BLUE User Story

Rob Lackmeyer, of Computer / Video Specialists Inc, has been a Boris BLUE user since the product was first released. Rob is based in Northeast Ohio. His projects include longer form corporate and industrial training and marketing pieces as well as shorter productions for broadcast. Now using BLUE version 2 as an Avid plug-in he recently had this to say about the software.

"I find that my use of Blue is increasing all the time. I am very pleased how well it works within AVID."

For this TV spot, I shot video first thing in the morning, started post at 10 and had the beta dubs heading to the stations before 3. About 20 to 25 percent of my work is like this... Sometimes I have two days to finish... I digitized, trimmed and color corrected in AVID. Then I added the Blue effect at the end and superimposed the graphics created within RED as another video layer on top of everything else. I really appreciate the overall spped and flexibility I have gained. I mocked up the ending transition using the standalone Blue engine, but the exact same settings work in the AVID plug-in. So, I can also open identical settings in After Effects. I have different workflow options, which are comparably efficient.

Avid plugin

Blue is very approachable, especially for users of BorisFX products. The upgrade price from RED is inexpensive. The user interface is similar. While Blue has a learning curve, I found it easier to learn Blue than a traditional 3D animation program. I know some people who treat Blue as if it is a very high-end program. Clearly, it can be used for complex and sophisticated work, but I have also used Blue for quick and dirty projects. Although many TV commercials in this area have tight budgets, I can throw in something from Blue that looks cool and spend very little time doing it. The canned effects are a great place to start.

The bottom line is that I modified a Blue library stock setting to create this ending in very little time. The client and his Ad Exec [who writes my checks] both liked the first version. Blue version 2 has made me more efficient, and life is less stressful."

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