Video Editing/Compositing Guide for Windows and Mac

Hi guys, Just Though I Share Something I Came Across

Macintosh:

EDITING:
Final Cut Studio 2- Final Cut Studio 2 is the premiere editing suite for the Macintosh. It comes with:

Final Cut Pro 6: Final Cut Pro 6 is the workhorse of the suite. It handles all of the actual editing, and the rendering.
Motion 3: Motion 3 is used for motion and 3d effects and graphics. It does all the motion tracking and 3d editing.
Soundtrack Pro 2: Soundtrack handles all of the intense audio editing (ie. more advanced than FCP6 in regards to audio) and sound effects. It comes loaded with thousands of sound effects and audio filters.
Color: Color is used for professional color grading and retouching. It is essentially a super powerful color corrector.
Compressor 3: Compressor deals with all the, you guessed it, compression and formatting of videos. It allows you to convert your video to virtually any format known to man, and can also move projects from one program to another.
DVD Studio Pro 4: Dvd Studio Pro 4 deals with the titles, menus, and actual burning of the final product onto DVD or Blu-Ray (or HD-DVD if you suck that much)
Final Cut Studio will run for about USD$1,299.
LINK: http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...&nplm=MA886Z/A

Final Cut Express 4: The simplest way to explain Final Cut Express 4 is to basically say that it is Final Cut Pro 6 with a different name. It has almost all of the same features, and is great for low budget people who don't need all the other programs of Final Cut Studio 2.

Final Cut Express 4 will run for about USD$199.
LINK: http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...&nplm=MB278Z/A

iMovie- iMovie is the base editing application that ships with all newer Macintosh machines. It has a basic timeline, simple audio filters and video transitions. It is well suited for the basic user, and allows for easy compression to iPod, DVD video, or MPG/AVI formats.
iMovie is free with Macs, but can be purchased here for $79.
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...nMore=MB015Z/A

ADOBE PREMIERE: Please see Windows section for the info on this.
Avid Xpress Pro: Please see Windows section for info.

COMPOSITING:
Shake 4.1- Shake is the best compositing program for the Mac, and pretty much the only one. It has been used on many Hollywood feature films, including King Kong. It used to be several thousand dollars, but the price has dropped considerably. It is very complicated to learn, but one of the most powerful (if not the most) powerful compositor on the market. It can also be used for green screen/chroma key effects.
Shake 4.1 will run for about USD$499.
LINK: http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...find=Shake+4.1

WINDOWS:
EDITING:

Adobe Premiere Pro CS3: Premiere Pro CS3 is essentially Final Cut Pro 6 for a Windows machine, and licensed by Adobe Inc. It does all the power lifting, and has many audio and video filters, and comes with Adobe OnLocation for capturing footage in real time. Adobe Premiere Pro runs on Windows and Mac OSX (Intel only)
Adobe Premiere Pro CS3 will run about USD$799.
LINK: http://www.adobe.com/products/premie..._premiere_home

AVID Media Composer (formerly Xpress Pro): Avid Systems has been known to make the most in depth and powerful editing suite available, and that still holds true now. Avid Xpress Pro and Media composer have now been combined, and the price cut in half. This suite has all the features of Final Cut and Premiere Pro, and is still the most powerful available. Avid Media Composer is available for Windows and Max OSX (Intel only)
Avid Media Composer runs about USD$2,495 (price cut from $5,000)
LINK: http://store.avid.com/us/index.cfm?p...0%2D20000%2D01

Windows Movie Maker: Movie maker is the default windows app for video editing. Its simplistic design makes it a great choice for people new to filmmaking, and the transitions and effects are good for "Youtube filmmakers."
Free with all windows computers.
Free download here: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/d...viemaker2.mspx

Sony Vegas Pro 8:
Vegas Pro 8 is a standard high tech editing suite, and comes bundled with DVD architect 4.5. DVD architect is used for creating DVDs from your project which is editing in Vegas Pro itself, utilizing the high quality video and audio editing features available.
Vegas Pro 8 is USD$550
LINK: http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/vegaspro

COMPOSITING:

Adobe After Effects CS3: After Effects is used for compositing and 3d video effects. IT integrates seamlessly with Premiere Pro, and has a lot of tools for motion tracking, background compositing, and green screen effects, in addition to others.
Adobe After Effects CS3 runs for about USD$999.
LINK: http://www.adobe.com/products/aftereffects/

Hope this helps you guys in making a decision on your software.
[Edited by Mr.Whynot on 19/04/2008 at 12:54 PM]
[Edited by Mr.Whynot on 19/04/2008 at 12:54 PM]