New Masters of Flash: Volume 3

Rating:
Summary: not what i thought it was
Review: after reading these reviews, I was really excited for my New Maters of Flash vol3 to arrive. I really liked volume 1 when it came out years ago. But I ended up returning this book because I was disappointed. Most of the animation "tricks" here are about character animation - mostly how to use flash's drawing tools to make the characters look 3D, and how to use code to make them move. Being a motion graphics animator, the only things i found which were relevant to me (maybe 3 projects) were frankly somewhat boring and predictable.

If you're an intermediate/advanced flash animator/programmer looking for really clever motion graphics tricks, there may be only 1 or 2 projects of interest here to you.

If you are somewhat of a novice and want to make really cool characters and scenes in flash and become expert with the drawing tools for this type of usage, you will probably get something out of it.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing value, amazing book
Review: Even if you never plan to use Flash this is an amazing resource to some really cool sites. The book is full of animations, and explanations of cutting edge Flash projects. Unlike most Friends of Ed, you get a CD with the book. The CD has a menu system to highlight each of the Authors in the book. You get bios, info, and direct links to great sites. If you are into Flash, there is lots of information and ideas to help your work be more creative. You will also see a variety of viewpoints on how to use Flash, and some very personal insights. There are four artists whose work alone would be worth the price of this book. Adam Philips provides a great chapter on lighting, and his website shows a real animation master at work. The Jared Tarbell chapter shows a design project from start to finish on pattern making. Anthony Eden's work is very inspirational, but Olga Bergner's chapter provides lots of information on good character design and again provides lots of details on how he makes Flash magic. These are my favorites, but I am sure you will find your own in this Book and CD. What really makes this book work, is each author has concentrated on the part of Flash they enjoy, and show how they have used Flash to further their own creativity.

Rating:
Summary: a revolutionary reference
Review: If i wasn't better than that, I would keep this book a secret... But i know that the flash world evolves because of the beauty of sharing. I felt that this book was priceless. Each and every author is a living phenomenom. If you are not even interested in flash, this book is still worth your while. The people who wrote this book are truly inspiring and have wonderful insights and theories about design/art/interactiivity... For flash designers: this book is a must. This book describes tricks of the trade as well as must-know actions, animations, drawing techniques. The difference between this book and all the others is that this book is the real deal; meaning, that the world's leading designers are showing you their award winning web sites and take you step by step on how to create them. Not simplistic boxy case studies; but the actual stuff that amazes you when you explore flash kit's winners of the month.-------Priceless

Rating:
Summary: I can take it or leave it.
Review: Well...it's okay but not worth the time I waited for it's release. The first time I heard about Vol. 3 was at the Flash Forward 2004 Conference in San Francisco. I really looked forward to Billy Bussey and Shane's Chapter's but when I read them they did not have the substance I thought it would pack. Shane gave a few nuggets as far as techniques but it was mostly philosophical garbage (as with many other contributors of the book) that could have been left for an autobiography rather than a book that is geared towards actually teaching the customer something. I would say get the book for some decent tidbits but you would probably get more out of the first volume.