[Tangier Clarke]

Simon, I am trying to put your methods in this video to practice and not having much success. IN the image below, the guy on the left claps then turns toward the camera. In that process his shoulder and head intersect the screen on the wall while the camera tilts down to the guy sitting at the bottom of the frame. I have to replace that image of the screen on the wall with something else. I was trying to do this without manually moving mask points frame by frame and in doing so trying to use your method, but I can’t seem to get a clean matte the way you did. I put a green layer beneath my testing layer, and manipulated various parameters of the channel mixer, but no go so far. Tried threshold as well to compensate for what I couldn’t do with the monochrome mode.

Do you have any further suggestions? I realize this thread is about keying, but I thought I’d be able to apply your method to create a travel matte of sorts (a term I am not used to using in Motion; more for After Effects). Haven’t quite gotten the hang of DaVinci’s autotracker yet, but I am trying. I don’t own Core melt slice X either, but perhaps I should pick that up. This is certainly a feature I’d love Motion to have – track elements within a shape boundary rather than point trackers.

[Tangier Clarke]

Perhaps it would be like having the oscillating behavior, but with the ability to set x, y, or z values (in this case just Y) and having the ability for that behavior to not traverse backwards the values that started the behavior; essentially an option to repeat the half range point. Granted this isn’t truly oscillating I know.

Maybe another way would be the current loop behavior to be more robust in that one would be able to set position parameters, number of repeats, last frame, etc. That seems more plausible. I don’t see how to do this with the current behaviors, not even the parameter behavior. Not that it can’t be done, I just don’t see it.

[Tangier Clarke]

Thanks a lot Simon. I was playing with those parameters before your post, but some things weren’t making sense to me. After your instructions I got the hang of it now and I understand what my confusion with Motion here is:

The “After Last Keyframe” option is fluid. That last keyframe changes depending on what was set in Generate Keyframes. I was looking at the last keyframe as always being the one I set manually and therefore anything I would do with repetitions or generating keyframes starts from there.

I still have a little problem with this. Generating keyframes does not acknowledge the first time that was set. So if I set the animation to repeat using 3 repetitions with the generate keyframes option, then I want to adjust that number of repetitions, that doesn’t work. That last keyframe is now the keyframe after the 3 repetitions already set and the option to generate keyframes starts at 1 again – meaning it will generate more repetitions from the last keyframe. It’s additive rather than cumulative from where the first animation was made.

I don’t think the way it’s setup in Motion is intuitive, but I know it’s just a matter of working with it more. Perhaps ideally I’d have the type of before/after last keyframe operation and generating keyframes in one pop up window along with what interpolation to do at the last keyframe. The latter not completely necessary being that one could just right-click the last keyframe and make the adjustment.

Thanks again though. I’ve learned something new that makes me more efficient and that’s most important.

[Tangier Clarke]

Ahh, no I didn’t know that. I did go into the keyframe editor and start checking out your keyframes, but didn’t go all the way to the sub menu where “repeat” is. Though the repeat process is automated. Is it possible to ease this automated process so that the slot machine stops? It’s simple doing this with changing the Y value of a group, but using this method it’s not clear how I would have the repetitions slow down from 2 seconds forward.

[Tangier Clarke]

Thanks Simon. I am looking at every group and layer, but can’t figure out where and how you are looping this. I see it happening in Group 2 animation keyframes (the repetitions), but don’t see anything in the inspector for any group or layer that eludes to repetition – no behaviors or timing adjustments anywhere.

[Tangier Clarke]

Hello Simon. Perhaps it’s just something I haven’t figured out how to do yet. Just after I wrote the original post it just occurred to me that rather than clone my group of three images 5 or any number of times, I can just replicate the group in a line any number of times. I would still have to scroll the replicator group with the Y value.

How you go about looping the group playback in the way you’re describing?

Thanks.

[Tangier Clarke]

Apple Talk is seems too broad-stroke to me. That could be anything and the forum could get wildy all over the place and before you know it we’re talking about things like Cyberdog and Hypercard to Mac Pro concepts that’ll never see the light of day. If a catch-all forum is the intent, then perhaps the new Apple Talk forum would be a good diversion from some of the other more focused forums as there’s sure to be numerous discussions going on.

How about:
NLE: Apple Versus
Apple Versus

It’s definitely an exercise trying to come up with a name that keeps the ‘debate’ focus while keeping it separate from the FCP X dedicated forum and not being unfocused.

[Tangier Clarke]

Joby, I am glad to hear it had some value. I am backing up all the cards to a RAID we have at the office, but I’ve rewrapped and restriped the Tentacle and/or Ambient box timecode (using LTC convert) of those clips, organized them and synced them (using Sync N Link X and FCP X audio syncing) onto another drive; that being a 10 TB Western digital. We have a clone of that drive. From there I offload episodic events to LaCie rugged thunderbolt drives for myself and another editor and we do our work from there. We then go back to the WD drive just to get a new episode and update the events. Seems to work so far. I am saving many XMLs throughout these stages to insure I have those backups. In the end we’ll likely delete the card originals when the series is done.

[Tangier Clarke]

You know something – you’re right and you taught me valuable lesson. I am so used to using key commands and/or double clicking a synced clip to reveal it’s contents, I didn’t think to use “open” in the clip menu. Additionally, it’s not an option when right-clicking on clip.

However I was really looking for a way to batch do this, but thanks.

[Tangier Clarke]

This helps Jared. Thanks.