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Sometimes Chroma Keying is referred to
as an art, because getting a seamless composite is less
like a science and more like cooking; you need the right
tools, the right ingredients, some imagination, and a lot
of elbow grease. Traditionally the best way to Chroma Key
is to light the background and the subject separately, this
means that the backdrop gets a relatively even coverage
of lighting, usually fluorescent, because most Chroma Keyers
are susceptible to lighting variations and will give an
uneven key. The talent is then lit to try and simulate the
lighting environment of virtual
sets. This can be difficult if the set is dim because
of the immense amount of light usually required to get an
even key on the background and further exacerbated by the
fact that the more light you put on the background, the
more spill you get onto the talent's head and shoulders.
An Ultimatte
will fix up the spill, but not all keyers have this feature
so special care must be taken when doing traditional Chroma
Key lighting for virtual sets.
Chroma Key Backdrops
Getting a good even color behind the talent
is the first step in Chroma Keying, this usually requires
a Chroma Key backdrop in the form of cloth or paint. Chroma
Key paint can be picked up at hardware stores or lighting
places like Studio Depot (Burbank, Ca), green cloth can
also be found many places. Some companies sell blue or green
pop up Chroma Key backdrops which travel easily and popup
like a windshield shade.
Another alternative is Chromatte, a unique retroreflective material which is gray to the eye, requires little or no light, and casts no spill on the talent because the material is gray to the naked eye. But to the camera it sees it as a perfect blue or green. This is because of the Litering, a ring of LEDs around the lens which casts blue or green light onto the Chromatte material. Chromatte is also very portable in the form of a Chromaflex, a 7x7 popup which folds down into a 3 foot hoop. Chroma Key
Sometimes Chroma Keying is referred to
as an art, because getting a seamless composite is less
like a science and more like cooking; you need the right
tools, the right ingredients, some imagination, and a lot
of elbow grease. Traditionally the best way to chroma key
is to light the background and the subject separately, this
means that the backdrop gets a relatively even coverage
of lighting, usually fluorescent, because most Chroma Keyers
are susceptible to lighting variations and will give an
uneven key. The talent is then lit to try and simulate the
lighting environment of the virtual set. This can be difficult
if the set is dim because of the immense amount of light
usually required to get an even key on the background and
further exacerbated by the fact that the more light you
put on the background, the more spill you get onto the talent's
head and shoulders. An Ultimatte
will fix up the spill, but not all keyers have this feature
so special care must be taken when doing traditional chroma
key lighting for virtual sets.
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