Live Color Erase

[SBowie]

OK, here's one I've never seen anywhere, and it knocks people's socks off. As such, it needs a name, so I'm henceforth referring to it as a "b-key".

Using the VT, either 2 or 3, you can perform a Color Eraser function (just like Aura's internal filter) on live incoming footage -- no, not in VT-Edit ... LIVE. You can even leave more than one color against the b&w background. Here's the setup, in text and image form ... you'll readily see I did this in realtime, on live video grabbed off our local cable:

- single video source, coming into the VT by S-Video. This should be footage with a reasonably keyable colour range, i.e., something with a few prominent colors that can be excluded from the key, hence left as colored in the output.

- place this S-Video source on the Preview bus

- place the Component input *from the same source* on the Program bus ... without adding any secondary cabling. I.E., if the S-video source on Preview is at YC1 on the Bob, the Program should simply be set to Component1.

(note: this is why the trick works - the Switcher treats the source on Program as YUV, but it's not - the only part of the signal passing through on Program is Y, providing the b&w display.)

- now, open up and activate the Cross keyer, and in the Preview VT-Vision, 'paint' out the colors you want to appear as b&w. With a little tweaking of the level and smoothing, this can be amazingly clean.

[Paul Lara]

VERY Cool!!

The b-meister scores one from three-point land!!
Very nice.

[JFAns]

Very nice.

Here's a trick to do to impress the audience in a Demo show.
If it helps selling some VTs I will pay you some donouts Steve.;)

Jose Anselmo

[SBowie]

Deal :)

[ted]

Very nice Steve, but I want to know...who's the Girl?;)

[SBowie]

It's all a blur, Ted - sorry. Too much vino ;)

[donlmccoy]

Steve that is a cool trick

Don

[Jim Capillo]

I say we name it BOWIE KEY

:D ;) :p

[donlmccoy]

I am going to try the new BOWIE-Key right now

[SBowie]

Don, I expect to see this trick in Children of Dune II - the Hallmark Edition ;-p

[donlmccoy]

I will use this some how some where !!!


later

[SBowie]

Oh, don't knock yourself out Don, I'm just kidding. This is mostly a 'party trick', good for dropping jaws at demos, and maybe people who are doing live stuff (though that would call for some serious dexterity!)

[Norman]

I was out of town when I read about this effect and finally got to try it yesterday. Slick, very slick. This is where a freeze button on preview would really come in handy. I paused my VTR and played with the keying and if it were possible to freeze the preview, applying the Bowie Key to live video on the main out would be awesome.

What made you even try this Steve? :D

[SBowie]

Oh, I don't know ... I think I was noodling around with the notion, trying to do something simlilar with proc amps when I remembered that you get b&w output on the S-video out if you don't set the Prefs to YC, and then there was this big flash of light and a loud voice said, 'Steve, my son, why do you keep kicking against the nodes..." It's all a blank after that...

Anyhow, why are you wanting to freeze the preview in this context, Norman? Just to make it easier to set up the key? Or have you another thought?

[Norman]

Just to be able to be more accurate with the keying. I used footage of my family walking around Universal Studios in Orlando and trying to key the moving video was a bear. Putting the VTR on pause allowed me to change almost all fleshtones to b/w and have almost everyone's clothes in full color and the people in b/w.

It amazed everyone I showed it to.

[SBowie]

Yeah, it's a cute little jaw dropper :)

Of course, you likely know how to do a quick Freeze, Norman - there are several ways... but if not, there's a 'way to long' thread on it elsewhere - maybe more than one. Just do a quick search

(I'm running out just now, sorry - basically, one route for your purposes is to do a single frame timed capture from a DDR, then place the DDR on Preview temporarily. Pick your key colors, then switch the Preview bus back to your YC input.)

[Norman]

That'll work just fine, thanks, Steve.

[vip3dran]

Steve,

Just gave the "B" key a try and it's very cool. And you're right, it's a great 'party' tool to bring out when doing a demo. Thanx for the coolness!!

[donlmccoy]

BOWIE KEY

great name


Don L. McCoy
-Area51-

[SBowie]

I'm wondering if I should let that great Canadian trait, self-effacement, stand in the way of true celebrity status ... ahhh, what the heck ;)

Please don't push, autographs are very reasonably priced... hey, leggo my shirt!

[donlmccoy]

hey are you going to charge for your autograph

[SBowie]

I'm kind of reminded of a line from the trailer for David Spade's upcoming 'child star' flick: he's trying to interest the girl in taking his autograph and finally offers to write it on a $5 bill ... and she says, maybe if it he gives to her on a $20...

[wvp]

Ok, ok, you twisted my arm!
Send me your autograph on a $20

[donlmccoy]

Hey Steve, I will take your autograph but you must put it on a canadain 100 dollar bill ........:D

[SBowie]

Heheheh - Don, you're starting to sound like Ralph. Y'all knock it off or we'll turn your lights out again ;)

(that ought'a get things goin'...) :-p

[donlmccoy]

I was laughing my you know what off at your last comment
that was a funny one:D