starbase1
07-26-2006, 05:33 AM
I thought others might be interested in my opinions on the ASile FX viue training videos, "Getting started with Vue Infinite".
I have not watched everything yet, but I think the pattern is pretty clear.
There is about 3 hours of material here, ($45), and it tries to cover a lot of ground, from moving the camera, up to plants, ecosystems and underwater effects.
The video quality is good, nice and sharp, (quicktime) and the presenter has a clear easy to understand voice.
I think it is perhaps kindest to view this as a sort of guided tour rather than a tutorial in specific techniques. I picked up quite a bit from just watching the way the presenter moved around the program - as many have commented, the interface is VERY different in style to LW. He clearly knows his stuff, but I feel there are some major problems here.
1. Lack of focus. There's a lot of mucking about, with no clear goal beyond trying lots of options. So there is very little stuff actually produced while you watch.
2. Zero renders done. Sometimes very interesting looking effects are discussed, (I was very interested in some of the more exotic sky phenomena, like halos), but you NEVER seem to see a render, you attention is just directed at the preview window. If you are showing off a program, and making people want to use it, this seems a glaring ommision.
3. Lack of editing of the video. It's very much start and charge on through, even when there are clearly problems - for example, the presenter never found the rainbow he created in the scene.
There are a couple of supplied sample files, but they are very minor.
Despite these flaws, I did pick up a lot of information about what was possible with the software, but I really can't recommend it as it stands.
It really does come across as rather lazy.
Nick
I have not watched everything yet, but I think the pattern is pretty clear.
There is about 3 hours of material here, ($45), and it tries to cover a lot of ground, from moving the camera, up to plants, ecosystems and underwater effects.
The video quality is good, nice and sharp, (quicktime) and the presenter has a clear easy to understand voice.
I think it is perhaps kindest to view this as a sort of guided tour rather than a tutorial in specific techniques. I picked up quite a bit from just watching the way the presenter moved around the program - as many have commented, the interface is VERY different in style to LW. He clearly knows his stuff, but I feel there are some major problems here.
1. Lack of focus. There's a lot of mucking about, with no clear goal beyond trying lots of options. So there is very little stuff actually produced while you watch.
2. Zero renders done. Sometimes very interesting looking effects are discussed, (I was very interested in some of the more exotic sky phenomena, like halos), but you NEVER seem to see a render, you attention is just directed at the preview window. If you are showing off a program, and making people want to use it, this seems a glaring ommision.
3. Lack of editing of the video. It's very much start and charge on through, even when there are clearly problems - for example, the presenter never found the rainbow he created in the scene.
There are a couple of supplied sample files, but they are very minor.
Despite these flaws, I did pick up a lot of information about what was possible with the software, but I really can't recommend it as it stands.
It really does come across as rather lazy.
Nick