Shake or After Effects?

I'm wondering what the major differences are between the two. I'll be editing some short movies, focusing on color correction, adjusting lighting, image stabilizing, and titles/text... no motion graphics, cg, or green/bluescreening involved.
Another quick question- For those who have seen the series Spaced, is there a way to achieve the fast "swing" transition (between the characters thoughts) in one of these programs?
Thanks
Message was edited by: ejdge

the swing effect is made in camera i think.
you could probably fake it by using some directional blur and pushsliding the shot in behind it but would be hard to gt the same effect.
if you are asking about software i guess you have nt shot yet.
youd have to storyboard really well, figure out your transitions and which way one shot wuld swing into another then do it on set.
then just bump them together in FCP or avid and add a little dissolve transition and 'whisk' sound effect between the two.

Similar Messages

Removing shake in after effects

After deciding to take the jump to CC I discovered all that looks good has its own set of problems. I'm hoping in this discussion a skilled AE user might save me time and money. I'm a proficient Vegas Pro user. The jump from a mix of Adobe programs and apps from other vendors has left me floundering somewhat in needing to get up to speed on some Adobe products.
My ask for help here is that I've used Mercalli to clean up shaky footage (such as taken in a moving 4WD on a rough track) with great success but now that I'm moving to 100% Adobe products, I'd like to hear from users of AE who have a prefered workflow when handling work like this. I'd greatly apreciate some help here.
Sure... I could read up or school up on the topic, even buy a product I've used in the past that has an Adobe version but I'm hoping as working professionals who have done this themselves or know more than me about removing shake with after effects, suggesting their worklow might avoid the very expensive and time consuming tasks of trial and error that gets suggested so often. RTFM is not going to help me either.
My belief is that having signed up for the full house of Adobe CC, I should be using it instead of dealing wiht the update and upgrade mess I'll eventually face if I don't get on the program. Hopefull this makes sense and someone will help?
Ryadia.

I'd like to thank all who replied to my question. After a few days of experimentation I've found that Warp Stabilizer can certainly be used for correcting many hand help situations but like many components provided by Adobe in their graphic software, it has limitations that third party products do a much better job at.
Warp Stabilizer is certainly able to level out the effects of a hand held camera phone or pocket camera but to a videographer needing to produce broadcast quality promos, the fact that it works but nowhere near as well as a specialist product developed for the specific purpose is quite clear to me after using some of the information provided in replies.
I may be biased after using Mercalli for most of my stabalisation needs but installing their trial and working the same footage with firstly Warp and then Mercalli, I have decided this will remain my prefered stabaliser. I am still not entirely comfortable with AE after several years of Vegas but the learning curve for AE is not as bad as I'd expected. I'm sure I'll become familiar with it in a short time.
The comment regarding the need for a stable component when shooting a vast areas of water is overcome quite easiely if you include some of the mast spreaders in the corner of the frame or as in a 4WD mounted camera, a small part of the vehicle the camera is attached to will provide the constant needed. It does take a little practice to avoid over Stabilization but isn't that so with everything?.
Thanks all, I apreciate your help
Ryadia

Shake vs after effects which one

Hello,
I am at the crossroads of Shake vs After effects. I would like to spice up my productions a lot more than I have been doing. Can I do that with use of Motion 2 and Shake 4.1 and have that equal what After Effects offers?
Thanks,
Jordan

We've discussed this before...
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=583255&tstart=45
Answer is maybe, but no - unless yes.
CaptM

What software to buy- Shake? After Effects? VisionLab Pro?

I am looking for an effects/compositing application for effects like muzzle flashes, flames, chroma keying, electricity/lightning etc. I have FCS2 but Motion doesn't seem to do all of these things well. Therefore, what works best? What is easy to learn and use well? How does quality compare? I have downloaded the demo for VisionLab Pro and it seems great, but what else does Shake or anything else have to offer? For reference, I am an experienced high school student editor, not a full-time fx pro, so ease of use plays a role too.

Visionlab Pro seems interesting for what you seek. But the all-in-one compositing and effect tool box I would go for is After Effects. It's pricey but it has so much in it. I love Shake but you have to feed Shake with things, you don't have an build in particles system for example. Shake is more film compositing than anything else, great for keying, chromas, color correction, wire removal etc. After Effects can do all these things. And it's layer based so you get the hand of it quicker.
On Shakes upside: it's cheaper and node based. and if you learn node based compositing you can work in the industry, Shake is still very much alive out there @ the vfx houses.

Apple Shake vs Adobe After Effects?

I am currently deciding whether to buy shake or after effects. By looking at some of the demo reels on youtube after fx seems to have more movie like effects going on. Is this because shake is still relatively new? Anyone here able to give a comparison of the two?
Thanks
Kruz

kruzmode08 wrote:
What do you mean by shake no longer supported?
It means that Apple doesn't plan to release updates or fix bugs.
It's frozen in time.
Here's an interesting special effects book that includes examples from both apps:
http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Pro-Training-Encyclopedia-Effects/dp/0321303342
Although Amazon has the better price, Peachpit shows the table of contents:
http://www.peachpit.com/store/product.aspx?isbn=0321303342
The book includes trial versions of both apps, so you can make an informed decision.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AFTER EFFECTS

What is the main difference between shake and after effects?
Why would one buy shake (other than the price now) over after effects?

search is your friend, dude.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=583255&tstart=45
G5 Dual 2.0 4gigs RAM Mac OS X (10.4) FCP 5.0

Shake, After Effects, Motion?

Is Shake equivalent to After Effects? Also, where does Motion fall into the scheme of things. Im trying to understand what the differences is between all 3 of these programs. I have no experience with any of them. Can someone explain and suggest what they think is the best program to learn?

Well,
There are many things that all 3 apps can do that are either equal or similar.
You can key, composite and generate, to a degree, in all. Each do things better than the others.
AE and Motion are layer based apps (like Photoshop).
Shake is node based.
AE and Motion do particles and text effects really well out of the box.
Over on mograph.net the same question was just asked. Below are some of the responses:
Shake is really great at:
Using one object to matte many things at once- no pre-composing, no unneccesary multiple matte layers.
Compositing files that contain z-depth information in z-space.
Complex keying and color correction.
Floating color calculations (for example, multiple instances of brightness contrast, hue saturation, curves, levels, and other color correcters are all calculated together as one operation, so the image doesn't get crunchy and lose it's integrity).
It has arguably the best written software manual EVER. Seriously.
It's really non-linear.
It's more suited towards compositing and finishing, and less towards graphics content creation. If you are switching from AE to Shake, download the AE plugins for shake from High End 2D.
And:
IMO shake is good at tuning fine color corrections, 3d composite, roto and tracking.
And:
Shake is good at setting up things at the core of what Compositing is all about. Concatenation and Piping nodes together. It seems to be more of a VFX kinda tool. I couldn't see design type or anything to mograph with it.
But it does do some cool things that in AE takes longer or can't do. Like being able to offset the tracker and the roto tool. You can link a tracker to a mask point.

Final Cut vs After Effects vs Shake

Hi everyone
I have been using Final Cut Studio on an Intel mac for a short period and while fcp and Motion cover most of my needs I do need a little bit more on the animation side.
Importing graphics from photoshop and illustrator and then manipulating them with live video is the majority of my work.
Right now I would like to have a good rotoscoping/paint solution to expand the possibilities of fcp studio.
My question is what would be best. A plug-in such as Silhouette (though I dont htink its available for Intel macs), Shake (maybe overkill?), or just fork out for AE to complete my toolset??
Any experiences and advice much appreciated.
thanks
Xavier

Importing graphics from photoshop and illustrator and then manipulating them with live video is the majority of my work.
<
Then your only serious choice is After Effects.
<div class="jive-quote">Very rarely see a studio or serious motion graphics artist who doesn't, but its an expensive option... < </div>
This is not true at all. AEpro7 is much less expensive than any previous version and it's packed with tons of new stuff and filters for which you are not paying any additional charges. An it incorporates beautifully into CS2's Bridge functionality.
bogiesan

Shake vs Boris Red 3GL vs After Effects 7

Hello,
I am ready to purchase an effects program, but don't know which of the three software programs to buy. Does Shake provide everything that After Effects and Boris Red 3GL provide? Also, I'm getting the picture that Apple is no longer producing Shake, is that correct? I would prefer to buy Shake because of the superb integration with FCP Studio.
Thanks,
Jordan

The recent Shake converts among us sure love it.
I do not have Shake.
I'm an After Effects fan. I personally do not like the Boris interface but that's a personal problem for me, not you.
Each of those apps will do marvelous things but each has a totally different paradigm. you've got to figure out which one you want to work with for the next two or three years or which one you think will continue to be of value over the long haul.
bogiesan

After Effects or Shake? Which one should i choose?

After Effects or Shake？ Which one should i choose？
I never use them before, now i want to choose one to learn.
Im a Mac fans, i do want to use the Mac family product, Shake, but a lot of my friends prefer After Effects.
What one is better? Why?
I just a film student, a beginner, which one is better in the video production area? Which one is better for me?
Help me make a decision!
Thanks!

if you said you were looking to create motion graphics and comps (bumpers, titling and ad's) for a video company or local television station, AE would be a really good match (Shake would likely require additional motion graphics help (like  Motion and perhaps even audio and edit applications as well.)
However, if you are a film student and intend to learn and create composite images for film (and video) then your choice is also as clear, absolutely, Shake.

Render problems and fed up with after effects

Hi all,
I'm I the middle of trying to do a very simple pan and scan corporate video, the crux being its in stereoscopic 3D. First I've tried using cineform plug ins and have had numerous problems and basically don't think highly of their product. Since after effects has plug ins for stereoscopic I've moved to try and use them. All seems to be going alright for most of the footage. But I'm have some issues with a very import pant part of one video.
My set up
Mac 2x2.4 GHz Quad-core Intel Xeon
12GB of ram
Mac OSX 10.7.2
ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024MB
NVIDEA Quadro 4000 2048MB
After Effects CS5.5 (10.5.0.253)
630GB free on 1TB boot drive
1.8TB free on 3TB external drive 1
100GB free on 3TB external drive 2
My comp is 7 layers. Duration 1:46:00 output is Side by Side
Layer 1- animation with alpha clip. Opacity is keyframed to do a 'dissolve' at the beginning and end of the clip. TC in 53:11, out 1:05:01
Layer 2- comp. stereoscopic 3D. Made from using a camera and Create Stereo 3D Rig. It's a mask of the earth in space. 1:46:00
Layer 3- animation with alpha clip. Opactiy keyframed same as layer 1. Clip aniamtionwas done in the original comp. TC in 1:25:09, out 1:45:10.
Layer 4- animation with alpha clip. Opacity key framed same as layer 1. Clip aniamtionwas done in the original comp.TC in 1:03:2,' out 1:16:10.
Layer 5- animation with alpha clip. Opacity key framed same as layer 1. Clip aniamtionwas done in the original comp.TC in 31:12, out 48:11.
Layer 6- animation with alpha clip. Opacity key framed same as layer 1. Clip aniamtionwas done in the original comp.TC in 6:06, out 21:14.
Layer 7- animation codec clip. 1:46:00 duration.
Now when I attempt to render this out to a ProRes 422 file so that I can join it up with the other footage in Primeire Pro, I basically sit around for 2 hours and then I get a nice little dialog box stating "an output module failed. The file may be damaged or corrupted. (-1610153464).
This is maddening to say the least.
Other issues
After Effects basically is Pathetically slow in rendering out a ProRes or Animation or any type of mov file. A simple 30sec clip takes 1 hour 47 minutes. All the clip contains is a tiff left eye and right eye and the 3D glasses plug in. That's it. I know my system isn't the biggest out there (I bought what I could afford). But these render times are ludicrous. If I turn of the multiprocessing it doesn't help. I have the openGL turned on. That doesn't seems to do anything. I have it set up to use 10Gb of ram, yet the system says I'm only using 37% of my ram, none of my processors and I have no idea about the graphics card. Am I totally missing something about how after effects actually does rendering? I'm from the old school of Jaleo and Shake and Nuke. However I set out on my own as a freelancer and I can't really afford Nuke (besides I don't like that it doesn't have a timeline). So I purchased Adobe production premium thinking it can do the job I want, however it seems to act like a spoilt brat software. Yes im ranting had really having thoughts of buyers remorse.
If anyone out there has any advice or thoughts on how to get this to work I'd be more than grateful to hear from you.
Cheers
James

That doesn't seems to do anything. I have it set up to use 10Gb of ram, yet the system says I'm only using 37% of my ram,
AE only takes what it needs, as do any programs with dynamically managed memory. It's not cramming everything into RAM when it doesn't have to.
none of my processors
Secondary processors/ cores will only be used, if you enable the sad excuse that is the "Render multiple Frames simultanuously" feature. As Todd suggested, read that article on "optimum" settings. Just keep in mind that what works well for one project may not work at all for the next one when the balance of footage I/O vs. pixel processing vs. memory consumption changes. You're gonna learn to really hate this...
I have no idea about the graphics card
AE doesn't use it for the most part. Even if you enable all of the hardware acceleration features, AE may turn them off behind your back, one such condition being the use of MP rendering. Can't have both. Conversely, MP rendering might be turned off just the same, if specific effects or features are used. That's also expleianed in teh help. Your only chance of halfway benefiting from hardware acceleration is buying some third-party plug-ins that have their own implementations of OpenGL and CUDA. Still, since you use two different cards i nyour system, that may also be problematic...
Mylenium

How to enable sound scrolling in After Effects?

So basicly what im trying to do is be able to scroll through my compisition with the mouse and hear sound like in Sony Vegas is this possiple? So if i drag my mouse over footage sound will play. Also can you enable keyframes on a mask?
Thanks so much!
Cam

According to this page in the Adobe Help you can preview audio by ctrl+alt+drag the current timeline indicator. It also has a lot of other useful info about previewing in AE.
Now, keep in mind, previewing audio and video in AE is very different from non-linear editors like Vegas. Rick Gerard had a good explanation for this:
Sony Vegas, Premiere Pro, Final Cut, Avid are all NLE's (Non Linear Editors) and they are specifically designed to playback a video stream. With any of them, if you stack enough layers or effects on the video they will have to render a new video stream based on pixel based calculations for every pixel in the stack. This rendering, especially for HD sources or for complex plug-ins, will take quite a bit of time.
After Effects, Flame, Fusion, Shake -- are all pixel based image processing applications that act very much like Photoshop. They calculate the values of every pixel in every frame, come up with a new pixel, and then play those pixels back as a video stream. More importantly, AE and all the other pixel based compositing apps, always work internally with completely uncompressed pixel data. NLE's rely on codecs and in some cases, hardware, to playback the video. It's an entirely different way of working with moving images.
In After Effects you enable the preview by loading a bunch of frames into RAM then the video stream is played back. You start the process with the 0 key on the numeric keypad and not with the Space Bar as you do in nearly every NLE ever created. The length of the preview depends entirely on how much free ram you have available and it takes some time to generate these new pixels. The more layers, the more effects, the more calculations that need to be performed the longer it will take to process the RAM preview. There's currently no way around this rendering time. A modern NLE will handle an amazing number of video streams simultaneously, but as soon as you exceed the capability of the system you're stuck with a render. Most NLE's, given the same number of calculations, actually take a little longer than After Effects to do the same kind of effects. Open GL, and other GPU acceleration helps many NLE's achieve higher performance but it has yet to be implemented into a pixel based compositing app. The sad truth of the matter is that if you want to do compositing in any of the available compositing apps, you have to wait for renders. They are getting better. Memory management and efficiency is improving. GPU accelerated effects are being added, but for now, that's about as good as it gets.
I hope this helps. As long as you use After Effects to create shots and don't try to make it do the work of a NLE you should be fine. Movies come from NLE's, amazing shots come from AE.
- Rick Gerard
This page has links to lots of information about animating masks and shape layers.
It sounds like you're a beginner in AE. You should really start here to get a foundation in the basics before you just jump into it.

How to do non-random camera shake or pulsating effect.

I already know the expression for switching between random values at a fixed rate but is there an expression or quick way to tell after effects to switch between two set values? I'm trying to do a pulsating effect where the video clip scales over and over between 100 and 102 percent for a few seconds. I'd also like for it to increase and decrease in intensity over time. This isn't a shake, it's a pulse, so I don't want it to be random, it looks strange.
What i've been doing is creating individual keys, copying and pasting. This is very time consuming and so far I haven't achieved the look I want. I know it's possible but it's annoying that i can't just tell after effects to switch between those values at such and such a rate. The expression I've tried is great it's just that the values added are random.
I've also keyed in a radial blur that goes on when the video scales to 102 so it looks like a motion blur. I also have to copy and paste these values.
Anyway, I hope that makes sense and there's a quicker way to do this. BTW im using cs4

Could be as simple as a sinus, could be as complicated as using elaborate valueAtTime() constructs. If it's a regular interval, simply create your prototype keyframes and apply a loopOut("cycle") expression.
Mylenium

Is After Effects a better option for Chroma???

Hi all,
For some time I have not been happy with the quality of our finished chroma key output. I am using a green screen, professional lighting and camera operator, as well as Color Smoother, 8 Point Garbage Matte etc etc
In a previous life I used After Effects with its KEYLIGHT plug in - which seems to be one pretty powerful Chroma Keyer. While I am happy enough in FCP - I just don't feel MOTION comes near AE.
I am committed to FCP permanently but was thinking of going back to AE over MOTION as a lot of our work is green screen based.
Any thing I am missing before I blow the cash on AE?
Thanks all,
JD

Absolutely. If you're getting AE from a bundle and you need Photoshop and Illustrator then you'll get a good product with AE, but it should not be the goal. Shake is now just a cheap and still one of the best compositors out there. Bare in mind that Jackson used Shake to composite Lord of the Rings, and King Kong. Nobody can say that was an OK job, if only they had a better program for the compositing. You will have to learn a new interface type. AE, Final Cut, Motion, and Photoshop are all layer based apps, and shake is node based, much like Color. It's a great way to work once you get it, so spend the time to really familiarize yourself with the style. I highly recommend Shake.

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Thanks for the work you've done on these tutorials and I wish you success in launching your DVD.
Your English is very good.
bogiesan

Shake or After Effects?

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