Struggling with creating 3D effect

[CSLEWIS-FAN]

I posted a question like this a while ago and got some good direction, but I'm still struggling with what I would like to do, so please forgive my redundancy here.

If anyone out there has the time, please go to YOUTUBE.COM and search for a video by "bigeasy213" titled "MAKE ANY PHOTO LOOK 3D". I think this effect is crazy cool and want to know how I can do the same with the software that I have. The author of this video explained that they used Sony Vegas to create it. I have seen others similar to it that were created with After Effects. Unfortunately I have neither Sony Vegas nor After Effects. What I do have to work with is Final Cut Express 4. It seems to me that I should be able to obtain this effect using FCE 4, but I just can't seem to figure it out.

What I have done is separated a high resolution pic into 3 layers using Photoshop CS3 and converted them to a jpeg. I then imported the picture to FCE 4 and put it into the time line. All the layers appear there, but it is at this point that I become stuck. I have no idea how to adjust the depth and what not to get that effect. Ultimately I would like to add several pictures to the timeline and create a cool looking slideshow like the one listed above. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for helping such a novice.

 

[bigbossbmb]

this is really something for After Effects or Motion because you can move things in 3D space and create a virtual camera.

for FCE, the closest thing you can do is try to emulate the camera movement by keyframing the movement/scaling of each layer. for a camera pan, you'd keyframe the foreground object to move across a lot and the background to move less.

 

[chilipie]

this is really something for After Effects or Motion because you can move things in 3D space and create a virtual camera.

for FCE, the closest thing you can do is try to emulate the camera movement by keyframing the movement/scaling of each layer. for a camera pan, you'd keyframe the foreground object to move across a lot and the background to move less.

Yeah, it's possible to emulate the look but I don't really know if it's worth the effort. Perhaps download the After Effects trial and have a play with that?

 

[tigermurphy]

The title of that video is a little misleading, as it almost implies that this effect can be achieved without doing a whole lot of work. Unless I'm missing something, to create this effect you need to spend a lot of time in the photo editor of your choice cutting out each separate layer you want to move independently. Then, depending on how far you move your camera off the center axis, you have to paint in the background behind the foreground layers that you already separated. Otherwise, you'll just end up with a duplicate layer separating from itself. Sorry, I know that sounds confusing...hopefully it makes sense.

Once you separate your layers and paint in the areas behind them, the movement is pretty straightforward. Just make scale and position keyframes for each of your layers. The closer the layer is to the camera, the faster it should scale up. The effect definitely looks cool, but it takes a lot of effort to make it work.

 

[CSLEWIS-FAN]

Thank you all for input. It looks like I will be turning to after effects to help me with this project.