Graphics in Motion
Last semester I tried into get the Motion Graphics class at school but couldn't - I went the first night but every seat was full and there were people three deep standing in the back. I didn't anticipate that, but this time I was ready and signed up right away. The first class was Tuesday and I'm coming to some conclusions about the tack I should be taking with this. I think it's very telling, for example, that the Final Cut Pro editing classes are in an old building and an old lab full of old computers, and the After Effects/Motion Graphics classes are in the brand new building in a brand new lab full of hot rod machines. There were exactly four people that went through the Final Cut/DVD Studio class with me last semester.
I'm not sure why this is, except that possibly Final Cut is fairly easy to tinker with and almost anybody with decent computer skills can at least tack together some film clips. Let me be clear - it not not easy, just easy to play with, kind of the way a beginner could get into Microsoft Word and type up a really crappy resume. After Effects, by contrast, is not. The interface looks like the cockpit of the friggin' space shuttle, and you have to known Photoshop upside down to even get going. I do, and I feel like a horse in the gate at the Kentucky Derby waiting for the bell.
You see After Effects every day - commercials, opening titles, news programs - anything that moves and wasn't actually shot on film is probably out of After Effects. Even if it was shot, it was probably enhanced using AE.
Our second project will be "puppet animation" using AE. Check out this link to see an example. I'd embed it but you should really see it at full screen in HD, so follow the link.
I'm not sure why this is, except that possibly Final Cut is fairly easy to tinker with and almost anybody with decent computer skills can at least tack together some film clips. Let me be clear - it not not easy, just easy to play with, kind of the way a beginner could get into Microsoft Word and type up a really crappy resume. After Effects, by contrast, is not. The interface looks like the cockpit of the friggin' space shuttle, and you have to known Photoshop upside down to even get going. I do, and I feel like a horse in the gate at the Kentucky Derby waiting for the bell.
You see After Effects every day - commercials, opening titles, news programs - anything that moves and wasn't actually shot on film is probably out of After Effects. Even if it was shot, it was probably enhanced using AE.
Our second project will be "puppet animation" using AE. Check out this link to see an example. I'd embed it but you should really see it at full screen in HD, so follow the link.