Pinnacle Systems, Inc. have announced the release of version 12 of Pinnacle Studio, its market-leading consumer video editing software. Pinnacle Studio version 12 builds on the features that have established the Pinnacle Studio family as number one in the consumer video editing market in the U.S. and Europe.
The new version includes Pinnacle Montage, an innovative tool that makes high-end compositing and animation effects accessible to consumers. With more than 25 new features, version 12 adds many new capabilities requested by users, while still maintaining the ease of use that has become the hallmark of Pinnacle Studio products. More titles, DVD menus and templates have been added as well as new professional audio and video controls and a complete HD workflow with Blu-ray authoring in the Plus and Ultimate versions. The retail version of Pinnacle Studio 12 is due for Australian release on the 7th July 2008.
Certified for Windows Vista, the Pinnacle Studio version 12 family consists of three affordably priced versions to meet the needs of consumers ranging from novices to dedicated video enthusiasts. In addition to Pinnacle Studio, the basic version, Pinnacle offers Studio Plus and Studio Ultimate with more advanced audio and video tools, including a complete HD workflow.
Pinnacle Studio version 12 Beta users say the new photo and video Pinnacle Montage feature alone makes the upgrade worthwhile. Designed to make it easy to achieve high-end results with multiple video layers, animated text and graphics, the Pinnacle Montage feature includes more than 11 pre-defined themes with over 80 single templates. In addition, all Pinnacle Studio version 12 products now offer marker tools for the timeline. Format compatibility has also been expanded to include photo import in Photoshop’s native PSD format and the GIF format. With the new export options, users can create MP3, Flash Video, WAV and 3GP files or upload files direct to YouTube.
Addressing the features most requested by customers, Pinnacle Studio version 12 now incorporates advanced capabilities for audio, with numerical audio volume, master volume controls, a timeline VU meter and peak indicators. New convenience features include the ability to reference images in the album and direct crop control to automatically remove black bars of a video or image. The new version also offers improved effects performance on lower-end PCs, advanced 2D editing, the ability to rotate effects and new content for titles and DVD menus.
Among the first to offer native HDV and AVCHD editing software, Pinnacle Systems Studio Plus and Ultimate now includes new Blu-ray disc burning capabilities in BD-MV with motion menus. AVCHD 1920 and support for various HD camcorder types including JVC full HD, Canon Vixia, Sanyo Xacti have also been added.
Designed for the most serious video enthusiasts, Pinnacle Studio Ultimate version 12 also includes a green sheet for Chroma keying effects and integrates a three of the industry’s most highly acclaimed professional video tools:
- ProDAD Vitascene (a USD$399 value) – a complete library of highly customisable transitions and lighting effects. The effects include film looks, blurs, glows, sparkles, and glass effects. Transitions include film effects, ripples, wipes, sparkle and starburst dissolves, and many others.
- Red Giant Software Magic Bullet Looks (a USD$399 value) – a powerful tool for adjusting tone, color and focus to simulate the appearance of classic films or specific production conditions. Offers more than 100 simple-to-apply presets to match common looks found in television programs, commercials, and motion pictures.
- Boris Graffiti (a USD$299 value) – the 2D/3D vector title animation plug-in that includes text on a path, jitter, randomisation, independent vector text, advanced type-on title animation and automated rolls, crawls, fades and zooms. Comes with hundreds of presets to streamline title creation.
Pricing and availability
Designed for Microsoft Windows XP and Windows Vista systems, the Pinnacle Studio version 12 family includes Pinnacle Studio, as well as Pinnacle Studio Plus and Pinnacle Studio Ultimate with full HD support.
The suggested retail prices (inc.GST) are AUD$129.95, $169.95 and $249.95, respectively, and exclusively distributed by Lako Pacific. The Pinnacle Studio version 12 family is available from the Pinnacle Systems estore and retail stores from 7th July 2008.
Upgrades from all of the previous Pinnacle Studio versions to version 12 will also be available from the Pinnacle Systems website and will also be available as retail versions with prices ranging from $99.95 (upgrade to Pinnacle Studio Plus) to $139.95 (upgrade to Pinnacle Studio Ultimate).
Source: Lako Pacific
