The Surface Object Type is a more organic version of Points, but to me didn’t seem to produce results that were quite as interesting; instead of scattering the layer, it warps and stretches it. This is cool, but just not as cool as the Points Object Type.
The other three settings are Grid, Horizontal Lines, and Vertical Lines, all of which work best on solids instead of text. They’ll basically turn your layer into a series of lines that can then be warped around as in the above examples, or collapsed into a chaos of broken sticks using the Random Spread parameter. These settings are great for background animations, especially if you’re doing a promo for something hi-tech. They look very Matrix-ish.
Performance
On my custom-built Athlon 64 3200+ with 1GB of RAM, Real 3D renders pretty quickly. When Motion Blur and Depth of Field aren’t engaged, it’s lightning fast, so I’d recommend keeping them off until final previews or until you render. I did notice that sometimes when scrolling through parameters the preview screen would go blank, but once I took my finger off the mouse it showed the updated changes.
Value
For only $139 you get you get an effects package that you could probably use every day for a year and still not have exhausted all of the different combinations of warp and scattering tools provided. That’s pretty amazing. And if you’re doing any sort of hi-tech or sci-fi productions, this is a no-brainer; you definitely need to get this plugin immediately! In fact, I’d recommend that anyone doing any sort of post production work go out and buy this software, if only so Avidion Media is able to do R&D on some new plugins!
Simulating a TV signal breaking up with the Points Object Type and Random Spread parameter.
Final Comments
Real 3D produces some super cool, uber-stylish warp and displacement effects that should get plenty of use in any post-production environment. Along with Trapcode’s Shine, this is a plugin that I’ll have to stop myself from using on every project. If this is any indication of the quality of software that Avidion Media is going to be putting out, then I’m really looking forward to seeing what they come up with next.
Ease
of Use
9.0
Depth
of Options
10.0
Performance
9.0
Value
10.0
Overall
Score
9.5
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.
