At a special event at this week’s NAB 2004, Apple on Sunday introduced Shake 3.5, a new version of its compositing and special effects tool for cinema and video. The new version of Shake features new shape-based morphing and warping capabilities that rely on spline tools, improves Rendezvous networking and more. It’s available now as a paid upgrade for Shake 3 users.
Shake 3.5’s Shake Qmaster network render manager has been improved in this version; the Rendezvous-enabled system can handle distributed rendering tasks for both Shake and Alias’ Maya 3D rendering and animation software. Support for 16-bit RGB and 10-bit YUV QuickTime formats has been added also.
Shake 3.5 also allows users to choose which operations process at 8-, 16- or 32-bit floating color bit depths to help speed performance and maintain high dynamic range. Photo Primatte and CFC Keylight keyers have also been included.
System requirements for Shake 3.5 call for a G4/800MHz or faster; Mac OS X v10.2.5; QuickTime 6.1; 256MB RAM; 1GB of disk space; OpenGL-based graphics with at least 32MB of VRAM; 1280×1024 resolution monitor with 24-bit color support; and three-button mouse.
Available for Mac OS X, linux and Irix, Shake costs US$2,999 for Mac OS X (with unlimited render licenses) or $4,999 for Linux and Irix (with annual maintenance fees of $1,499). Registered Shake 3 users can upgrade for $799.