Videomaker Associate Editor Tom Skowronski explains how four basic steps can be used to improve the lighting effects for a video and give it a more professional look. - There are four basic steps to improve the quality of the video 1) Camera Controls: Three basic camera contr ...more
In this four part video tutorial, Creative Cow leader Carl Larsen shows you how to create a 360 degree camera-aware environment in After Effects without the use of third-party plug-ins. In part two, build a title sequence within the 360 degree environment created in part one o ...more
This video tutorial covers creating a fun and dynamic title sequence in After Effects. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various feat ...more
Do you wish there were more of you? Well, at least two? At least in a video? This sweet video will show you how to do just that with Apple's iMovie. You'll also need a sturdy tripod that you DO NOT move. This is essential to creating the effect. If you move the tripod, this ef ...more
In this clip, learn how to create lightbox galleries for images posted to your WordPress blog. Every version of WordPress brings with it new features, new functions and new ways of doing things. Fortunately, the very same technology that allows an open-source blog publishing a ...more
Google is the biggest and best search engine on Earth, and if you are a webmaster and want your website to be a big success it would really behoove you to know as much about how it works as possible. The Google Webmasters series of videos and website were created to teach webm ...more
This video clip presents a quick lesson in using the Preserve Transparency switch in Adobe After Effects and why it may be more useful than using a Track Matte in certain situations. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned v ...more
This tutorial will show a simple technique for achieving the bullet time, freezing effect. This is used regularly in TV idents, films and music videos. Whether you're new to MAXON's popular 3D modeling application or are just looking to get better acquainted with Cinema 4D and ...more
This tutorial looks at how to create a map of the wetness left by a particle fluid, so that you can correctly render surfaces with a wet look. It looks at rendering out a point cloud with wetness information, and creating a bespoke shader to correctly render surface using the ...more
This four-part series presents an introduction to some of the techniques for uv mapping in Houdini. This first part introduces the concept of UVs, and looks at UVProject as a way of adding UVs, and UVQuickShade as a way of visualising them. Whether you're new to Side Effects S ...more
Learn how to use the Houdini SOP solver to create a realistic burning match effect within Houdini 10. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, y ...more
This four-part guide presents an introduction to physically-based rendering in Houdini 10, covering what PBR will and won't do for you, sampling settings, environment lighting, objects as lights, shaders, issues with specular highlights. Whether you're new to Side Effects Soft ...more
This clip presents a quick tutorial on using global illumination in Houdini's Mantra renderer. It covers ambient occlusion, full irradiance, path tracing and photon mapping. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artis ...more
Photoshop is the photo-editing software of choice for just about everyone these days. It is very complex; but you're in luck! We have many videos here on site dealing with how to use Photoshop's many functions. This video will teach you how to display a picture inside of text ...more
This video tutorial series will show you how to create a magic wand particles effect, the sort of visual effect you might see when a “magic wand” is waved. This will be similar to a “pixie” dust effect, although not so complicated. Whether you're new to the Blender Foundation' ...more
In this episode of Red Giant TV, Aharon Rabinowitz gives you some cool tips for working with Numeric Text, for things like video game scores and other digital readouts. No third-party Plug-ins are used in this tutorial. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and ...more
In this 2 part video tutorial, Eran Stern shows you the first step to create a retro design title animation for a fictional sci-fi movie. In Part 2, CreativeCOW leader, Eran Stern takes the next step in the science fiction classic and finalizes the promo by projecting graphic ...more
Call of Duty? Nope. SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs? Nah. Battlefield: Bad Company? Think again. This isn't any video game on the market, this is your own video game, well… your own video game logo - military-style. Learn how to make a military-style video game cover in Adobe Photosho ...more
Wondering how to get that dropped shadow, smoky eye? In this tutorial presented by the experts at Smashbox Cosmetics, learn how to get that smoky effect on your bottom lids, while leaving your top lid clear, creating the "drop shadow effect". This wearable look is stylish, sex ...more
Get that very "right now" green smoky eye with some help from the professionals at Smashbox Cosmetics. By starting with cream liner Midnight Green and applying little smudges along the line, go back to smudge with your brush to create a smoky effect. Stand our this fall with v ...more
In this two part video tutorial, Eran Stern reveals the first text trick in his series and shows how to design an audio waves animation with the After Effects Text Tool. In part 2, Eran Stern explains how to design a Counting Circle Animation with the After Effects Text Tool. ...more
In this video tutorial, Creative Cow contributing editor Grant Swanson demonstrates a quick, easy and very high quality bleach bypass effect right inside of After Effects. Understand what the term refers to and how to simulate it in the digital intermediate process or on digit ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to build songs in GarageBand '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing your pho ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to mix songs in GarageBand '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing your photo ...more
Watch Monty's video guide to planting a kiwi plant, ideal for fast-growing extensive coverage of a tree or arbour, and follow his practical tips on positioning for best effect. Gardeners' World is brought to you by the BBC. Search Gardeners' World on WonderHowTo for more vide ...more
See how to start using BoinxTV with this overview video. Learn the basics of BoinxTV and see how to turn any modern Macintosh computer into a television studio! BoinxTV, from Boinx Software, turns your Mac into a TV studio for creating Live to Disk, Live to Internet, and Live ...more
Do you need to create graphics for video editing systems like Final Cut Pro, Avid, or Adobe Premiere? Are you looking to get more from Apple Motion or Adobe After Effects? Then you need to learn Adobe Photoshop. Instructor Richard Harrington shows you how to use the refine ed ...more
Do you need to create graphics for video editing systems like Final Cut Pro, Avid, or Adobe Premiere? Are you looking to get more from Apple Motion or Adobe After Effects? Then you need to learn Adobe Photoshop. Instructor Richard Harrington how to work with 3-D objects in Ph ...more
In this video tutorial, Jerzy Drozda Jr (aka Maltaannon) demonstrates how you can extrude any vector based layer to give it a real 3D look inside After Effects. Above all other features... it consists only of one layer. Not only can it be textured, but it can also reflect the ...more
In this clip, Corey Barker of Layers Magazine demonstrates how to generate 3D reflections with video when working within Adobe's popular image editor, Photoshop. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, watch this free video software tutorial. For ...more
In this two part episode, Aharon Rabinowitz shows you how to use audio to control time. You'll learn how to make your video automatically move forward in time to the beat of the music - a technique used in tons of music videos and commercials. In Part 2, Aharon continues to e ...more
This is a two part video tutorial. Be sure to click on Chapters 2 as well to get the full tutorial. Taking a look at the popular technique of designing lower thirds and the process it takes to design these using Photoshop. Photoshop is the perfect solution for this task with ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to enjoy and organize videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managin ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to add photos to videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing you ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to add background music to videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes ma ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to add titles to videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing you ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to crop and rotate videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing y ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to add voiceovers to videos in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managing ...more
Check out this informative video tutorial from Apple on how to publish videos to YouTube in iMovie '09. iLife '09, the software suite from Apple, is the easiest way to organize, view and publish digital content, like pictures, movies, music, and webpages. iPhoto makes managin ...more
This Animal Welfare Foundation three-part video tutorial is from expert veterinary staff demonstrating the correct procedures for handling small mammals for clinical examination and medication. Its aim is to show that the primary consideration should be for the the welfare of ...more
In this video tutorial, Creative Cow Contributing Editor Eran Stern shows you how to duplicate elements in After Effects using the Shape Tool's Repeater function. Part two shows you a neat way to duplicate elements in After Effects using the Puppet Tool. Part three shows you h ...more
The Trapcode suite is a set of plug-ins for After Effects that allow video artists to create a variety of effects for inclusion in video and film productions. This particular guide demonstrates the power of Trapcode Particular and Trapcode 3D Stroke. Specifically, Wes Ball fro ...more
One is the loneliest number there is. Well, unless you clone yourself! This sweet video will show you how to do just that with Apple's iMovie. You'll need iMovie 11, or iMovie 09. This technique is also possible by using other video editing software tools as long as they are c ...more
Evoke a dramatic effect in your 720p60 video by upsampling and converting to 24p and 24p slow motion, and adding a little bit of color grading with Adobe After Effects. This informative video shows the footage before, during and after treatment, showing the difference that thi ...more
Deadly natural disasters can happen at any moment— earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, fires and especially tornadoes. That's why you have to be prepared. According to Secrets of Survival: The greatest and most frequent tornado occurrences happen in the United States. ...more
Learn how to use Adobe After Effects CS5 to replace do basic sky replacement. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various features and ...more
With this thorough guide, you'll learn how to color correct footage in After Effects of Photoshop using the Curves tool. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself wit ...more
In this two-part video tutorial, you'll see what it takes to color grade and correct footage with Magic Bullet Colorista in After Effects. Whether you're new to Adobe's compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the prog ...more
This clip presents quick introduction to using blurs in After Effects and Fusion 5. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various feature ...more
In this clip, learn how to save and work with animation presets within Adobe After Effects. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various ...more
In this Adobe After Effects user's guide, you'll learn how to create a simple walk cycle within AE. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its ...more
In this clip, learn how to take advantage of Adobe After Effects built-in noise plug-ins to create an outer space environment. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourse ...more
This quick After Effects video tip will show you how to stroke a bitmap using Keylight and Solid Composite. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular vector editor or a seasoned graphic arts professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various fea ...more
This quick three-part series presents an introduction to ForEach SOPs in Houdini 10. This first part looks at using the ForEach SOP to iterate over groups of primitives, using the example of creating balconies on a set of primitives. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software ...more
This video provides an introduction to basic compositing in Houdini. The first part looks at color and alpha planes, the use of matte shading. It also covers generator and filter compositing nodes, and the beginnings of masking. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's po ...more
This clip presents a walkthrough of how to go about creating a particle based explosion in Houdini 10. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, ...more
This four-part tutorial series presents a look at how to combine traditional keyframe animation with DOPs simulation. This first part contains an overview of how DOPs differs from SOPs and how to examine DOPs data using the Details View. It then looks at the RBDKeyFrameActive ...more
This clip demonstrates how to create a caustic lighting effect using Houdini's Mantra PBR rendering engine. The first part starts with a refresher on refraction. More generally, guide looks at setting up normals correctly, then at the glass shader in Houdini, faux caustics and ...more
This tripartite tutorial series presents an in-depth look at how to use volumes in Houdini 10 — creating them using the volume and IsoOffset SOPs, and adjusting their values. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic arti ...more
This clip offers an introduction to using attributes and local variables in Houdini. It covers vertices (vertexes), points, primitives and details. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in bette ...more