Slick Transitions & Effects Vol. I and II
OS X Compatible
Company: GeeThree.com
Pricing: $29.95 (Each volume, $49.95 Bundle)
http://www.geethree.com
Ah, iMovie. As many of you know, iMovie was the very first application to fit in the “Digital Lifestyle” suite of applications and hardware from Apple. With iMovie, you could import digital video, edit, cut, and change the video somewhat, and export back out of the computer. Now at version 2, iMovie has become many Mac users favorite program, proving that the Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, may have been right. Editing digital video on your computer is the next big thing, such as document creation (desktop publishing) was in the 1980’s. If so, Apple is far ahead of the competition. And iMovie, at least for home computer users, is by far the easiest and most intuitive video editing software yet made. But as good as iMovie is, there is room for improvements.
Enter Slick Transitions & Effects, Volume 1 and 2. While you can buy either package for $29.95, it is a much better option to simple purchase the combined package and save yourself ten bucks. Your question, then, is should you buy?
What is Slick Transitions & Effects? Simply put, it is a collection of Transitions you put between video clips, much like the ones already in iMovie, and Effects to change the look of your video. Think of them as PhotoShop filters, but for iMovie.
iMovie already has an impressive collection of both Transitions and Effects, and they are very good. But if you use iMovie even modestly, you will quickly wish for more of each. More Effects to change to look of your video, and more and better Transitions to put between the video. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of add-on programs for iMovie yet. However, GeeThree.com, the makers of Slick Transitions & Effects, has set the bar high for any other company entering this market. Slick Transitions & Effects is a very nice collection, one you will very much enjoys while using iMovie.
Slick Transitions & Effects vol. 1 comes with over 40 transitions, many of which are great, and some are gaudy. But even the Transitions I don’t care for may, at some point, be useful for a video project, so I keep them handy just in case. Some of the transitions include Heart and Star shapes, Rotate, Spin and Tumbles, Blinds, LightSpeed (my favorite so far) and a bunch more. You can click here to see these Transitions in effect.
The 16 Effects in Vol. 1 is equally, if not more, impressive than the Transitions part of the package. Here you can change your video to Black and White. You can change it to Sepia. (think a soft golden color, very film noir in appearance.) You can change it to X-RAY, very freaky looking. You can add noise to your video clip as well, making it look as if it were films years ago. You can also add a Camcorder making your Clip or Movie look like it is being viewed through a camcorder, with frame guide and record indicator. Looks neat!
Slick Transitions & Effects vol. 2 comes with fifty (Yes, 50!) different Transitions, and five new Effects. The Effects in Vol. 2 is just as impressive as in the other volume, and includes two of my favorites, Film Strip and LetterBox. I use LetterBox so much already (to give my films a “Letter Box, windscreen” look) that it alone was worth the price of the entire package. Add in the 50 new Transitions, such as the different Vapors, Trails, Wash, Spirals (nice for making a “BAMF! POW!” 1960’s Batman sort of thing) Sweeps, Bursts, and more, if just icing on the cake. You can also see a demo of both the Transitions and Effects for volume 2 by visiting their website.
Yes, there are some Transitions in both packages I will never, ever use. But you might. I love iMovie, and the power it gives to a home computer user to edit film. iMovie is a free program for Mac users, so adding Slick Transitions & Effects, Volume 1 and 2 for $49.95 is a small price for what you get.
Slick Transitions & Effects, Volume 1 and 2 are both great add-on’s to iMovie. If you are like me at all and love iMovie, spend a little money and make iMovie even better.
I can’t give Slick Transitions & Effects, Volume 1 and 2 a high enough recommendation.
Slick Transitions & Effects, Volume 1 and 2 works with both iMovie in Classic Mac OS as well as Mac OS X! (iMovie 2 required, free from Apple.)
MacMice Rating: 5 out of 5
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