green screen emergency !!!

[Al Levine]

Looks like you’re shooting with a low resolution / compressed format. More details would be great — what camera you’re using, what resolution, format, etc…

Little trick…
Back in the early 2000s when I would shoot green screen using a DV/HDV camera, I had a little trick in After Effects. DV format didn’t have too much color information, so the goal was to add color information that didn’t already exist to the image and then key.

In After Effects:
Create a new composition using existing footage
Duplicate the video track. Turn the first video track to a Color mode, and turn opacity down to around 10%. This adds more color information to the video track.
Then Precomp that composition and throw a Keylight filter on the new Precomp.
Your key should turn out a bit better…

[Jeff Pulera]

If possible, position yourself farther from the green background to minimize the green spill reflecting onto your head and shoulders. Putting a small light above and behind talent can also help to provide separation between subject and background.

If you are shooting in SD, don’t expect optimum results. Much easier to get a good key using HD cameras, provides smoother edges for one thing.

Lighting is very critical in any case. Use manual focus for subject.

Good luck

Jeff Pulera
Safe Harbor Computers

[John Heagy]

The best way to handle green screens is with multiple keys, minimum of two. Unless lit perfectly you’ll never get a perfect key with one keyed. first do an edge key that makes the edges look god. You may need a few of these. You then need an inside key. Do a hard key that covers the inside and erode/shrink it so it doesn’t affect the edges.

John

[Hamed Amini]

wow. I didn’t thought of that, I think it’ll work, i’ll try it
thank you very much 🙂