| Creativecow.net Training Product Review |
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Jim Harvey
JHV Digital
New York USA
©Copyright 2005 Jim Harvey and Creativecow.net. All Rights Reserved. |
Article Focus:
CreativeCOW leader Jim Harvey reviews The Anvel: Motion Graphics Project Lessons for Photoshop and After Effects by Dean Velez, and writes, "Dean Velez is no stranger to the CreativeCow community having contributed much of his knowledge to aspiring graphic artists who come to the Cow for guidance. Currently, he has put up a small sampling of his new offering, a course designed to help designers create complex and fresh work using Photoshop and After Effects." |
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I got an advance copy of the course recently and noticed something right away. Dean likes Layers. Layers and Layers of Layers! Now this may intimidate new users when they first open up one of Dean's project files, but hold on just a minute. Remember this, Dean has won 2 Emmy Awards and been nominated for 7 more. I think we should take some time to look into this!
One of the things that threw me at first was that there was no "narration" on the CD's. I guess I'm getting lazy or spoiled in my old age, but I was a little grumpy at first. "What am I supposed to do here?" I thought. Well the simple answer is "Read the PDF DUMMY!" Each project has an accompanying PDF file that has each and every step necessary to complete the project. So dust off those cheap reading glasses that you got at the pharmacy and open the PDF and follow along!
One of the most difficult things to do when preparing a tutorial is the "simple" process of just writing the instructions. If you doubt me, give it a try sometime. In this case Dean has gone to great lengths to put every step in the proper order to achieve the finished project. A nice touch is that each lesson has a complete .aep file that you can dissect as well as a QuickTime movie of the project as it should look. This is a great help when working thorough the projects just to see that you are on track.
The course is designed for AE 6.5 although if you are working with a version earlier than 6.5, you do so with the understanding that some of the effects or filters may not be available to you. This in and of itself isn't a real problem just something that you need to be aware of. Case in point, On CD's 1 - 5, I had some difficulty in getting the math to work (using version 6.0). Layers were ending up in the wrong place and I was getting a little frustrated. I knew that they were there; they just weren't winding up where they belonged. After talking with Dean, he told me that he found that importing a .psd file as cropped layers rather than a straight composition would be the workaround (not even a workaround, which gives the impression that there is a bug or real problem, more of an adjustment in procedure). Once I got that handled, the comps fell into place just like I knew what I was doing! Upcoming CD's will have that problem addressed so it's really a non-issue.
I mentioned that Dean likes layers and when you open the projects you'll see that by importing a .psd file with all its layers intact, you can come up with some very layer heavy comps. This is good and bad. It's good in that it allows you to have absolute freedom to tweak, adjust, and modify the comp to get exactly the look that you are shooting for. It's bad in that when you have a comp with 50 or 100 layers, you can get confused with the slightest moment of inattention. To combat the "Where the heck am I?" syndrome, Dean opts for the "shy the layer" technique. Once you finish working on your particular layer, turn the eyeball off and shy the layer. Set the program up to hide shy layers and you'll find that your workflow is just such a pleasure to deal with and you won't get lost in the process. I've worked with AE for quite a while and to be honest, never do I recall shying any layers of any of the comps that I've created over the years. No, I DIDN'T read the manual and I DIDN'T know that the little Kilroy guy was the "shy layer" Icon. Thanks Dean, for making me just a wee bit smarter than I was. The rest of you can send mocking email to me for my gaffe.
The printed "manual" that came with the program (a loose leaf binder with course outline/information) isn't necessary to utilize the course. It is simply a lesson plan that will help students plan and execute their work in a logical manner. Personally, I'd keep it closed and just go with the PDF files on the CD's. Instructors have a more in-depth syllabus that they can use if teaching a course with the ANVEL program. Dean is also planning to add a FAQ to his website (www.theanvel.com) that will help to answer some of the questions that will ultimately crop up when using the course.
CONCLUSION
After speaking to Dean and listening to what his intention is with this program, I can confidently state that you would be spending your money wisely if you invest in his program. Yes, there are some rough spots, but the knowledge that you will glean from this course will more than offset any minor syntax errors you may encounter. I know that Dean will be refining the program as time goes on so I'm leaving some room for improvement in my final COW rating, but rest assured, you will learn some very neat tricks with this course.
COW RATING 4 COWS
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