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Green Screen Keyer Advice
I’ve got a ton of fashion (clothing) video already shot with green screen as the backdrop. There is a fair amount of it that unfortunately has featured colors in a green spectrum, though not the same green as the screen. I’m finding the keyer in FCP X to be changing and altering many of the clothing colors, which is very unfortunate. I can create and animate inserted masks that one developer has created (the capacity to have animated points) but I don’t want to spend time on that if I can help it.
Am I missing something? How good of a spectrum of green can I key, leaving all other colors in the clothing un-affected in their brilliance and saturation without the greens turning to purples, etc?
I guess I can attempt to get Keylight in After Effects a try, but I hate attempting to export (even with XML now a capability) from FCP X to AF, as it is a pain given so few options, but if Keylight does a better job keying green within a narrow spectrum without affecting other critical colors, keeping me from having to animate masks, then I would prefer that route, but have not fully tried it out yet. I think I’ll give a test try right now.
I’m looking for some specific insights to same me time should any have them. I sure appreciate you guys on this forum who have constructive, helpful things to post to help guide and direct others of us on how to achieve our editing needs.
UPDATE: The same Footage in AF, using Keylight has no better result, which I’m sure would have been obvious and predictable, as this is a green screen basic concept that green clothing will be an issue. So, my post now becomes an inquiry into the most efficient mask animation capabilities.
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5 Replies
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Boris continuum Complete has a range of keying options that work really well. That have a version that works with FCPX which I will be trying out soon since I just bought FCPX. I’ve been able to key many poorly shot clips fairly well with it.
I work at a school so we don’t have the resources to record in a quality green screen area. -
I’d love to see a couple of example frames posted here first to give you proper advice. It might ultimately be much simpler/less intensive to go back and reshoot with a blue screen for the green fabrics. Otherwise you may find yourself toiling for days and days in post just for a compromised look. Never fear the reshoot.
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Post some sample frames. That would help in determining where the issues really are. I have had people post that something doesn’t work and found that they were looking in the wrong place for the answer.
anickt
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As suggested it will be cheaper and a hell of a lot less time to just reshoot the green fabrics on blue. If that however is not an option I would look at taking it into After Effects and using the Roto Brush tool on it. It’s going to be a very long and drawn out process and my guess is that half way through you will spend whatever it takes to just reshoot. But hey, you’ll get to learn a ton about the Roto Brush tool in the process.
Michael W. Towe
President M2 Digital Post
http://www.m2digitalpost.com -
Thanks for the responses.
As you will see, simply the setup is just bad for Green Screen, as many colors are used that have green in their spectrum. The video’s will present the problematic subject matter.
These links show footage that is poorly lit compared to what ought to be. More recent recordings have double the light on the talent and set them apart from the green screen, hair being most problematic in obtaining a good key. Aside from the lighting, it is the colors issue that is problematic.
I assume, that the only option I really have is to animate a mask over these color drapes when appearing on camera, correct?
VIDEO 1, Bad, No Mask. Here is a sampling of the key removing the colors in their accuracy, for this was not masked:
https://youtu.be/EdNJKGGH0ec?t=3m22s
Video 2, Painstaking Masking Applied, Color Drapes Preserved. Here is the same swatch of color, but this time accurate, as they were masked with the key turned “off”
https://youtu.be/LJsnukPa1MM?t=9m36s
And in animating a mask, the only option I’ve found is that which was created by this guy, Fox Mahoney:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_l2K6rXwGw
I hate the massive workflow nightmare to take such footage into After Effects to animate a mask. I don’t know what the workflow might be from FCP X to Motion, then back. Perhaps that might be a good option?
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