Compositing

Have you ever played around with Photoshop beyond airbrushing, like adding and taking away image elements, applied color correction, and lens effects to create an otherworldly scene? I didn’t realize this kind of editing is a form of visual effects that is already commonplace in all of today’s movies. I was amazed when I first saw how they used a blue screen to make superman fly, how a Godzilla trampled on a miniaturize Tokyo, and how majestic Hogwarts seems despite its original looking only slightly taller than an average human. I had no idea that compositing brings all these elements together, be it digital images, live video footage, and CGI assets of characters, textures, special effects, environments, and backdrops.

The first experience I had with compositing was in my fundamentals in art class where we took a few different photographs, putting it together seamlessly. I edited the old digital photographs I took during my travels and put it together in the image below.

I was a little anxious in my Compositing Fundamentals class simply because I was unfamiliar with NukeX and the idea of compositing. After our first exercises in class, I was able to successfully get over my anxiety and began enjoying the classwork. The work in this class develops both critical thinking and analysis, troubleshooting, and improves how we see. Because compositing has a lot to do with our visual acuity and analysis, one of the first thing we learn is the process of seeing. If you are an avid photographer, you can appreciate the in-depth exploration of the mechanics of a camera’s inner workings.

NukeX, a node-based application, helps maintain a non-destructive workflow as you go through the compositing process. As each node applies its specific modification in a layering fashion, leaving your original asset intact and unmodified. NukeX builds upon skillset acquired from Photoshop and goes beyond with camera trackers and more seamless integration of stills into live-action footage, even CGI assets, and vice versa.

NukeX’s node editor makes it easy to troubleshoot as it follows the flow of information. Our class instructor likened it to the flow of water. If you enjoy ensuring that your computer files are set up like a logical tree, you will enjoy the structure within NukeX’s node editor shown below.

After Compositing Fundamentals, you proceed to Compositing and Scene Finishing. This is one of the most eye-opening classes I have had in Full Sail. I realize how I began analyzing every movie I watch, both animated features and live-action films. I began noticing areas for improvement and things that I would like to learn how to do. Upon reaching our last week of class, I enjoyed being able to put a scene together that reminded me of a scene in Ironman 2. Click here to see a clip of the scene we worked on in class.

We also learned to use SynthEyes for match moving and compositing in Compositing and Scene Finishing. Personally, I find match-moving in NukeX to be simpler than in SynthEyes. Perhaps, SynthEyes is an area that I still need to vastly improve on, hopefully as I get more familiar with it with increased use.