Radial fastblur

[Rolf5E3D]

I have made some radial  fastblur that looks like spotlights comming out from a window.

I have tried to place a image converted to a 3D-layer infront of this, I have holes in the image made by color range key. I can see the colors from the source of the radial fastblur through the holes but I dont see any rays from the radial fastblur comming out through the holes. How do I get the rays comming through? The layers are not separated in space more than that the image is under the source of the fastblur, this is maybe wrong, maybe it should be some distance. I have tried to use axcept light, cast shadows etc. on the image.

Please help me.

[Rick Gerard]

A 3D layer will always be in front of a 2D layer below it or behind a 2D layer above it. If you put your 2D Radial Fast Blur layer above the 3D layer the simulated 3D spotlight will be in front of the 3D layer. You may need to add a track matte to the CC Radial Fast Blur spotlight layer or make that layer 3D and angle it so that it intersects with the 3D layer with the window.

We would need to see an embedded screenshot* of the entire UI with the modified properties of the problem layer revealed (press 'uu' with the layer selected). Here's the 2 3D layer solution:

* The "Drag & Drop here..." area is buggy and should not be used to share images. Please use the toolbar or just drag your images to the reply field.

[Rolf5E3D]

Thanx,

The Lightsource and the image are both 3D-layers, I tried to make some distance between the image and the lightsource but it does not help. As you can see

the green color from the fastblur is visible through the eye of the image infront of the lightsource but I dont se any rays through the eye.

Im am not sure how you mean with the track matte. Here is a screenshot, I press uuu but its a lot of clips now so I hope this is enough.

[Rick Gerard]

The 3D layers in After Effects have no Z depth. For you to get a simulated light beam from CC Radial Fast Blur to appear to be coming through the eyes of your actor, you will have to create a layer that has a couple of dots where the eyes are. I'm assuming from your screenshot (please use the toolbar to embed your screenshots) that the layer with the actor has transparency where the eyes are. 

If that is the case, create a new green solid, name it "eyes" and place the green solid above all other 3D layers. Make a copy of the layer with the actor, Add a background solid below the actor and draw a mask that covers everything but the holes for the eyes, pre-compose and name the pre-comp Actor Matte. Turn off the Actor Matte nested comp. This should give you a comp with transparency only where the actors' eyes and other effects are.

You can then copy the CC Radial Blur effect from the spotlight layer and paste it to the eyes layer.

If the CC Radial Blur effect is animated you can select the effect and then choose Edit/Copy With Property Links (Alt/Option + Ctrl/Cmnd + c) and then paste it to the Eyes layer so anything you do with CC Radial Blur on the spotlight layer will also happen to the effect on the eyes layer. 

On the eyes layer, add Set matte and choose the Actor Matte as the source and then choose Invert Matte. Make sure Set Matte is above CC Radial Fast Blur. 

Now you are done. If the layers are 3D and you have layer interference problems then they should be offset from each other 1 pixel in Z space. Your comp will look something like this:

[Rolf5E3D]

Thanx alot Rick, the actor is really a movie-clip, not an image, does that make things more complicated? The radial fastblur is also animated with key-frames.

[Rolf5E3D]

Also, is it impossible to extrude a image layer to get some z-depth? I think it is, its not easy anyway. I know that you can extrude text if you use the 4DCinema renderer but its a lot of work to make 3D-text otherwise.

[Rolf5E3D]

I can show you this link, I have used the null-object technique before that he is using  in another project and it works fine. If you look at the very end he does have a clip with a window that fastblur is coming through, he does not explain so much what he has done with the clip, This guy is competent, he works with movies like star-wars etc.

[Rolf5E3D]

I can show you my work sofar, its a deepfake with Agneta from Abba and some rays, its not edited at all and in this clip I have not used any color range key on her eys. Just to give you some idea:

[Rick Gerard]

The tutorial is a good one, but it moves kind of fast. If you are trying to get rays to wrap around the rotoscoped actor then you just have a problem with layer order. This is even true if there is transparency in the actor's layer. It looked like you were using some kind of luminance keying on the actors' layer because green was showing through the darkest parts of the footage. 

A screenshot of the flowchart (embedded, not uploaded please) and the timeline with as many layers as you can include would help. If you carefully examine how Arron's project file and you'll see how it is done. You can find the tutorial and the project files at videocopilot.net. I'm pretty sure that you just have a layer order problem.

It would also been very helpful if you had posted a link to the tutorial you were following when you started the thread.

I took a frame from your movie, created a mask to leave only the face and dropped it in the tutorial comp like this with a little curves adjustment.

[Rolf5E3D]

Great Rick, is the fastblur really coming through the gaps in the window in Arrons clip? How does he tell Ae that there is gaps in the window? Sorry for not including the link, when I do that  you folks tell me that youtube is crappy so I avoid it. I will study hes layer order etc. at the copilote  site.

[Rolf5E3D]

I should clarify, I mean holes in the window hatch (sorry I am not native)

[Rick Gerard]

The trick is the curves effect applied to the adjustment layer so that the highlights are expanded and the blacks crushed. Then the Adjustment layer is set to Screen. That is the basic trick to this compositing effect. If you download the project files from the videocopilot site you should be able to see the workflow.  Did you notice the Curves effect I applied to the actors' face layer? It's the same basic idea that is applied to the background to give it more contrast.

[Rolf5E3D]

From what I can see, the image of the actor you have put in Arrons composition is emitting fastblur and is thus affected by the adjustment layer. I think you understand that this is not what I want, I want the image (or rather the clip of the actor) to cast shadow from the fastblur, just like the window hatch is doing in Arrons work. Also, if possible, if I have a matte where the eyes or the mouth is (as I have explained) I want the fastblur to shine through the matte (holes). I have downloaded the copilot file but Ae says I miss the "partikular" plugin so it seems not to be working.

Thank you for your time Rick.

[Rolf5E3D]

I have followed Arrons Comp. and I get a nice shadow from the actors head-clip but the head is black. I have tried to add a ambient light but then the head starts to emitt fastblur. It looks nice but its not what I want. I have tried to duplicate the head-clip and put it on top of the composition and used a ambient light and this works partially, I see her face but there is still comming fastblur from the face from the back somehow. Maybe I could render the  comp with the head black and then add the original head clip on top of this in another comp and render this? That way her face should not be black? Maybe not the easiest way.... In the screenshot her face is the small black triangle

[Rolf5E3D]

I also tried color range key in her eyes and there is no problem to get the rays through, good!

[Rolf5E3D]

Here is a better image you can see the rays through the eyes. I have also tried to first render and then create a new comp and put the original clip on top in the comp and it seems to work, her face is not black anymore.