The Green Screen Handbook, 2nd Edition

The Green Screen Handbook, 2nd Edition

by Jeff Foster
Released October 2014
Publisher(s): Routledge
ISBN: 9781317673576

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Book description

The Green Screen Handbook, Second Edition is a comprehensive how-to manual that walks you through the many integral techniques required in preproduction, production, and postproduction to use green screen effectively. Step-by-step instruction and time-saving tips cover matting and keying basics; lighting and digital camera essentials; setups using fabric, portable background panels, and paint; broadcast TV hardware switchers; professional HD and major motion picture compositing; multi-colored screen composites; directing storyboards and talent; working with virtual sets; motion tracking; and much more.

Additionally, this new edition has been updated to include:

  • Coverage of the latest digital camera technologies, lighting gear, and compositing and editing software

  • Advice on using apps for portable devices that will help you light and shoot better green screen

  • Examples and case studies of real-world green screen and compositing projects in film and television productions

  • An extensive companion website (www.focalpress.com/cw/foster) featuring downloadadble project files and streaming video tutorials

You can’t afford to miss out! The Green Screen Handbook, Second Edition is a one-stop shop for all of your green screen solutions.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Acknowledgments
  6. About the Author
  7. Foreword
  8. Introduction
  9. Part I Exploring the Matting Process
    1. Chapter 1 Mattes and Compositing Defined
      1. The Road to the Modern-Day Traveling Matte
        1. The Early Days
        2. The Traveling Matte Is Introduced
      2. How the Sodium Vapor Traveling Matte Process Works
      3. How the Modern-Day Blue and Green Screen Traveling Matte Process Works
    2. Chapter 2 Digital Matting Methods and Tools
      1. Why Green vs. Blue Screen?
        1. Real-World Examples
        2. Jonathan Erland at the Academy
      2. Difference Matte vs. Chroma Key
      3. Hardware Matte Compositors and Chroma Keyers
        1. Ultimatte Hardware Compositors
        2. Grass Valley Switchers with Chroma Keyer
        3. NewTek TriCaster 8000
        4. VeeScope LIVE
        5. Reflecmedia LiteRing
      4. Compositing Software and Plug-ins
        1. Video- and Image-Compositing Software with Keyers
        2. Third-Party Keying and Compositing Plug-ins
    3. Chapter 3 Basic Shooting Setups
      1. Basic Setups for Shooting Green Screen
      2. Green Screen and Blue Screen Materials
        1. Painted Walls, Cycs, and Floors
        2. Digital Matte Keying Fabrics and Materials
        3. Reflective Media
    4. Chapter 4 Basic Compositing Techniques
      1. Overview of Matting Compositing Techniques
        1. Software Chroma Keying, Matting and Compositing Process
      2. Overview of Layer Masks, Mattes and Roto-Masking Techniques
        1. Creative Alpha Mattes
        2. Roto-Spline Masking
        3. After Effects Roto Brush
    5. Chapter 5 Simple Setups on a Budget
      1. Shooting Green Screen Outdoors to Save Money
      2. DIY Light Kits on the Cheap
      3. Shooting with Inexpensive Background Materials and the NanoSoftLights
    6. Chapter 6 Green Screens in Live Broadcasts
      1. Visiting a Typical Local TV Newsroom
        1. The Studio’s Green Screen
        2. The Ultimatte Hardware in Action
      2. Live Broadcast with Virtual Sets
    7. Chapter 7 How the Pros Do It
      1. Traveling Back in Time with HBO’s John Adams
      2. Indie Filmmakers Tackle Big Effects
        1. Hydralab’s Marvel in Miniature: Machine
        2. Pendragon Pictures 1800s Version of H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds
        3. Kanen Flowers/That Studio—Hero Punk
        4. Films In Motion Theatrical Release—The Courier
  10. Part II Setting the Scene
    1. Chapter 8 Choosing the Right Matting Process for Your Project
      1. Should I Choose Hardware or Software Matting/Compositing?
      2. What Kind of Shots Do I Need?
        1. Single Interviews and Talking-Head Shots
        2. Action and Full-Body Motion
        3. Creative Shots and Lighting for Effect
    2. Chapter 9 Proper Lighting Techniques
      1. Lighting the Screen and Foreground Subjects
        1. Green Screen on the Go
        2. Studio Lighting
        3. The Importance of Using a Scope
        4. Using Portable Devices to Measure Your Screens
      2. Shooting Green and Blue Screen Outdoors
    3. Chapter 10 Matching Your Subjects to the Background
      1. Creating Simple Composites
        1. Lighting and Camera Angles
      2. Integrating Props with Sets
      3. Tracking and Matchmoving Green Screen Shots
        1. Tracking Handheld Background Footage
        2. Tracking the Green Screen Insert
        3. Using Multiple Backgrounds to Alter the Mood of a Scene
    4. Chapter 11 Digital Cameras and Camcorders
      1. Digital Camcorder Basics
        1. Interlaced vs. Progressive Scan Formats
        2. Image Sensors and Sampling Ratios
        3. The Lens
      2. Scoping Your Camera
    5. Chapter 12 Storyboarding and Directing Your Talent
      1. The Importance of Previsualization and Storyboarding
        1. Haven: A Case-Study Production
        2. Hero Punk: A Case-Study Production
        3. Dead End City: A Case-Study Production
      2. “Pre-Post”: Working as a Team with Postproduction on the Set
      3. That’s Why They Call It “Acting”
    6. Chapter 13 Interacting with the Background and Objects
      1. Shooting with Color-Keyed Props and Furniture
        1. Compositing the Shots with the Virtual Set
        2. Using a Secondary Key Color on Props
      2. Shooting to Retain Wanted Shadows
        1. Shadows on Green Screen
  11. Part III Compositing the Footage
    1. Chapter 14 Getting a Great Matte
      1. Bad Lighting + Poor Production = Dreadful Mattes!
      2. Good Lighting + Solid Production = Great Mattes!
      3. Best Practices in Software Keying and Matte Extraction
    2. Chapter 15 Color Balancing the Subject and Background
      1. Matching Foreground Plate to Background
      2. Processing Both Foreground and Background Plates
      3. Making Adjustments in the RGB Channels
      4. Changing a Scene’s Lighting and Environment
      5. Creating a Classic Movie Effect with Lighting Tricks
      6. Real-World Postproduction: Haven
    3. Chapter 16 Fixing Problem Green Screen Shots
      1. Common Problems with Poor Shots
        1. Poor Lighting Issues
        2. Case Study: Poor Lighting
        3. Shot Too Dark
      2. Fixing Mistakes
        1. Correcting Difficult Spill
        2. Fixing Transparency Issues
        3. Fixing Reflectivity Issues
    4. Chapter 17 Working with Virtual Sets
      1. What Is a Virtual Set?
      2. Using a Basic 3D Virtual Set
        1. Creating or Modifying Your Own 3D Virtual Set
      3. Virtual Sets in Real Time
      4. A Nonvirtual Set for CG Animation
    5. Chapter 18 Motion Tracking and Matchmoving
      1. Motion-Control Hardware
        1. Camera Rig Options
      2. Motion Tracking and Matchmoving Techniques
        1. Simple Panning Motion Track
        2. Handheld Motion Track with Green Screen
        3. Planar Tracker Video Insertion
    6. Chapter 19 Complex Composites
      1. Combining Green Screen Background with Blue Screen Foreground Elements
        1. Multiple-Color Matting Project
      2. Compositing with Particles and Simulated Camera Moves
        1. Step 1: Correcting the Green Screen Plate
        2. Step 2: Matching the Background to the Green Screen Plate
        3. Step 3: Adding the Particle-Generated Snow
      3. A Real-World Production Composite
  12. Appendix A Products and Services Mentioned in This Book
  13. Appendix B About the Companion Website
  14. Index

Product information

  • Title: The Green Screen Handbook, 2nd Edition
  • Author(s): Jeff Foster
  • Release date: October 2014
  • Publisher(s): Routledge
  • ISBN: 9781317673576