Power/Pac 1 (Auto F/X Corporation)

Product Information:
Auto F/X Corporation
Black Point HCR 73, Box 689
Alton Bay, NH 03810
Phone: (603) 875-4400
Fax: (603) 875-4404
Home Page: <http://www.autofx.com> Retail Price: $249 (Catalog price under $200)

System Requirements:
Power/Pac 1 is used in conjunction with the Macintosh version of Adobe
Photoshop 3.0 or later. It requires Mac OS System 7.x, at least 16 MB RAM and a CD-ROM drive. Full installation uses about 45 MB of hard disk space and 6 MB for the light install. Power/Pac 1 modules execute from within the Adobe Photoshop application and do not need any additional RAM beyond Photoshop's requirements.

Power/Pac 1, on CD-ROM, is a special effects program which contains 12 unique modules that seamlessly integrate with Adobe Photoshop 3.0. With these
modules you are able to create artwork using edges, drop shadows, and textured effects that turn your art work into real attention-grabbers.

Here is what Power/Pac 1's twelve modules enable you to do:

1. “Auto/Emboss” raises artwork out of colors, textures or photos.
2. “Auto/Focus” adds a selective focus area to any image while softening background and images like a soft filter on a camera.
3. “Auto/Glow” adds a halo or an “aura-like” glowing effect to any artwork, including multi-colored and gradient glows.
4. “Auto/Path” automatically draws precise paths around artwork.
5. “Auto/Recess” sinks artwork into colors, textures or photos giving the illusion of depth.
6. “Auto/Saturate” selectively and incrementally desaturates colored areas of an image.
7. “Auto/Select” removes the white background from artwork and places just the artwork on a transparent layer in either a solid or translucent state.
8. “Auto/Screen” adds translucent screens, textures, or colored graphics over type or images.
9. “Auto/Shadow” adds drop, cast and gradient shadows to artwork, with soft, textured or edged looks.
10. “Auto/Textures 1” contains 500 textures such as marbles, paper, artistic patterns, organic surfaces, etc.
11. “Auto/Textures 2” contains 500 textures that include geometric patterns, natural surfaces and more organic surfaces.
12. “Typo/Graphic Edges” makes type, logos, or other graphic elements assume any of over 10,000 weathered, distressed, roughened, grunged or edged looks.

In conclusion, you don't have to be a professional designer to justify getting Power/Pac 1. The accompanying Users Guide is well-illustrated, with plenty of information and ideas to get you in the creative mode. You'll find Power/Pac 1 a useful resource to Adobe Photoshop. It’ll save you lots of time and give you a better focus toward giving your artwork a finishing touch that is out of the ordinary. Here are some ideas: Web page graphics, multimedia presentations, dust jacket covers, videos, brochures, advertisements, newsletter, catalogs, annual reports, and more. Power/Pac 1 is easy enough to use that you can start doing eye-appealing
effects quickly.

Take heart! An upgrade to enable Power/Pac 1 to work with Adobe Photoshop 4.0 is in development! Expected availability date is currently the last week of January. This upgrade will be available free to all registered users as a download from the Auto F/X website, or as a CD direct from Auto F/X (add $10 for shipping/handling).

This review is ©1997 Eugene F. Marotta. http://home.earthlink.net/~emarotta/>