Category Archives: news
After Effects Roto Brush Tips
This helpful information was discussed recently on the After Effects Mailing List. The roto brush is such a helpful tool but it really pays to understand how it works. Check out these tips to aid in your roto brushing. Thanks to Chris Meyer and Teddy Gage for the advice!
- Roto Brush has to propagate from the Base Frame outward. Placing the initial base frame closer to the middle instead of the start of the clip, and/or creating multiple Base Frames, results in shorter spans that may need to be propagated.
- Once you have Segmentation Boundary you’re happy with, click the Freeze button in the lower right of the Layer Panel to pre-calculate and store the time-consuming propagation.
- Before you start, pick several base frames in your clip, each with defining poses the character holds. Lock in your tolerance and color estimation settings. Never have a span longer than 50-100 frames, it takes forever to propagate if you need to revise those frames. You create new base frames by painting on a frame outside the span range (under the layer frame timeline).
- Avoid revising frames whenever possible. Start work from each of your base frames and work sequentially frame to frame. DO NOT jump around between frames. This completely screws up the propagation.
- Enhance the contrast with a filter (like levels or curves) in the effect stack before doing the roto work. The rotobrush picks up on details better. When you are done, freeze the propagation and turn off the effect for rendering.
- Do not turn on smooth or refine mattes until you have finished and frozen the layers.
- Use absolutely the fewest strokes possible to create each matte. If you make a mistake, don’t paint over it. Undo it instead. Extra strokes mean extra processing and it can screw up the edge detection.
- Start with the largest brush in each frame and work progressively smaller. Let the rotobrush do the work, don’t waste time with small details that could be pulled out by changing your tolerance settings.
Carolina Ace – Shawn Lovette
CAROLINA ACE: A FIGHTER PILOT STORY
For those of you who were at the first CAVEMODE meeting, you will remember Shawn Lovette who spoke about Previs. Shawn is originally from Charlotte and currently working to get this project off the ground. Please look over this press release and click on the link below to the Indiegogo project.
The Preddy Memorial Foundation and Lefty Films has officially launched the on-line fundraiser to raise the remaining funds to produce the powerful epic Documentary Film for Public Television titled ‘CAROLINA ACE: A FIGHTER PILOT STORY’, about the top P-51 Mustang ace of World War II, George Preddy Jr., of the 8th Air Force and 352nd Fighter Group, who was the leading ace in Europe at the time of his death on Christmas Day of 1944.
This film will be broadcast on North Carolina Public Television, and will be reviewed by our contacts at the History Channel and Discovery Channel for international broadcast consideration. All donors will receive gifts for their donations as listed on the campaign website.
Your donation is greatly appreciated! If you cannot donate at this time, we ask that you please forward this to anyone and everyone you can – and especially ask that you include a link on your website and e-newsletters to help get the word out to all large groups and organizations that can help us spread the word. This documentary film honors all veterans, and we hope to reach out to as many people as we can on Veteran’s Day, so they can be a part of this documentary that is designed to tell this powerful story to all future generations, to see and appreciate what the men of the 8th Air Force sacrificed for our freedom. George Preddy Jr. made the ultimate sacrifice on Christmas Day of 1944, when he was accidentally killed by friendly fire while chasing an enemy fighter. This film assures his legacy and everyone he served with will never be forgotten.
Thank you for your gracious support!
Sincerely,
Shawn Lovette, Joe Noah & The Preddy Memorial Foundation
You can embed the link to this fundraiser into your website or e-newsletter by simply pasting the following text (including the brackets) into your webpage html or newsletter. If you have any trouble please e-mail me anytime.
Here is the direct link to the fundraiser: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/271211?a=1720581&i=wdgi
Job Posting – Edit at Joe’s
Job Description
Full time motion designer needed at leading creative studio in Charlotte, NC. Both design and production skills required. Ideal candidate will have 3-5 years experience including commercial and other agency work, but will also consider less experience for the right candidate. Must be able to both give and take creative direction.
How to Apply
No calls accepted, email your reel and resume to joe@editatjoes.com.
from: http://motionographer.com/jobs/jobs/motion-designer-69/