Adjustment Layers – basic order of operations question

[Dave Johnson]

I’m not sure I understand what you’re getting at so I’m, therefore, not sure this is telling you anything you don’t already know, but the answer is yes since adjustment layers affect every layer beneath them … so, the top adjustment layer is effectively adjusting the bottom adjustment layer (along with every other layer beneath it).

[Hillary Knox]

Ok, maybe this will clarify…

If I have the exact same clip in 2 separate comps. In Comp 1 I have 5 effects on a single adjustment layer, and in Comp 2 I have 5 adjustment layers with the same effects, 1 effect each spread over the 5 adjustment layers (in the same order). Should I theoretically expect to get the exact same image in both comps?

Here’s the reason I’m asking. I’m doing color correction that occasionally involves a lot of keying (which I’m doing in Colorista II). I’m finding that in order for the Colorista II keyer to work based on previous effects (i.e. Levels, Hue/Sat, or other Colorista instances) I’m having to put it on another Adjustment Layer for the keyer to take the earlier adjustments into account. Otherwise, if it’s on the same adjustment layer, the keyer disregards the previous effects & uses the un-effected clip as the source for the key.

I’m wondering if this is just the way the Colorista II keyer works, or if this is a global After Effects-wide order-of-operations thing that I don’t fully have a handle on. I understand orders of operations, and that Adjustment Layers affect all layers below it, that’s not really my question. I guess my question is, what is the difference in behavior between stacked effects on a single adjustment layer vs the same effects spread out over multiple adjustment layers? And is it predictable & consistent? Or is it just common knowledge that sometimes you have to use multiple adjustment layers based on the specific effect combinations that you’re using?

[Hillary Knox]

I’m not keying blue- or green screen. I’m keying stuff in the scene like fleshtones, clothing, backgrounds, and overblown highlights. Regardless of whether or not I’m going about things in the right way or whether I need to re-shoot, both of which could very well be true, my original question remains unanswered and could potentially apply to many other situations that may or may not involve keying.

Is there some kind of order of operations difference between stacking effects on a single adjustment layer (or on the clip layer itself) vs spreading them out over several adjustment layers but still in the same order?