Timelapse/After effects and Macbook pro

[tradman]

Hi all,
New to after effects but I'm just starting to get into timelapse with a D800. My question is, I need a new computer. Will the Classic 2012 macbook Pro 2.6ghz (16gb ram) manage after effects well or just Ok? Am I best to build a rig for what I'd need to be at. From reading around the net, most timelapse authorities build their own pc set ups to house 32 gb ram, better gpu etc
Any advice from you who work a lot with after effects would be musch appreciated.
Thanks in advance

 

[kevinfulton.ca]

Hi all,
New to after effects but I'm just starting to get into timelapse with a D800. My question is, I need a new computer. Will the Classic 2012 macbook Pro 2.6ghz (16gb ram) manage after effects well or just Ok? Am I best to build a rig for what I'd need to be at. From reading around the net, most timelapse authorities build their own pc set ups to house 32 gb ram, better gpu etc
Any advice from you who work a lot with after effects would be musch appreciated.
Thanks in advance

I've done some pretty intensive motion graphics at a former employers with plenty of keyframes and 3D compositions in After Effects and it's a pretty lean program. Much like Photoshop or Illustrator it will depend on the elements that you're using in your composition. Larger elements = more power needed. I've done some personal stuff on my old white Macbook with 4gigs for RAM and integrated Nvidea GPU and it did just fine. Heck I've even done some tests using iMovie with decent results. What I would recommend (and it will happen anyway once you output) is to optimize your frames to be used in a 1080p workflow. If you keep them at their native resolution (36mp I believe) then you could be over taxing your Mac for no good reason. It's been a bit for me so AE my even do this for you now. But, no, you should have no issues with that type of work on your machine.

 

[tradman]

Thanks Kevin.
I was under the assumption that each core would need 2 gb of ram for optimum performance according to posts by users over at the timescapse forums. By their logic a quad core with 8 virtual cores would be maxed out (8 cores*2 gb ram=16gb) and have no theoretical ram left over for any other tasks (safari,itunes etc).

So although it will run it, I assume it will be pushing the limits of the macbook pro?
As I said, I'm new to this so was just wondering what people like yourself have found in real-world situations.
Thanks for getting back to me. I'll do a bit more digging

 

[WRP]

Thanks Kevin.
I was under the assumption that each core would need 2 gb of ram for optimum performance according to posts by users over at the timescapse forums. By their logic a quad core with 8 virtual cores would be maxed out (8 cores*2 gb ram=16gb) and have no theoretical ram left over for any other tasks (safari,itunes etc).

So although it will run it, I assume it will be pushing the limits of the macbook pro?
As I said, I'm new to this so was just wondering what people like yourself have found in real-world situations.
Thanks for getting back to me. I'll do a bit more digging

You want at MINIMUM 2GB per core that you are using to process in After Effects. You can change that and even disable MP in the preferences. I knew a guy who only had 6GB of ram for his 8-core and his renders went faster without MP enabled. Then I suggested he buy more ram because it was stupid having a 8-core with 6GB of ram