Light-saber type effects.
Light Saber effects Light-saber type effects.
Can any one tell me what is the best hardware and software that I can use for overlaying AVI video with normal VCR video?
Also, I wish to create Lightsaber type effects, but surly when I import the video into the computer, change it and out put it back to video tape it will have lost all of the quality and will be all pixelated.
Can you name hardware/software that will let me over lay graphics with out the main scene being distorted.
The "best" hardware and software you can use is way beyond your budget. But if you want something really good, but still within a relatively reasonable consumer range, then i suggest an SGI workstation running Premiere 5.1 with a fast HD and a ton of RAM. Multiprocessing is good too, but it limits you to NT.
The pixelization that you are experiencing is because you do not import your video at a high enough resolution and/or are not building the final copy at a high enough resolution. So, basically, you are not using enough pixels to convey a good video image. You should be working with video at 720x486 if you want a good picture when you export it. 640x480 is ok, but not quite the same.
To do lightsaber type effects, you need to do something called rotoscoping. Rotoscoping used to be painting directly onto film, but now it can be done on the computer. You need a special effects program to do this. I'm not sure, but I think Adobe After Effects will do it. Also, you can use Adobe Photoshop. Just export the file you wish to edit from Premiere as a filmstrip, then import it into Photoshop. Now just do whatever you want and then save the file and import it back into Premiere.
Most reasonable NLEs will let you overlay a graphic file or another piece of video over something else. If you want to use a still image, most will also support the use of an Alpha channel but some tweaking might be required. If you mean quality loss by "distorted", then you really have nothing to worry about while using the system I recommended.
There are also other ways to edit your video that do not need a computer, but I don't know much about those, so you'll have to ask some one else. I hope I've been helpful.
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-Joe D.
Burning Toaster Productions
obviously an SGI workstation is WAY off. Is there anything for the PC that I can use, I have a P2 350, 10gb Hard-disk, so it is not too slow. Is the Matrox Marvel/Rainbow Runner or the iOmega Buz the kind of thing that'll do the job?
Look into the Miro Products!
www.miro.com
The Miro DC 10 is probably ideal, i have it and recommend it..but i get my fair share of problems with it...probably just because i push the limits of it...so if you are going to..perhaps a DC 20 or 30 might be worth it..i'm gonna invest in a DC 30 later in the year!
Then once you have done that i recommend Joe Bloe's page! It has a beauty tutorial on the lightsaber effect using after effects...
http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Birdland/3059/
Shoot indoors, make the lightsabers "Glow" with glow-in-the-dark paint... soft light the set, then hit the lightsabers with black-light spotlights, be sure to fill in the charactors lighting with enough direct light so they don't look purple... then take it into any program and tweak the color levels....
Or... paint them chroma-key color (Blue/Green/Orange) and key in a wierd effect color, but then bounce that color on the charactors/set as you film with a spotlight, it fakes the "Glow" on surrounding objects.
Hope it helps,
Nick
Use Mediapaint by Strata3D they have a demo on thier web site showing it. www.strata3d.com
james
You want a simple - RIDICULOUSLY simple - way to do lightsaber effects? This'll kill you.
Simply light your set, cover the lightsaber sticks with reflective tape (you know, the kind you use so that headlights will reflect off mailboxes and such), and then mount a bright, focused light next to your camera lens, aimed at the lightsabers. The light is immediately amplified and reflected back at the camera, without significant glare on your actors.
George Lucas did something similar when trying effects for "Star Wars - A New Hope" to augment the rotoscoping that was done later.
Let me know if it works for you. Oh, and the tape comes in red or white, with white reflecting the most light.
Good luck!
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