Edit Review: Strata CX Suite

The Strata 3D CX 5.5 interface closely resembles the Adobe Photoshop CS3 interface.

Strata has created a suite of tools with some very simple missions. One is to make it easy and accessible for producers without prior 3D experience to model, render, and animate. The second is to help the user create models not by precise spline and polygon construction, but by leveraging the power of Adobe Photoshop CS3 Extended and using photos to create objects. And the third is to help you move your realtime 3D creations onto the Web and into presentations and PDFs. The three programs in the CX Suite — Strata 3D CX 5.5, Strata Foto 3D 1.5, and Strata Live 3D 1.5 — undertake these three missions. The programs are available separately, but you save so much buying them as a bundle that you might as well grab the suite. That's true even if you won't currently use all the features. You can download the entire suite for a trial run on Mac or PC, and Strata even has a video podcast to showcase tips and features — always extra points for podcasts.

First we'll look at the centerpiece, Strata 3D CX 5.5. You could almost say if this were Adobe CS3 Design Premium, Strata 3D would be the Photoshop of the group. In actuality, once you boot up Strata 3D CX, it functions almost identically to Photoshop. Toolbars; property palettes; docking, stacking, and auto-collapse of palettes: this truly is a Photoshop-like 3D program. In fact, producers new to 3D will have no problem jumping in and constructing a 3D scene in much the same way they arrange a 2D scene in Photoshop. This is especially important to video producers who may want to dive into 3D but do not necessarily have the resources or time to learn a dedicated program such as Autodesk 3ds Max or NewTek LightWave 3D. The Photoshop layout makes it a fairly seamless transition for a video person to start working in 3D because of the ease of use.

I recently did a few mockups in Strata of a new logo design that I had finished for a client's video production. I only did it to add some zing to the other project elements I had sent proofs of. The client loved the fact that the logo was now in 3D with reflections and depth of field, and the client ended up wanting more variations of the design in three dimensions. Because working in Strata is so similar to working in Photoshop, I was able to get some excellent additional billable work with a minimum of effort expended. Surprisingly, the video production started 2D, but after a taste of 3D, the client now wants to head in that direction. And even though many compositing applications claim 3D modes, many are really 2D. Strata allows for real 3D with real 3D objects, lighting, and animation. The animation features are especially of interest to video producers; you can create hierarchical scenes and animate everything from rotation to scale to textures to lighting. Perfect for clients wanting some 3D elements.

Photoshop CS3 Extended — as you may have heard — also supports 3D now, and that provides much of the impetus for the new features in version 5.5 of Strata 3D CX. The Strata CX Suite includes a Photoshop plug-in that allows you to move scenes back and forth between Photoshop and Strata 3D CX. For example, use the vanishing point filter in Photoshop to build a 3D scene with textures and perspective, then move the whole scene into Strata for advanced rendering. Working on an object in Strata you want to paint in Photoshop? Just use the Send Model to Photoshop menu option in Strata to load up Photoshop automatically and continue to work.

One handy feature is layer support. You can render to layers in Strata so you can export your entire scene broken down into separate elements and move them into Photoshop. You can now also create new textures in Strata and move them into Photoshop as well as match 3D environments between the two programs. I do a lot of masking in my 3D work, mainly because having an alpha channel to work with allows graphic design choices (such as depth of field) to be made after the fact without incurring another complete render. Version 5.5 of Strata 3D CX now allows me to set up a mask in a scene easily, render it out, and send it directly to Photoshop. The program also ships with its own scripting language, so you can automate almost any 3D feature. Included example scripts will help get you rolling.

Foto 3D 1.5 is a pretty amazing program that can generate a 3D model from a series of still images. It does take a little work on the photography side of things, but after you get the images set, the rest is fairly automated. The most obvious application of Foto is using it in conjunction with a 360-degree rotating platform, so you can take a picture of a physical object from every angle. For example, say you need a 3D object that depicts a running shoe. You would put it on a rotating platform, snap a picture, rotate a few degrees, take another, and so on. Once you had a series of snaps, you load them into Foto 3D. The program can take it from there, first by using all the “sides” as a mask and creating a rough object. After that, it creates the mesh of the object. More complex objects require a more complex mesh for appropriate results. Then the program uses the images and builds a 3D map, which it then wraps around the new object. When it's done, you are looking at a 3D object that you can spin around and light in 3D. All of this takes literally only a couple of minutes from the importing of the photos to the final created object.

Of course, Foto 3D features Photoshop interaction: You can send images from Photoshop to Foto 3D, create the model, then send the model back to Photoshop Extended to fine tune, tweak, and render. Or send it to Strata 3D CX.

Rounding out the suite is Strata Live 3D, which takes a 3D model and exports it in an interactive format for web and PDF deployment. This could be VRML, DXF, Wire 3D, XML, Java, or other formats. Ever seen those cool 3D objects on a web page that you can grab and spin? That's exactly what the program produces. You can include controls, such as allowing user interaction, or provide constraints, such as allowing it to spin but not zoom. You can adjust lights and object materials or manipulate the model's mesh. Live 3D has a rich array of features to tweak. It can get a little scripty for advanced options, but for the basics, it's click and save. Photoshop CS3 Extended integration includes enabling Photoshop to export realtime 3D content contained in PDFs and web pages, and as is the case with the other programs here, you can move the 3D file back and forth between Photoshop and Live 3D.

Strata CX Suite is a great deal if you need all the tools. It's a little more than half the price of buying the three programs separately. First, of course, you need Photoshop CS3 Extended in order to use all the back-and-forth features. Strata includes plug-ins and hooks for Photoshop CS3 Extended to make it all seamless when you install the suite.

Live 3D is great for creating interactive web content, but its interface is the least refined. You almost need a programmer feed to it. Granted,you're not going to spend hours in it, and it does the job, but Strata could make it look a bit prettier. Strata Foto 3D is a bit better. The interface is easy to comprehend, and the company thankfully includes a tutorial that loads up and steps through the features when you first run the program. This tutorial helps immensely and probably eliminates hours of figuring out what to do. If you want to create 3D objects from pictures, I can't think of a better option.

The shining star of the suite is Strata 3D CX 5.5. Many of us had some form or another of a Strata program as one of our early forays into 3D design. Strata has always been a strong company and program, and its current Strata 3D is polished and easy to use, and it produces great rendered output. It's the real reason to get the suite; the other programs are gravy. The other pivotal point is the interplay with Photoshop CS3 Extended. If you are doing any type of 3D in Photoshop and want to extend those options, so to speak, Strata CX Suite is the perfect complement.

bottomline

Company: Strata
www.strata.com

Product: CX Suite

Assets: Easy to render, model, and animate, mimics and interacts with Adobe Photoshop CS3 Extended, exports interactive formats.

Caveats: Live 3D interface not intuitive.

Demographic: Content producers in need of an affordable 3D package.

PRICE: $995, $495 (UPGRADE FROM STRATA CX 5)

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