[Ed Romero]

I have a scene with a complex sword fight. All on green screen.

Key is removing sword due to spill and reflection. If the sword was stationary, lighting only the sword would be easier, but in this case there is too much motion.

Is there a way to avoid roto? Or is that just what has to be done?

Thanks.

[Ed Romero]

Thanks again Jeff!

[Ed Romero]

Hi Jeff,

Actually that might be the case. But I just received the footage on a hard drive so I am not sure what it was shot on. (I’m going to try and figure that out)
If it was shot on HDV, what is my best option? Can it be fixed?
How will this affect the video when aired at full HD?

Also, I’m interested in hearing the more detailed explanation. 🙂

Thank you.

Ed

[Ed Romero]

Anyone?

Any suggestions?

[Ed Romero]

Works perfect.

Thanks!

[Ed Romero]

Hey Andrew

Yes it’s an adjustment layer. However I can’t use a solid below the adjustment layer because I need to see through the solid. (overlay/screen wont work)
I just need the flare to affect the text layer, but without the footage or a solid of some kind, the flare does not affect the text.

CURRENT LAYOUT IN TIMELINE:
1)Adjustment layer with Flare effect. (Adjustment layer affecting layers behind it is active)
2)Pre-comp composition containing animated text and another pre-comped compositing within containing animated lines.
3)Footage.

The flare won’t affect the Pre-comped text layer(2) unless I have the bottom layer [(1) Footage] visible, or a solid.

Just noticed Chris’s post. Will check it out to see if that helps.

[Ed Romero]

Thanks again Dave. Links were informative.

However, the only issue I have is that with the footage layer turned off, I can’t see the flare in AE. (Blend mode set to normal on flare layer)
I don’t think my question is clear enough.

[Ed Romero]

hey Dave,

How can I make the flare visible without any footage below it to render the comp(with no footage/solid when rendered)?

When I render out the comp with no footage the flare is gone… So I’m wondering if there is a way to render the comp with the flare (light flash effect) to be able to overlay it in Final Cut as a title. Even when I turn off the footage in After effects, the flare is gone, but if I turn the footage back on then I see the flare.

Is this possible without any footage/solid below the flare layer? I can think of another way which does require the footage and creating a mask of the area I want to affect, but I’m wondering if there is a better quicker way?

Thanks

[Ed Romero]

That’s fantastic. Quick time animation is much easier. Why would anyone want to export 100’s of png’s?
The problem I was having was using codecs which don’t support alpha channels.
I’m using AE, but good to know this will work for motion as well.

Thank you Zak.

[Ed Romero]

Thanks for the response. Is there a better way to do this?

An image sequence can be in the hundreds… Is there a way to stitch all the image files into one clip? Or is it possible to trim all the image sequence files simultaneously to avoid having to trim or shrink each image in the time line. (using final cut pro 6, and AE on a PC)

What other codecs support transparency (beside png and animation) Also, when I tried for animation, I can only select animation gif, and the quality is terrible.

Any suggestions?

Thanks