After Effects CS6 showcases rebuilt, enhanced compositing and motion graphics tools

Macworld by Jeff Foster

The release of After Effects CS6 is proof that Adobe actually listens to customer requests and stays current with the needs of today’s filmmakers, editors, and motion graphics artists. Beyond this release's impressive list of new features, there are much-needed and long-awaited performance improvements.

Adobe has implemented several structural developments like the new ray-traced 3D rendering engine and Global Performance Cache that it rebuilt from the ground up, providing not only faster performance, but increased professional capabilities. New tools such as the 3D Camera Tracker, Rolling Shutter Repair, and variable mask edge feathering are serious professional compositing tools. The enhanced integration between After Effects CS6 and other Adobe tools makes the workflow faster and more fluid than before.

Greatly improved performance

The Global Performance Cache feature is the newfound power under the hood that makes After Effects CS6 perform better—even on older Macs. This is a set of technologies that work together: a global RAM cache, a persistent disk cache, and a new graphics pipeline.

The global RAM cache employs reusable frames recognized anywhere on the timeline—not just adjacent frames—as well as duplicated layers or sub-comps. Cached frames are restored after an Undo/Redo operation, when layers are hidden or revealed, or when timeline settings return to a previous state. The feature allows users to experiment or “nudge” elements without a performance penalty should they change their mind or accidentally hit something that would normally wipe out the RAM preview and force a re-render. read more...