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green screen blues…(blue screen too)
I am trying to blue screen and green screen jewelry. Which is getting more frustrating by the minute. Is jewelry a difficult object to blue screen or green screen?
We need to show the ‘bling’ or sparkle in the diamonds, etc…
I am trying to use the ‘blue and green screen’ filter in FCP, but can’t get the all of the background blue to drop out of the clip. It looks crappy and sloppy.
Now…does the color have to be blue or green specifically or can it be any dark color, as long as it is lit properly and consistant in the same color? I tried a color that isn’t labeled as a blue screen color and it isn’t working either.
If I use the green screen cloth or even the blue screen cloth, the lighting will reflect onto the jewelry and create a greenish tone on the jewelry. The same goes for the blue screen.
Are there any filters combos that would work with the ‘blue and green screen’ filter?Generally, what is the best way to shoot jewelry for blue or green screening?
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5 Replies
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Jewelry tends to reflect the green or blue at least a little. So that makes it tough to key out background without keying some of the diamonds. I’ve tried to key jewelry a couple times without acceptable results. I’d say just shoot it with a flat black background. You may be able to do a luminance key with that, but I’ve never tried. I just use a black background because it gives more contrast to the jewelry. And a star filter gives a nice touch to the shine of the jewelry. I suppose if it’s a still shot, you could import the shot into photoshop and make a matte for it. Then use the matte to key in FCP. Let me know if you find something that works.
Good luck!
JP Driscoll
WDAY TV
Fargo, ND -
Most jewelry is very reflective…and reflection is not good when keying. I would probably use something like After Effects and roto the jewelry (which would probably be much easier than rotoing most things due to its constant and geometric shape. You can key out any color using the “color key” filter and you can also use the “mask choker” filter and “mask feather” filter in addition to the key filter (found in the matte folder). I must say though, I really do not like FCP’s keying capabilities…Primatte is great.
Eli Mavros
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Color keys won’t work. The previous suggestion of using a pure black background is the only way to make it happen. What I would suggest is to mount the jewelry on on a thin piece of glass a few feet off the ground so that you can put (on the ground) just enough black to fill your field of view. Then you can put either colored paper or white paper around that to add to the appearance of the diamond. (note: tilt the glass offset to your lense so that when you use a polarizer filter you can eliminate the reflection of the jewelry and any surranding illumination…. then, using dental wax, mount the jewelry at the proper angle for the lense). Of course I could go on and on about how to light the actual jewelry once the previous work has been done, but I’ll assume you know the rest.
Hope this helps.
Danny -
If you don’t have to do camera moves on the jewelery (in other words-static shots) an old trick I used to use in the old days is to use a light table.
I would put the items on the light table, with it turned off, light them as you would normally do, and shoot your shot. Then, without moving the camera, turn ON the light table, turn OFF all other lighting and shoot the sillhoutte of the jewelery against the bright white of the light table. This shot would be basically a matte at this point. Combine the two shots in FCP (travel matte) or in PhotoShop (mask), and you’ll get a pretty good graphic/matte which you can put over anything. The “matte” will be nice and smooth giving you a clean, anti-aliased key. Add a few lens flares and points of light in post and it shoud look pretty realistic. An added bonus is that there is no color contamination of the jewels. They will always be the correct color.
Another trick I use for jewelery is to actually move a point source light over the gems. The moving light will result in many reflections that are constantly moving and sparkling. I like to use a 150 watt Arri fresnel for this. I mount it on the stand and “hand-hold” it over the jewels, slowly moving it back and forth. Try it.
Hope this might help a little.
Tom -
First of all, you’re using the wrong filter. Use the Chroma Keyer. You probably don’t have the proper steps to do the job right either. If you must use that blue screen footage, please read my article. It’ll save you lots of pain and suffering.
https://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/chroma_key_fcp_hd_monahan.html
Kevin Monahan
Author – Motion Graphics and Effects in Final Cut Pro
fcpworld.com
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