros Nice assortment, powerful,
fun
Cons Minor quirks
Rating
HHHH
112 MacDirectory
REVIEW | CREATIVITY
Special effects, motion graphics and other
video wizardry is becoming so
commonplace today that anyone with the
right chops, some off-the-shelf software
and a laptop can create magic that would
give many high-dollar effects houses a run
for its money. While professional motion
graphics and video applications can
generate impressive effects right out of
the box, some of the most spectacular
effects are achieved through third-party
filters and plug-ins, such as the $799
bundle from Red Giant Software,
Trapcode Suite 2008.
The suite includes a variety of plug-ins in
two general categories. The first is a set
of video filters that work with Final Cut
Pro, Premiere Pro, Motion, AfterEffects,
Avid Xpress and Avid Composer. The
second is in the form of plug-ins
specifically for AfterEffects.
Contents
The video filters include Shine 1.5,
StarGlow 1.5 and 3D Stroke 2.5. The first
provides light effects for adding godrays
and other radiant effects. Starglow, as its
name infers, adds a star-like glow to an
object or composition. The third is a
vector tool that enables the user to create
animated paths for creating moving,
glowing streams of light and color, and
creating effects ranging from dancing
neon to thunderbolts. All three are highly
adaptable and provide the controls for
generating an impressive range of effects,
particularly when combined with other
offerings in the suite.
The dedicated AfterEffects plug-ins
include Particular 1.5.1, Lux 1.0.2,
EchoSpace 1.0.2, SoundKeys 1.1.3, and a
new and impressive item called Trapcode
Form. Particular is a fairly robust particle
generator that is used for creating
scattering and trailing effects such as
smoke, fire, sparks, fairy dust and the like.
Lux is a tool for creating glowing spotlight
effects such as visible beams of light.
EchoSpace is a nifty expressions-based
sequencing tool for creating, sequencing
and animating objects in 3-D. SoundKeys
is a plug-in for using an audio track to
triggering animation. The final item in the
collection is Trapcode Form, which is a
marvelous tool for creating fire, smoke
and dust effects.
Hands-On
As with any set of plug-ins, the value is
largely determined by the project at hand
and the flexibility of the plug-ins
themselves. In this regard, we find most of
this suite to be quite useful. If there is one
thing that most of them have in common
is an almost dizzying variety of controls.
Fortunately, you do not need to be a
rocket scientist in order to begin
producing some eye-catching work, but
once you get a handle on the more
advanced controls, you will find yourself
creating some amazing effects just by
playing with the controls. Frankly, it is this
sort of thing that is turning motion
graphics applications such as AfterEffects
and Motion into the Photoshop of the
new millennium.
As for straightforward allure, Trapcode
Form is the most interesting of the lot.
Using this tool you can set pools of smoke
undulating to music, dissolve type into a
swirl of dust, set objects on fire and move
swirls of smoke through transparent
objects. There are a dizzying number of
controls, which can take a bit of
experimenting to master, but there are
also a huge number of presets that will
get you up and running in no time.
Particular is a very capable particle
generator and can handle most anything.
The only serious shortcoming is that
custom particles based on 2-D art are
permanently oriented towards the
camera. If you are a Motion user, this will
be an excellent complement to your
existing particle generator.
As for the other components of the
bundle, they range from the exciting (such
as SoundKeys) to the fun (EchoSpace and
3D Stroke) to the more mundane
(StarGlow), but all are useful. For more
detailed information, pay a visit to their
website. While you're there, make sure to
check out the video tutorials.
Conclusions
Trapcode Suite 2008 provides a good
balance of power and variety and comes
at a serious discount from the individual
item prices. There is not a clinker in the
bunch and it is easy to recommend this
collection to any serious AfterEffects pro.
TRAPCODE SUITE 2008 > RED GIANT'S VERSATILE BUNDLE
WORDS BY TREY YANCY
