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PSD or AE Flickering Text
I’m trying to find a simple solution to the flickering text problem I get whenever I add Photoshop or After Effects text to a video project. It usually looks okay on the computer monitor but on a video monitor or tv there is usually some flickering on the edges. I know that small text, text with serifs and thin edges, lines, borders, etc., tend to flicker so I avoid those as much as possible. I also know that if you add a slight blur it helps prevent it but that is rarely a good option with text. I’ve seen small text used in commercials, lower third scrolling bars on ESPN and CNN and show credits. How do they do it? Or rather, how can it be done without a $25,000 graphics machine like Inscriber?
Thanks!
-Scott -
4 Replies
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Male sure you also check your levels and saturation.
Here is a page that should get you back in a non “flickering state”
https://erikdemaine.org/SoCG2003_multimedia/graphics.html
Vince
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Vincent: Generally good advice on that page, but I take issue with one item, that you should make black 16,16,16 and white 235,235,235.
This is absolutely wrong. The author is confusing SMPTE-601 digital levels with computer RGB levels. If you are working on a computer graphics system (Photoshop or AE, e.g.), black is zero. 100% white is 255. Your output hardware or editing system will do a conversion if needed. Most pro systems give you a choice as to what colorspace your graphics are coming from.
That being said, 100% white, though video legal, is not recommended. White text is usually pegged around 80% white/80 IRE (204,204,204) to minimize ringing and other problems. Black can be black, and if you make it RGB 16, you’ll get gray in a proper workflow.Corrections and arguments to the contrary welcomed,
Jeff -
Take note of the speed your text is moving at. That makes a difference. Slow it down (make it take longer to cross the screen). Bluring should only be for a small amount like 1. Anything more and it looks blurry. The flickering is usually caused by the interlacing delay caused by tv’s. The blur needs only to cross that pixel depth to overlap the interlacing delay. Text that is legible is usually min at about 18pxls. 20 is perfect, but if it needs to me smaller than 18 you can’t really read it.
– Jon -
Thanks for the advice gentlemen. One thing I tried was making white text at 235 and didn’t stroke any of the smaller text – it looked much better.
I’ll take your advice and do some more experimenting to see what works best for my applications/ projects.
Thanks again!
-Scott
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