Shake 4.1
Posted 09/30/2006 at 6:12pm
| by Helmut Kolber
Shake has more of these weird little nuances, and while you'll certainly get used to them after a few days, they'll definitely make the initial learning curve steeper. It's also tough to acclimatize yourself to Shake when you've been away from it for a few weeks or months - though chances are that if you're using an app like this, you're going to use it full time. It's an unfortunate contrast to an application such as After Effects, which is easier to learn because it fundamentally behaves like other Mac apps, whereas Shake is really an island unto itself.
The bottom line. If you can spend the extra time to learn The Shake Way, you'll definitely be better off. Quirky interface or not, Shake gives you a lineup of world-class, battle-tested compositing tools, and all for a relative pittance. No other software, on no other platform, even comes close.

Shake represents each image clip and each operation you might apply (chroma key, filter, image stabilizer) as a node. Just arrange the nodes to build your composite.
COMPANY: Apple
CONTACT: 408-996-1010, www.apple.com
PRICE: $499
REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS 10.4.6 or later; 1GHz or faster processor; 512MB of RAM; 1GB free hard drive space; graphics card with minimum of 32MB RAM; three-button mouse; AJA Kona or Blackmagic DeckLink card required for preview on broadcast video monitor.
Tons of high-powered compositing tools. Great price. Runs well on MacBook Pros.
Un-Mac-like interface. 3D compositing lacks lighting effects.
