[David Zappa]

As simple as that! Obvious.
Thank you!!!!!!!!!

[David Zappa]

Ok, I have moved to another footage now so I can’t really show you how it was set up but since I haven’t solved the problem I might need advice for future similar settings.
I’ll try to describe how it looked.

I have a composite scene, whereby a background layer interacts with a foreground layer. This foreground layer needs to match the changing light of my background. Imagine street lights and color which need to “spill” on my added foreground. (in my case a shoe 🙂 ).

So, for e believable composite in photoshop I would create adjustment layers which would be masked using soft brushes. affecting the foreground until it matches the scene and so on. I would simply paint brush on the adj layer layer mask.

In AE, as I understand, it’s tricky as you can’t paintbrush on an adjustment layer plus, even if you could you can do this only by double clicking it which shoes you only that layer’s alpa channel.

So, your idea of duplicating the to be corrected layer and putting it above the ADJ layer and using it as its TRK Mat is perfect.. BUT being it a trkMat you can’t see, while you paint, how the adjustment layer will look as the layer you are painting on is in the main window (don’t remember how it’s called) of AE isolating the view of the layer from the global composition.
If I only knew the right names of the different panels of AE I could explain myself a bit better and for this a apologize profoundly. As said I’m a pro-photog and know my way in PSD but not yet in AE.

[David Zappa]

Ok, I did try the way you said but probably I’m still doing something wrong as I don’t think there isn’t a better way to do this…
I duplicated the layer to be color corrected selectively, put it above my adj layer. Then I wanted to paint brush the alpha channel, but to do so, as for I have seen, you need to double click on that layer which opens it alone not showing you the rest of the comp.
The paint brush tool isn’t active until you double click on the layer.

I know, I’m missing out on something here.
sorry if I’m still so clumsy with this.

[David Zappa]

Yes, no problem on making a duplicate as track matte. Excellent idea. I’ll give it try and let you know. Thanks.
Is it possible to paint on the alpha channel without double clicking on the layer which shoes you only the white alpha without being able to see the layer?
Well no need to answer to this as I’ll figure it out myself as soon as I’ll try. 🙂

[David Zappa]

John thank you for your kind reply. I was thinking of going that way but I was wondering if there was a more “direct” way.
To see what you are doing on the layer that needs to be affected by the adjustment layer I guess I must not double click on the adjustment layer to preview it’s alpha otherwise you don’t see the underneath most important layer.
Don’t know if I was clear enough.

I also thought that maybe a solution could be to make a freeze frame export to photoshop, create adjustments layers and their mask and then import these into AE then position track them

Does that make any sense?
Thanks