[Mike Clasby]

I guess my first question would be , what kind of effects are you trying to apply to a mask?

Masks are on a layer, a solid in your case, but yes effects can be applied to a mask alone, some of them, like Stroke. The last Stroke parameter, Paint Style, set to On Original Image, puts the Stroke on the Solid, but “On Transparent removes the layer it’s on (any type of layer, and leaves the Mask with a stroke on it.

Scribble, Fill Type:Centered Edge, and Composite: On Transparent, acts similarly, well a scribble in the shape of the mask.

Audio Spectrum and Audio Waveform are on the Mask, if, Path:Mask, is selected and won’t show the layer unless”Composite On Original” is selected.

Radio Wave, if Mask:Mask>Mask 1 , is chosen and the mask is closed, works.

I just found this in the Help files, AE 6.5:

Applying effects to a mask

——————————————————————————–

You can apply the following standard After Effects effects to a mask shape: Path Text, Audio Waveform, Audio Spectrum, Stroke, Fill (closed paths only), and Smear (closed paths only). You can apply the following After Effects Professional edition effects to a mask shape: Reshape (closed paths only), Vegas, and the Inner Outer Key (closed paths only). The Professional edition-only effect Particle Playground can also use a mask shape to define effect boundaries.

So what are you trying to do, there are usually work arounds.

[Mike Clasby]

Select the layer with the mask, M reveals the mask. Select the mask, Copy, Select the new layer. Paste.

If The masks are the same size, the mask will be the same. If the layers are different sizes things get a little wonky.

You can move and resize/rotate a mask (after pasting I mean) if you double click any mask vertex, then you get a little transform box like in PhotoShop to drag it around, resize, rotate (then hit Enter).

[Mike Clasby]

In case I wasn’t clear that last part, with the script create a merry go round by selecting the layers, then running the script, put the number of layers to be in the merry go round in that top box of the script’s control panel (when the script runs), then the next one is for the radius.

It makes the layers 3D. creates a Null, and parents them to the Null. Rotate the Null and the merry go round, goes round.

[Mike Clasby]

I) So did you make a circular mask and then paste the mask shape into position keyframes of the merry go round of images?

Is there one complete revolution for the two keyframes (or is it four keyframes)? If so you can continue the circular motion with a loop expression. (Copy the expression, Alt-click the Position Stopwatch, Paste, click outside the box). Here’s the expression:

loopOut(“cycle”)

Extend the layer to the right and now the rotations will loop. if you slide the layer to the right it will rotate part way around the circle, making it start from there.

II) If you used the pasting a mask into position keyframes that’s kind of the hard way to do it. Most folks do this:

1) Make the layer’s 3D

2) add a Null (3D also)

3) Move the merry go round layers the distance away from the null they want the radius of the circle to be

4) Parent the merry go round layer to the Null

5) Rotate the Null

III) Here is an earlier thread on spacing layers around a merry go round with several methods. I’d just discovered a new script that does the job almost automatically:

https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/2/915391

There are several other methods mentioned, read the whole thread to find out all they ways people came up with.

[Mike Clasby]

There are two scripts that attach masks with track points.

https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/2/916999

Maybe the second one is better for you since you want to create mask from tracks in another layer, I haven’t used that one much.

You could always run either script then copy the masks and paste them into another layer, which should be fine as long as the layers are the same size (and aspect ratio, I think).

Get back if you go the script route and get stuck.

Like I sad I’ve used the first script more and it nails a mask to the points, it’s as good as the track you get.

[Mike Clasby]

Can you shoot through the helmet/face-mask with a green screen in the background (what’s out there), then just key out the green and you can put whatever video you want on the other side?

Or mask off the face-mask in a still even, making it larger than your final comp so you can move it around a bit (with a wiggle expression or manually). Seems like that should be good.

If these don’t sound good maybe you can post a sample pic of the facemask so we can see exactly what you’re up against.

[Mike Clasby]

I guess I don’t understand what you’re asking, “move the crowd up one step at a time”?

[Mike Clasby]

Would love to see a bit of how it comes out.

Bill O’Neill does something similar here, putting green screened talent into and AE 3D stage set here:

https://library.creativecow.net/articles/oneil_bill/3d_world.php

There might be a few tips there that help. I’m always amazed at the results he got.

[Mike Clasby]

Overview:

Vector Paint

Auto Trace to create a mask from the paint.

Details:

Vector Paint:

Paint on with white, outlining the cloud, but try to keep the outside of the stroke on the inside edge of the cloud (the outside edge of the mask is where the mask will be)then when you’re done, change the parameter named “Composite Paint” (at the bottom of the Vector Paint plugin) to “As Matte”, then…

Layer>Auto Trace, Threshold and Tolerance to 1, uncheck “Apply to New Layer”, then M reveals the two masks created, delete mask to, the inside mask. Change mask 1 to Add, and uncheck Vector Paint (turn vector paint off). That should do it. MM Reveals the mask properties, you can feather the mask or expand/contract, change mask opacity there.

Also, here are a few tuts:

This one does what you want but you need to fill in the space (your cloud completely.

Rotoscoping with Vector Paint

https://library.creativecow.net/articles/oneil_bill/as_matte.php

and

Turning Paint Into Masks in After Effects

https://library.creativecow.net/articles/kurkoski_tim/paint_to_mask.php

[Mike Clasby]

Can you just start with a solid the size of the final large rectangular shape, create a large rectangular Mask (Rectangular Mask Tool) the size of the layer, set a Mask Shape keyframe (click the Mask Shape Stopwatch, we’re still at the end of the morph), then at the beginning, change the mask shape by moving the vertices, changing that first mask shape to the smaller cube wall? It doesn’t really morph in a 3D sense by with your vector look it will appear so. This should render out as a small file since, Export>Macromedia SWF (Ignore, don’t pasteurize) is vector. I get a 37kb swf for a 5 sec morph on a 640×420 final.

To really unfold 3D shapes Zaxwerks makes a 3D Warp plugin, but that would be raster results and I dunno how it plays with other layers.

Does the first suggestion work for you?