Moho Forum

Hi all, I purchased Anime Studio 6 Debut last weekend, specifically because it looked like the best tool to complete a project: an animated music video with relatively simple shapes...but lots and lots of them.

AS6 Debut is a dream; it does exactly what I need it to do, and more. If anything, the biggest problem I'm having is deciding which method is the best way to approach each task...experience (and the excellent posts in this forum) is teaching me.

But I see three limitations which make me wonder if I should upgrade to Pro. I'd like to ask your advice.

The first is the limit of 3000 frames. I personally can't see myself animating a single scene which lasts that long -- I plan to assemble everything in an NLE -- but does anybody here actually exceed that limit in their own projects? Doesn't the workspace become too cluttered, requiring you to constantly hide objects?

The second problem is the sheer torture of animating the same objects over and over again. I haven't found a way to copy and paste keyframes into different layers (though I've discovered that if you duplicate a layer, its keyframes are duplicated as well), so I find myself re-creating the same animation keyframes ad nauseum. Is this what the "Actions" in the Pro version are for? How about the Pro ability to save and reload objects? Do people in this forum find those features essential?

Finally, my layer list is becoming difficult to organize because of the sheer number of layers. Now I realize that Debut users can't group layers even though the Debut manual talks about them (thanks, Forum!), but somebody here said they just use Bone layers instead. Is the Pro Group Layer feature worth paying for?

I'm wondering if the Pro version is a worthwhile investment. I don't know if I'd find a use for particles or limited 3D capability, but since the website doesn't explain WHY you should upgrade (it just lists features), and since I can't find the Pro manual, I don't really know what the new features really DO.

Thanks for reading my wordy post, and for answering all my other newbie questions before I even needed to ask them!

Muffy
http://www.dangermuff.com

Well, creating animation still involves lots of work and hours of concentration….
But the personal rewards are sometimes beyond imagination….
Seeing your characters coming alive and doing well is just the greatest pleasure of all....

Using the best or most expensive toolset doesn’t always guarantee the best outcome...
but, can make lot’s of things more enjoyable, faster and easy...
Learning the tools, AS Debut is a very good start...

Anyway, if you are series about animation (even as a “hobbyist”) I would see AS Pro
as a very worthwhile investment... (one can upgrade from Debut to Pro at any time).

As you said already, the limit of 3000 frames isn’t really an issue...
Actions are a huge timesaver (check out tutorial 5.6)
I guess, even Debut can import objects into your running project...
Grouping layers, I find for my workflow essential...
(but as you mentioned, one can use a bone-layer instead)
Particles is another one of those beautiful tools, after a while, one can’t live without...
(creating smoke, fires, rain, snow, explosions....etc.)

Check the comparison chart (click Overview)
http://my.smithmicro.com/mac/anime/index.html

Be aware, all mentioned above, is just a very personal opinion...

Regards
Nolan

I've just upgraded from AS 5 to AS 6 pro.
Love the sleek new interface, haven't had time to experiment with the new stuff yet.
But the reason I bought pro instead of debut is I can export a single frame in jpg or png. I use the still frame to illustrate my blog, and then link to a video of my animation. WHAT a blessing! And they look great!

Can't do that in debut.

I'm still using 5.6 -- maybe one day I'll upgrade...but it wouldn't be for this reason:

PismoPam wrote:I use the still frame to illustrate my blog, and then link to a video of my animation. WHAT a blessing! And they look great!

-- when I could just press [Alt]+[PrtScr], and then trim the frame off in some bitmap editor.

So much to learn.
I've never heard of a bitmap editor.
Honestly, if I had known that would have gotten me the stills I need, I would have gotten Debut and not spent the extra $ on pro.
Live and learn - and read forums!

PismoPam wrote:So much to learn.
I've never heard of a bitmap editor.
Honestly, if I had known that would have gotten me the stills I need, I would have gotten Debut and not spent the extra $ on pro.
Live and learn - and read forums!

Anyway, you should read about the other features of pro. For me it's a torture animate without things like actions, blend morph and graph mode, for example.

Thanks for the replies! I upgraded to 6.1 Pro over the weekend and some of the features do look good. I think that being able to export reusable elements will speed up my workflow and give me more flexibility, and I really like the Motion Graph!

PS: If anybody from Marketing reads these forums, I highly suggest they add a "Why you should upgrade to Pro" page to the website.

Feature comparisons are fine, and feature lists are good too, but the site doesn't combine them to say -- for example -- "This is how the Motion Graph feature would be an asset to existing Debut users" or "Here's an example of an animation workflow for Debut users, and a contrasting example of how it could be made easier and more flexible with Actions."

Even providing the Pro User Guide for download would be a good sell.

The Debut version is so powerful that the obvious question for me was "How will the Pro version make my PERSONAL workflow better or easier to achieve?" The website just gives little blurbs without any explanation or examples.

Just my thoughts.