Adobe Seattle
I got an email from a video colleague a couple of weeks ago with an invitation to visit the Adobe offices here in Seattle. Seems they were eager to sit down with some producers and test drive the new yet-to-be released After Effects , which will be bundled with the new yet-to-be released Adobe CS6. This was like an invitation to Disney Land for me. I was excited, yet doubtful about what little insight I could offer. I’ve used After Effects for almost ten years, and yet my breadth of knowledge barely skims the surface of what many regular motion graphics artists can accomplish with this bad boy of a program. My co-producer at the PBS station I worked for in Kansas was an After-Effects affectionado, and would spend the better part of a week learning how to create “steam” rising out of of coffee cup, whereas I focused on honing the content of the program we were editing and marveled at his patience and detailed skills. I could barely layer pictures and zoom text around. Since then I have made great strides in motion graphics and have developed a good core foundation in After Effects. But still…doubt lingered. What could I offer these designer demi-gods?
Once I arrived at Adobe however, I felt a little more at ease. Troy Church; After Effects User Experience Designer, and David Simmons; the principle scientist at Adobe and one of the original After Effects team members, were unbelievably gracious and friendly. We toured the facility on Lake Union’s waterfront, ate lunch in their “cafeteria” (the food is better than some three star restaurants I’ve been to), then convened in their boardroom and got down to business. I signed a non-disclosure agreement upon check-in, so I can’t dish on details. I will say that the new After Effects’s performance and capabilities will be mind blowing. Two of the biggest requests about After Effects has always been improved performance, and incorporate 3-D editing – and the new AE will not disappoint.
It turns out Adobe wants to hear from all walks of producers and editors, from film to large production companies, to freelancers like me who use it once in a while, but also wish there were more plug-ins, more access to training materials, and cheaper classes.
Thanks to the web there are now a good pond of online resources to fish from. Here are a few I liked:
- Creative Cow (online tutorials for a ton of adobe and apple software programs - they tend to be geared towards creating specific looks or effects but a great place to start for overview tutorials as well).
-Adobe TV (Adobe’s online video resource - I like that they have a page dedicated to After Affects with video tutorials in somewhat chronological order of skill level - http://tv.adobe.com/product/after-effects/)
Pro Video Coalition - This is more a compilation of blogs and recent news about all things video, but the second blog posted as of today offers a peek at the new after effects!
Adobe CS6 is slated to be released before the summer. I was thrilled to play a fractional role in its development and am now inspired to roll up my sleeves and delve deeper into the world of motion graphics. When I bid on jobs, After Effects experience is one of the first things potential clients ask about and for good reason, the program has a solid reputation and has a wide user base like no other. Being seriously proficient in After Effects takes a lot of time, commitment, and attention to detail – and I’m up to the challenge!
