SYNTHETIC APERTURE INTRODUCES COLOR FINESSE ADVANCED COLOR CORRECTOR

Adds Sophisticated Telecine-style Color Correction Capability to Adobe After Effects

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA -- December 10, 2001 -- Synthetic Aperture today announced that it is shipping Color Finesse(tm) 1.0, an advanced telecine-style color correction tool for Adobe(r) After Effects(r), Apple Final Cut Pro, and other compatible applications.

Color Finesse offers high-end color correction and enhancement tools--including multiple color spaces, tonal correction, curve-based correction, automated color matching and balancing, six-channel secondary color correction, reference images with split wipes, smart color legalizing, and waveform monitor and vectorscope displays--previously available only in dedicated, high-end color correction systems.

Color Finesse adds sophisticated color correction directly into Adobe After Effects. "We are excited about the new Color Finesse product which will provide our customers a powerful solution for color correction that will save them time and money," said Steve Kilisky, senior product manager for Adobe After Effects. "The combination of After Effects' sophisticated compositing and animation tools and Color Finesse's advanced color correction tools creates a formidable challenge to traditional color correction suites."

By performing all correction operations in 32-bit floating-point space, Color Finesse provides the resolution and dynamic range needed for both subtle and extreme color changes, without clipping or harshness. Supported color spaces include RGB, CMY, HSL, and YCbCr.

When combined with the company's Echo Fire realtime video previewing software, all color adjustments can be previewed on a video monitor as they are made.

Color Finesse takes full advantage of the PowerPC G4 and its AltiVec vector processing--as well as multiple processor systems--to deliver high-performance rendering, even with many levels of adjustments.

Compatibility

Color Finesse 1.0 is available for PowerPC G4-based Macintosh systems and is compatible with Adobe After Effects 5.0 and later and Apple Final Cut Pro 2.0 and later. It requires Mac OS 9.0 or later and QuickTime 4.1.2 or later. A Windows version of Color Finesse is planned for release in early 2002.

Pricing and Availability

List price for Color Finesse 1.0 is $695. Color Finesse is available through a network of resellers and directly from Synthetic Aperture. A demonstration version is available from the company's web site.

About Synthetic Aperture

Founded in 1995, Synthetic Aperture is a provider of practical tools for digital video and audio. In addition to Color Finesse, Synthetic Aperture publishes the Echo Fire realtime video previewing plug-in for Adobe After Effects and Photoshop, the Video Finesse filters for Adobe Premiere, a line of digital video clip art collections, and the popular free utility Test Pattern Maker.

Further information on Synthetic Aperture may be obtained by calling (949) 493-3444, accessing the company's Web site at http://www.synthetic-ap.com, or by emailing sales@synthetic-ap.com.