Value
If you’re doing any sort of commercial or titling work, you pretty much need a copy of Shine. It’s just one of those industry standard plugins that you’ll find yourself coming back to over and over again. As a result, it’s pretty much priceless, and the $99 price tag is a pittance. Starglow, while useful, isn’t going to get used as much, although if you do a lot of product advertising work, you’ll probably end up using it instead of an on-camera star filter, because it provides much more flexibility. It also creates some really neat retro lighting effects, which can be cool if you’re trying to emulate titles from the 70s and early 80s. 3DStroke would also be very useful for commercial work, and for creating animated backgrounds. At $99 a piece, all of these plugins are a real bargain. If you think that you’ll end up needing at least two of them, you might as well pay the $230 for this bundle, since you’d essentially be getting an extra plugin for only $30.
An example of using the Bend function in 3DStroke to twist a simple shape
into a unique design.
Final Comments
The Trapcode 3S Pack contains one of my favorite effects: Shine. This effect is so spectacular that I end up having to stop myself from using it on every project. The other two effects in the bundle, while not quite as exciting, are still pretty cool. 3DStroke provides a unique and interesting effect that you’re simply not going to find anywhere else, so I’d recommend picking it up for novelty alone. And Starglow, while the blandest of the bunch, still emulates a star filter better than any other plugin I’ve seen, and can add some real pizzazz to video and titles.
With the Trapcode 3S Pack, Red Giant Software has once again proven that it’s one of the top plugin companies out there. They’ve done the rare job or providing three functional effects at a reasonable price that actually do what they’re supposed to in a manner that’s simple and fun to use. You really can’t ask for much more than that.
Ease
of Use
9.0
Depth
of Options
10.0
Performance
9.0
Value
8.0
Overall
Score
9.0
Ryan Graham is the director of Livelihood, a critically acclaimed ultra-low budget zombie comedy. He also runs 37.5 Productions, a post production company specializing in giving a Hollywood sheen to independent films. In his spare time he is the lead guitarist for The Dirty Marmaduke Flute Squad.
