Jeff Foster - the PixelPainter » General Notices

3D Stereo Workflow with the GoPro Hero2

Jeff — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:58:58 +0000

Whether you love it or hate it, 3D Stereography is here for awhile. And if you’re totally into it like I am, you quickly realize that there are few turnkey workflows out there to capture and process 3D Stereo video that’s easy to setup, shoot and edit Stereo pairs. Sure, there are a lot of high-end (expensive to rent) systems for two cameras to shoot, software to sync/mux the footage and rigs you can build to edit it, but GoPro has brought it together with a fun and easy-to-use system that anyone can use.

Read the entire article and watch videos here…

NOTE: This is the 3rd in a series of articles/reviews on the GoPro Hero2 cameras for the ProVideo Coalition. There are links to the others at the end of each article.

“The DSLR Filmmaker’s Handbook” – Book Review

Jeff — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:18:25 +0000

There’s little more popular these days than being a budding Indie filmmaker slinging a 5D MkII over your shoulder and firing off hours of footage that you can then spend months editing to make your masterpiece come alive! The biggest problem is that MOST folks entering this endeavor are totally clueless about the process or where to even start – thus making every mistake in the book in the process. The DSLR Filmmaker’s Handbook: Real World Production Techniques (Sybex ISBN 978-0-470-87660-2) aims to help you get started with not only the basics of using the gear, but also the film-making production process in a visual overview – PLUS some very cool tips & tricks.

Click Here to read the entire review:

Digieffects v2.5 Damage & Delirium

Jeff — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 03:05:15 +0000

Digieffects has updated and optimized their plugin effects to be Adobe CS5/64-bit compatible and have added some great new tools to their suite of tools! Both Damage v2.5 and Delirium v2.5 are fully compatible with the latest versions of After Effects, Premiere Pro, FCP and Edius. Even better news, this is a free upgrade for registered v2.0 owners!

CLICK HERE to read the entire review and see examples on the ProVideo Coalition problog:

Motion Tracking Tutorial – FREE on PVC

Jeff — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:52:25 +0000

Just published a step-by-step tutorial complete with a downloadable project file and preview video for a highly-requested technique using Mocha AE with After Effects in the Motion Graphics and VFX channels on the PVC (ProVideo Coalition) problog.

Click here to see the tutorial and the demo video

This tutorial is the first in a series of free tutorials, tips and tricks I plan to publish and provide for free through the PVC feed. Please let me know what other techniques you’d like to learn about by responding to this post below!

Cheers,
Jeff

Featured on Adobe’s Web Site

Jeff — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 21:13:07 +0000

Featured on Adobe’s web site as a Customer Showcase SuccessStory, with some samples of recent VFX work done in a couple feature films for ProductionStudio, FILMS IN MOTION

Click here to read the entire article.
Here’s a couple before & after shots from one of the projects:

Click here to read the entire article.

Featured Speaker at Adobe MAX 2011

Jeff — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 22:44:18 +0000

I will be doing a 2-part Hands-On Lab workshop, featuring techniques I’ve used for feature films VFX and TV production, at Adobe MAX this year in Los Angeles, Oct. 3-5

Click Here to see the Featured Speaker List

Rotoscoping and Compositing Workflows in After Effects CS5.5 – Parts 1 & 2

In this two-part series, learn how to set up your tablet with hot keys, eliminating the need for a keyboard, and quickly complete roto matting & painting work using Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, and mocha for After Effects. Through hands-on practice projects using real-world examples, you’ll work through the worst-case scenarios you may encounter, including poor green screen, motion blur, complex background removal, and background plate painting. You’ll leave the session with more confidence and with downloadable sessions so you can continue to sharpen your skills on your own.
Track: Design
Audience: Creative Designer
Skill Level: Advanced
Products: After Effects, Photoshop
Speaker: Jeff Foster
Platform: Mac
Times: Tuesday, October 4, 12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Hope to see you at MAX!
Jeff

REVIEW: Adobe After Effects CS5.5

Jeff — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 22:21:07 +0000

Adobe After Effects CS5.5 mid-cycle update rivals full-scale release

by Jeff Foster, Macworld.com Aug 1, 2011

Check out the link above in the title to see my most recent review for Macworld Magazine of the new features of Adobe After Effects CS5.5.

Hint: the Warp Stabilizer alone is worth the price of the upgrade, but it doesn’t stop there!

Let me know what YOU think about this latest upgrade from Adobe!

Cheers,
Jeff

Speaking at NAB 2011 Post-Production Conference

Jeff — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 18:33:47 +0000

I will be presenting again at NAB this year! In addition to presenting material from my newly-released DVD, “Photoshop CS4/CS5 Video & Animation”, I will be sharing some new techniques for creative 3D animated titling effects. Be sure to catch these fun and informative sessions this year!

Getting Started with Adobe Photoshop
This session is aimed at beginners that are using the video editing and animation aspects of Photoshop CS5. This fun and informative class will show you what a powerful video & image editor that Photoshop can be!

Creative Titles with Adobe Photoshop
More than simply creating text layers that you import into After Effects or Final Cut Pro, this session will show you how to expand the range of animation and 3D layers to create some truly fun and imaginative titling effects!

Adobe MAX 2010 Attendees – Project Downloads

Jeff — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 19:12:05 +0000

HANDS-ON KEYING AND ROTOSCOPING WITH AFTER EFFECTS CS5

For all the attendees of my Hands-On Lab workshops at Adobe MAX 2010, I’m providing you a link to download all the project & source files, along with a color PDF of the handouts.

Thanks for registering for this course and helping to make this year’s show a success!

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE ZIP FILE

For those of you who were unable to attend this year’s Hands-On sessions, then you might still find these projects valuable in discovering the process of green screen keying (matte extraction) and roto-masking techniques.

Cheers,
Jeff

Adobe MAX 2010 – Featured Speaker

Jeff — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 15:00:03 +0000

Due to the popularity of my hands-on lab sessions at Adobe MAX 2010, they were sold out for the first two scheduled days. Adobe has rearranged the schedule to accommodate a third day for training, so there’s still time to register before those seats fill up!

Click Here to see the Featured Speaker List

Hands-on Keying and Rotoscoping with After Effects CS5 – Jeff Foster

Build your compositing toolkit. Learn best practices for creating good greenscreen composites and creating masks and mattes with After Effects CS5. Using Keylight, you can composite complex scenes with both foreground and background elements. Plus, get tips on how to work with problem footage and how to extract a clean roto-matte using the new Roto Brush tool.

Monday, October, 25th, 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm [SOLD OUT]
Tuesday, October, 26th, 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm * seats now available!
Wednesday, October, 27th, 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm [SOLD OUT]

We will also be raffling off a copy of “The Green Screen Handbook” at the end of each session!

Hope to see you at MAX!
Jeff