Posted by Spex on 10/30/07 07:07

nappy wrote:
> "Artur" <art.rubin@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1193714773.574763.302230@v3g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
>> Greetings:
>>
>> I need some advice for my teen-age nephew as to whether upgrading to
>> After Effects CS3 is the logical step to take after having worked with
>> After Effects Pro 7.0 for a year. He also owns several instructional
>> DVDs from the Creative Cow and Video Copilot.
>>
> Why not?
>
>> He has his own chroma key green screen studio and recently attended a
>> three-day filmmaking workshop for teenagers at the 7th Annual New
>> Hampshire Film Festival. For the holidays, I just don't know what to
>> get him. He downloads lots of instructional stuff on how to get the
>> most out of AE Pro 7.0. Do you think animation is the way to go? If
>> so, which software package to buy -- Toon Boon?
>
>
> Toon Boom is different than AE. Is he into doing animation? Is that what he
> uses AE for? Ok..
> Question though.. What is it that he is not able to do at this point that he
> needs an upgrade ..
>
> As to your question though.. It doesn't hurt to experience many of the
> various packages out there..
>

If your nephew is into compositing the next logical step is to learn a
"nodal" compositor. Once you learn one nodal compositor you can really
find your way round most of the others with ease.

Look at Fusion, Nuke, Toxic and Shake.

If you are on a Mac then Shake is the bargain of the century otherwise
you are looking at quite a big investment but it is worth it. Working
in VFX you cannot escape nodal compositing.

If your nephew is more interested in motion graphic/animation I'd stick
with AE but upgrade to CS3. You have to spend a lot of money on one of
the more expensive versions of Toon Boom to get the features that AE
doesn't already have in one form or another.

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