Mary Plummer wrote an entry-level tutorial book on Apple’s compositing application Motion. It says “Introduction to Motion Graphics” on the cover, but it’s a bit more than just that. She covers about everything Motion has to offer, including the Primatte RT filter.

Apple’s Pro Series are probably among the best ways to learn Apple’s Pro applications. This book is no exception. It is lesson-based and comes with its own DVD-rom with lesson material on it. On the DVD-rom there are also two bonus chapters.

Writing a basic tutorial on software like Motion is a hard thing to do. Where do you start? Mrs. Plummer starts with the interface, which is always a good idea. Then she goes on with setting up new projects, and then she quickly gets lost in the complexities of Motion. That is not meant as criticism, because the book is well-structured, but it’s a fact of life that ultimately creative software like Motion does not easily let itself be taught in a rigid lesson structure.

Take for example chapter 5 --that’s roughly half way the book-- which covers filters and masks. Mrs. Plummer here covers the Motion keying filters, which is logical given the title of the chapter. However, the Primatte RT filter that comes with Motion can hardly be described as an entry-level tool for entry-level users. Yet, she covers the Primatte filter here with flair and clarity.

The “getting started” characteristic in this case is exemplified by the lesson material being used. Instead of using a complicated or difficult to filter image, mrs. Plummer has chosen for an open-and-shut case type of example image. That does the job just fine: it makes crystal clear what the filter is capable of without making the exercise too difficult.

The whole book is built up like this. At the end of this Training book, you will know how to work with Motion’s tools and interface. But to create complicated effects and composites, you will need one step up the ladder, which you can with Damian Allen’s Motion, Revolutionary Motion Graphics, another Training book in the series.

The bonus chapters of the book seem like a bit overdone. The chapter 10 extras cover the Preferences. I would say this is for people who are scared of running a program only, as what gets covered is so basic that it’s actually embarrassing to read. The chapter 11 extra is a useful addition as it further explains how Motion integrates with Photoshop.