[Josh Brine]

5864_introv13.aep.zip

this is the first file i have uploaded so let me know if you cant see it.

[Josh Brine]

Thanks for replying

its actually much simpler then i explained it looking back at my post.

my question is.

when you create a mask on a layer, AE auto adjusts the bounding box of that layer, essentially ‘cropping’ the layer to fit the mask.

i used a series of solids, masks and radial blurs on a few layers to create a fake spotlight.

i tied all of these layers together via a point controller and expressions so that they all follow the same path etc, so i have a functioning fake spotlight.

However when i add a layer where i have not added a mask and therefore ‘cropped’ such as lens flare; which seems to simply multiply over the layer it is added onto, when i add that layer to the point controller it does not follow the movements of the whole spotlight, its movements are that of a layer with a different scale value.

i can match the movements by scaling the lensflare down till it sits in the middle of the spotlight, then with the correct scale values it works fine, however the edges of the layer are then visible and it looks terrible.

i think it would it simply work to add all the masks on seperate layers as trackmattes to all the solids that make up the spotlight so their scale values are not different from that of any other layer, however i have run across this scale problem before when i apply a mask directly to a layer i wish to manipulate, and am looking for a kind of global fix to this scaling issue.

again, thanks for taking the time
Josh

[Josh Brine]

I Ended up using the raw 5d files, but learnt a great Keying technique to make the most of the footage, took a long time but it turned out decent enough at the end.

As a pc user i guess the best equivelant for prores would be dnxhd. not sure which one is better for this type of work but its a great format, can be downloaded online for free.

JOsh

[Josh Brine]

I actually dont have a grid, still working out the ins and outs of shooting this stuff.

I have seen a grid used for correcting/matching lens distortion, is this the same grid? and is it specific?

[Josh Brine]

thanks for that i have a much better understanding of color smpling now. well the black magic camera is headed this way soon which shoots in prores aand raw so great quality footage. but tiny sensor alas.

[Josh Brine]

I often use Mocha for my shape data, but this was a very basic loose garbage matte, also shape data can be annoying to get into an already trimmed composition, you have to, as far as im aware, create a new comp with the full footage, create your shape data, then trim it to the same in/out as your actual comp, then copy and paste the shape data back into your actual comp.

i thought to get around this, simply export a track then do the garbage matte inside of AE, woundnt be any use for articulate roto but a simple garbage matte was ok with this.

but overall its probably faster still to do it inside of mocha. just thought id try this out. that was when i came across the problem, but scaling up the layer and adding a mask around the edges worked fine.

[Josh Brine]

SOLVED:

i simply double click the square shape on the solid to create a mask around the edges and set it to none. it prevents the solid layer from shrinking down to the size of the smaller mask.

maybe there is a better way? this works ok i think

[Josh Brine]

Hey dave thanks for the response,

im shooting on a 5d mk III

[Josh Brine]

Yeah most of my work has been fixing badly shot scenes

so i feel like ive had a real crash course.

i often use two or three keys, garbage mattes, planar tracking and roto with mocha, and holdout mattes in AE.

but sometimes i just cant get a good key from footage that should be in my opinion easier then it seems, i still (as do we all) have lots to learn.

i have another post called girl green screen i posted a while ago with a snapshot of the current shot im working on.

im confident i will learn waht i need, but with the project leader being bold and confident, i really want to get a more grounded and solid understanding, if i cant present a solid do and do not list, then he is forced to simply try and shoot it anyway. anyway i digress.

i have found from failure, for example this current shot. that it may be a good thing to rim light, (dont know much about lighting, but this should/may accentuate the edges for a better key, as im getting dark halo’s where the subject is not light along the edges

[Josh Brine]

Thanks for the quick response,

the truth is im often in situations i dont really have the experience to make swift decisions in, i kind of ‘think’ that x or y could be done better etc. but i cant offer a total solution fast enough, or be prepared enough to preemp what is asked of me.

in terms of being on set, what should i aim to look out for and pre-empt?

im only really talking conceptual. i know every effect is different, but the fundamentals are there.

especially im doing alot of keying lately, and im not sure how to best light the subject.