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REVIEWS (^) › ›
One-Click Compositing Suite for Photoshop
Review by Rod Harlan
StudioMagic I & II is a full-fledged, robust, compositing suite built
into Photoshop panels. For novice Photoshop users, StudioMagic
will allow them to push the limits of their creativity beyond the
level of their Photoshop skills. For advanced users and working
professionals, it will save time and money by greatly accelerating
their visual effects workflow.
The StudioMagic Designer Set caught my attention as much
for what it’s not than for what it is. It’s not a collection of actions
or a big pile of filters to further clutter up your Photoshop pan-
els. It is a very clever group of lengthy Photoshop scripts tied to
one-click buttons on grouped Photoshop panels, which all work
together to make dramatic images as quickly and easily as pos-
sible. Basically, StudioMagic harnesses the power of Photoshop
under its hood, and reduces many of its most complicated tasks
to a few simple mouse clicks, so that anyone can create the look
of Photoshop masters in a fraction of the time.
It starts with StudioMagic I Pro-Panel that includes CutOut,
ShadowCaster, and LightBrush, the foundational tools needed
to ready your subjects for compositing.
CutOut takes the guesswork out of Photoshop’s Refine Edge
command by using industry-tested professional defaults, simple
sliders, and checkboxes. CutOut can cut out and replace skies
or remove subjects from backgrounds in seconds, even with
detailed edges or flying hair.
ShadowCaster is the logical extension of CutOut. It easily
creates an accurate shadow so your subject is believable and
anchored in its new scene. Change a shadow’s direction, opac-
ity, and softness to match scene lighting, or create shadows
based on time of day, and then copy the same shadow settings
to multiple subjects in the same scene.
LightBrush takes flat-looking images and adds focus and
drama by painting with light (which is really just a layer mask).
If you make a mistake, just click a key, and paint back the light
you removed.
StudioMagic II includes the following five major compositing
toolsets for enhancing your images or working with StudioMagic
virtual sets:
Enviro turns a summer landscape into a snowy blizzard, cre-
ates a drenching rainstorm, or fills a field with thick morning
fog. You can even change daytime to sunset! The Enviro toolset
includes: Season Shifter, Let it Snow, Rain Maker, Fogged In,
and Sunset.
LightingEffex creates that magical moment when light breaks
through the clouds or a sudden beam streams through a win-
dow. The LightingEffex toolset includes: Color Match, LightRays,
LightBeams, LightBursts, and Edge Light.
Reflections is one of the most powerful scripts. In just a mat-
ter of seconds, it creates slick mirrored effects and controllable
water ripples that usually take much longer to produce. The
Reflections toolset includes: Water Reflect and Mirror Image.
Compositor places a selection of commonly used photo-
graphic enhancements at your fingertips so you can add them
to an image with a click of the mouse. The Compositor toolset
includes: Cloud Creator, Moon Clock, Over the Rainbow, Starry
Night, Lightning Strikes, and Birds & Flocks.
HyperZap is a module inspired by contemporary sports images,
magazine covers, and movie posters. It’s the closest thing that this
package has to a filter set, but it delivers an image style that’s both
contemporary and commercial. The HyperZap toolset includes:
Grunge Boost and Color Pop Effects.
All in all, the StudioMagic I & II Designer Set, bundled with
12 Virtual Studio Sets, is a good deal at $249, both for Photo-
shop novices who want to produce better work than their cur-
rent skillset, and for advanced users who want to save hours
producing these same effects from scratch. And if you use the
special Photoshop User magazine promo code “PUser-2016,”
you can save 20% through March 30! And if you’re a KelbyOne
member, be sure to visit the Discounts section at KelbyOne.com
for even more savings on LayerCake products. ■
StudioMagic I and II
Company: LayerCake Inc. Price: $249 Designer Set
Web: http://www.layercakeelements.com Rating: ◆◆◆◆◆
Hot: Simple buttons/sliders work fast; excellent results
Not: