Join Mark Christiansen for an in-depth discussion in this video Choose a keying background for contrast, part of After Effects Compositing: 4 Color Keying.
- Once you've created a good basic Alpha channel…from a color key,…the next step is to refine the matte…to correct for things like color spill,…matte lines, noise in the background,…and holes in the foreground.…Before we get into that process,…I want to just focus on how you even look at your footage…in the (comp) window.…Now, so far we've been working with…the black background that is the default in after effects,…or occasionally against the checkerboard.…
You can see that there is a big difference…between those two.…In this case, the checkerboard is actually hidding…a lot of the things that I can more clearly see…going on against black.…Black in turn hides some things that…would be more apparent with a different background view.…One thing I can do is just change the background color.…Something that's common to do in visual effects…is to use a contrasting background.…That's usually some bright garish color…that, to be honest, you don't want to look at all the time.…
So, you're sort of punishing yourself to do this.…
Author
Mark Christiansen
Released
12/7/2014Beginning with a brief explanation of the keying process, Mark takes you through the steps involved in creating a perfect green-screen key: generating a rough matte, eliminating color spill and matte lines, and refining problematic edges. He shows how to work with Keylight and Primatte—two indispensable keying tools in After Effects—and explains when to use one over the other. And for times when green screen won't work, he shows how to generate high-contrast mattes, or luma keys, based on the luminance data in your footage. Last, learn about compression and how to prep a shot for keying.
- What is color keying?
- Using garbage mattes
- Getting started with Keylight
- Understanding the Screen Color, Clip Black, and Clip White adjustments
- Eliminating spill with Advanced Spill Suppressor
- Using Key Cleaner to refine edges automatically
- Dividing a matte with holdout mattes
- Breaking down a complex color key
- Creating a luma key with Extract
- Setting up sky replacement
- Using Refine Soft Matte to improve edge detail
- Feathering edges with Channel Blur
- Knowing when to avoid green screen
- Prepping a shot for keying
Skill Level Intermediate
Duration
Views
Q: How do I locate the exercise files for chapter 5, 6, and 7 of this course?
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Introduction
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Welcome1m 46s
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Using the exercise files2m 23s
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1. Work with Keylight
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2. Manage Edges and Spill
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3. Divide a Matte for Best Results When Keying
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Add a holdout matte1m 38s
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4. Solve Problematic Edges
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5. Complex Color Keys and Primatte
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6. High-Contrast Mattes (When There Is No Green Screen)
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7. Prep for Success When Color Keying
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Prep a shot for keying3m 4s
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Video: Choose a keying background for contrast