Performance
As with the other FXHome products we’ve looked at, the overall performance of EffectsLab Pro was quite good, with the actual RAM rendering and export rendering being faster and easier than those in After Effects. And, unlike the processor/RAM-hungry Motion, computers with modest processing power could yield quite powerful results with EffectsLab Pro. On SD footage, we actually found that we could get very good, reasonably fast results even out of our low-end 2 Ghz P4 with 512 MB of RAM, provided we had no other Pro applications running. For folks who want to use the HD and HDV capabilities of this program, you will want to upgrade to at least a 3 Ghz P4 with a gig of RAM. In addition to the support of HD and HDV, as well as PAL and NTSC, most of the features we expect out of any sort of video manipulation software were in place, from multiple layer manipulation to in-and-out point customization to layer “muting” capabilities. (Additionally, I just found out that, next month, upgrades for all the programs in FXHome’s lineup are going to boast 40%-60% speed increases for computers with multiple processors!)
As I mentioned in my review of VisionLab Studio in August, the biggest issue that I have FXHome’s current product line involves the timeline itself and navigating it. Although there is a timeline meter showing where on the timeline you are and a readout that displays the appropriate timecode, there’s no way to type in a time you want to go to and have it take you there. This means you have to scrub through the timeline until you get to the point you want. This is made more frustrating because you can’t zoom in and out on the timeline itself. While this isn’t bad if you’re just doing an effects scene for a small sequence which will get exported and re-assimilated into another editing program, it is a pain if you’re actually using the program to do color-grading on an entire film. (The folks at FXHome confirmed that the timecode jump feature will be added as an update fairly shortly, but the ability to zoom in and out on the timeline feature will probably not be along until the next full version of EffectsLab Pro.)
Value
The closest particle-effects generation program to this is probably Apple’s Motion, which retails for $499--about $350 more expensive than EffectsLab Pro. And unlike Motion, which really requires you to tweak things to get a lot of these visual effects in the first place (and even more tweaking to get them looking realistic) EffectsLab Pro starts with a bevy of cool, realistic selection from the get-go. And they even put things in places that make sense like “Muzzle Flashes”, “Neon Lights”, etc. Plus, their community section has about 40,000 folks, many of whom are busily making brand new effects that are ranked and which can be downloaded free of charge.
If that weren’t enough, the company is constantly making new updates and tweaks available to their customers in the form of very easy to download update files. (Like the multi-processor support I mentioned earlier!) What’s especially cool about this sort of attitude is that they are often willing to actually add features specifically if individual users ask for them! Can you imagine some of the other effects companies out there doing that?
Final Comments
EffectsLab Pro is an awesome value if you want to do particle and optical effects in your films. With lots of presets, variables, user created looks, and the new, improved online training, EffectsLab Pro deserves to at least have its demo downloaded by any microfilmmaker who might use a muzzle flash or an explosion in their film. Of course, then you have to decide if you wouldn’t just be happier to upgrade to the whole enchilada with VisionLab Studio.
Ease
of Use
9.0
Depth
of Options
9.5
Performance
9.0
Value
10.0
Overall
Score
9.4
The
director of two feature length films and half a dozen short films,
Jeremy Hanke
founded Microfilmmaker Magazine to help all no-budget filmmakers make
better films. His first book on low-budget special effects techniques, GreenScreen Made Easy, (which he co-wrote with Michele Yamazaki) was released by MWP to very favorable reviews. He's curently working on the sci-fi film franchise, World of Depleted through Depleted: Day 419 and the feature film, Depleted.
