Thoughts on the AE/C4D implimentation by C4D users

[Ryan Holmes]

Stab in the dark here…but I’m getting a sense they like the new strategic alliance between Maxon and Adobe! 😉

Seriously though, this really does put AE into a whole new category.

Ryan Holmes
http://www.ryanholmes.me
@CutColorPost

[Tom Daigon]

You should read the article.

Given their experience with rendering and displaying, they have some reservations about how slow and frustrating using it to its full capacity will be on AE. Another case of AE folks not really aware how slow both displaying and rendering can be with true 3D software. And with their experience, I think they see users in for a let down when they try to use it like Element 3D which is very fast.

Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid

[Ryan Holmes]

[Tom Daigon] “Given their experience with rendering and displaying, they have some reservations about how slow and frustrating using it to its full capacity will be on AE. “

You’re probably right here. 3D can become very complex very quickly – lighting, texturing, camera, animating, etc. But my guess would be that Maxon will begin to customize more of it’s software towards working inside/with AE. C4D has a pretty solid following from broadcast motion graphics designers for its speed and ease of use. I would expect over the course of the next year or so that they will greatly refine the workflow to speed up the “it works in AE” tagline.

But I fear the early days of using it may be a little rough. Especially if a user doesn’t have a pretty stout hardware setup – GPU, RAM, CPU, etc. I mean this would probably be a nightmare on a laptop or similar…I think the only way it performs smoothly is on high-end desktop workstations. Unfortunately, I’m sure somebody will complain that it takes too long to render a scene on their MacBook Air. I’m guessing before summer is out we’ll see posts like that here on the COW!

Ryan Holmes
http://www.ryanholmes.me
@CutColorPost

[Tom Daigon]

Well said. I concur.

Im so torn because after doing tutorials for both C4D and Blender 2.66. Blender really puts it to shame.

It has a new, very professional and functional GUI,amazing use of GPU for accelerated display and rendering (it flys on my Z820), great modeling tools and all the features of the Studio version (and not costing $3500). I could go on and on. I dont have time to master 2 3D packages, but the link to AE makes C4D very tempting.

Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid

[Joseph W. bourke]

I hate to throw rain on the C4D integration parade, but 3D Studio Max 2013 announced very tight integration with both After Effects and Photoshop when they released Max 2013, over a year ago:

https://area.autodesk.com/3dsmax2012

Here’s what they said with the release – in March of 2012:

Adobe After Effects Interoperability (SAP+)

Steve Forde, the Product Manager for Adobe After Effects was recently giving a presentation to our channel partners and he really brought home how important this new feature will be for AE users. There is nothing else like it in any other product. It gives you a bidirectional workflow allowing two different artists to work collaboratively (it’s common for there to be a 2D and a 3D user working together on a project) with updates happening in either end and everyone remaining in sync. Of course, it benefits you if you’re working alone too as it ensures simple syncronization of your data.

Media design and graphics artists whose creative toolsets include Adobe® After Effects® software can now enjoy a level of interoperability with 3ds Max that sets a higher standard for 2D/3D data exchange. The new Media Sync functionality provides two-way transfer of cameras, lights, null objects, plane objects/solids, footage (including footage layering), blend modes, opacity, and effects; with it, artists can iterate more effectively and reduce rework to complete projects in less time.

Joe Bourke
Owner/Creative Director
Bourke Media
http://www.bourkemedia.com

[Tom Daigon]

Theres a certain irony there. Big difference is they didnt include a free version of 3DSMax with AE. That would have been nice.

Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid

[Joseph W. bourke]

Not exactly free version; free lite version. But I get what you’re saying. Of course any 3D package has such a learning curve on it that you’re not going to see, for the most part, people jumping in and becoming 3D jockeys if they weren’t already.

Joe Bourke
Owner/Creative Director
Bourke Media
http://www.bourkemedia.com

[Joseph W. bourke]

Yes, Tom – it’s a tough call choosing a 3D package. I started off way back when with Truespace, developed by Caligari, bought by Microsoft, then EOL’d. I believe it is now free if you can find it out there. There is limited support, but I jumped ship to 3DS Max when Volumetric Lighting became a real shortcoming of Truespace.

I’ve used 3DS Max – currently on Max 2011 – since the mid 90’s, and you’re right. It is not feasible to master more than one 3D package. I played around with Blender, the other freebie, and, while it has some amazing capabilities, I’m always looking at it as if it’s Max, and that slows me down greatly. I’d rather be really good with one 3D package, than have a smattering of talents in a bunch of them.

That said, Blender supposedly has some really nice liquid sim capabilities, and I’m always drawn to that, but not enough to jump in…anyone who is thinking about starting out in 3D must realize that it’s usually a matter of months before the light even goes on, and they start to get what they’re working with. It’s really a CAD package for visual effects. You need to learn the Interface, Lighting, Camera Animation, Texture Mapping, at least the basics of Modeling, and a whole lot more just to get your imagery looking half decent. Then there’s Ray Tracing, Particle Systems, Character Animation…the list just goes on and on. You really have to choose your battles carefully…

Joe Bourke
Owner/Creative Director
Bourke Media
http://www.bourkemedia.com

[Tom Daigon]

Im pretty much resolved to stay with Blender. Spending $3500 to get all the same stuff in C4D is not anything I want to do. I dont do enough 3D to warrant it. And I think folks are going to get a rund shock when they see the limitations of using 3D with AE in the same comp.

Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid

[Tudor “ted” jelescu]

I see this as a step forward and beneficial for all AE users, weather they use C4D or not. It gives all other developers of 3D plugins for AE a reason to step it up and it opens a world of possibilities. I can see Element 3D adding more tools or Newton physics being integrated with the speed of Mettle plugins in a whole new 3d render engine that allows for interaction with AE 3d layers… Sky is the limit here. I say this pushes the limits again to our benefit and I’m pretty excited even though I did not previously use C4D.

Tudor “Ted” Jelescu
Senior VFX Artist