Lightsabers against a white backround? NO PROBLEM!!!

Forgive me if someone has already thought of this. And since geocities loves screwing me over with direct links, here they are, just scroll down.
[image=http://www.geocities.com/thebass26/sabertutorial.jpg]
This is the saber tutorial version of Ryan "Ryan_W" Weiber. In my opinion, it is the best tutorial you can find, but it has one problem. Against a white background, the glow almost completely disappears!!!

[image=http://www.geocities.com/thebass26/sabermyway.jpg]
My new version solves that problem. And it is quite simple. This was done in After Effects. All you do is rotoscope the rod normally with a white solid, and duplicate it once. Click once on the second Solid 1, and go to Layer/Solid Settings.../and then change the colour from white to red, blue, green, etc...

Then just blur the coloured solid accordingly. The only flaw is that you cannot adjust the midtones, highlights, and shadows.

I do agree that Ryan's method is more realistic in terms of actual glowing in real life, but the point of making lightsabers is to get them as close as possible to the movies.

I hope this helps for anyone having trouble making lightsabers against snow.

 

i cant see those images

 

Hmm...I don't like it when you can't adjust the exact color, but I probably wouldn't run into this situation....

EDIT: Drag and drop, winterchili, drag and drop.

 

Ehh... I'm not fond of those glows. Good job figuring out a way around that problem... but the glow should never be darker than the BG.... or something like that. It looks added in (fake).


-Mac

 

MacGyver, I definately agree with you, and I am still trying to figure out how I could lighten up that glow. I will keep in touch once I do.

 

Bear in mind that a lightsaber is SUPPOSED to disappear against a white backdrop. You can see it quite clearly in TPM, for one, and probably in nearly all of the OT. Doing it that way using the Normal transfer mode just looks way too fake and painted-on.

 

I tend to agree. Blurring colored solids is not the greatest.

Okay first I must say I think one should always be able to pick their filming settings to avoid overly bright backgrounds and not have to go with an "unrealistic" lightsaber effect. Sabers are meant to lighten only, and having them darken really never looks too good (as people seem to be responding in this thread) and I have never and will never "cheat" to have sabers darken their backgrounds. But here's a way I've thought should work to achieve visible sabers over both light and dark backgrounds, though at the cost of looking "right".

So in other words, here's what I'd do (even though I wouldn't ever do this... ever)

1. In your final comp, bring in (nest) your saber comp (the comp with your finished saber in it, done the normal way as explained in my method) into the composition and set it's transfer mode to Screen.

2. Duplicate it.

3. Select the lower of the two duplicates and Invert it (Effect > Channel > Invert) and then it's transfer mode to Multiply.

4. Color balance both layers how you normally would for the color you want.

This tends to make for "flatter" looking sabers that don't really look "bright" but as far as I've thought about it, produces the best results that can be seen over light and dark backgrounds.

Once again, make all efforts NOT to have to use this.

EDIT: Seriously, in almost any case at all, simply darkening your footage a little bit will solve the prolmen of "invisible sabers". Make sure you try that.

 

Really, I just did this for the heck of it. I just thought I would try and help out anyone who is having trouble with a white background. Also here is the version done through the tip given by Ryan.

[image=http://www.geocities.com/thebass26/sabernewway.jpg]

As you can see, it is much better than I could have done. Thanks Ryan.

If you see a broken icon, then just go to the website, and scroll down all the way to the bottom.

 

The first saber on that page looks the best.

Unfortunately that's the example of what you're trying to avoid.

M. Scott

 

I found my own way around it that looks a little better (at least I think so) but I only worked it out in Photoshop so I dunno how much of a help it would be to you AE guys. I came up with it because I wanted to do some duels in a desert setting, which I've still yet to do. It has a few extra steps to it but nothing that you couldn't just put into an action. Ryan is right, tho. A lightsaber really WOULDN'T show up against a bright background but then again this stuff isn't too realistic to begin with.

I started to write a tutorial on my method, mostly for some friends but never finished it. If anyone's interested (or really cares) I can post some examples and tell you how I did it. I don't know how well it would port over to AE tho.

 

A lightsaber really WOULDN'T show up against a bright background but then again this stuff isn't too realistic to begin with.

This is the kind of comment that drives me up the wall about VFX. And it's nothing against Various, he's just the latest one to say it.

While it is true that none of this is particularly realistic, it is our job as effects artists to MAKE it appear realistic. Though lightsabers do NOT exist, it is our job to make them SEEM to exist, and to be present on set during the fight.

An audience may not have an educated knowledge of physics or light properties, but everyone in that audience has an innate understanding of what real life looks like, because they see it all the time. An object that is supposed to be bright will not be visible against a bright background. The light will all mush together. Is that a scientific explanation? Not really. But it's what happens in so many words, and they know it.

Also, I think most of you seem overly concerned with your lightsabers being seen. The idea of an effect is for it to blend into the rest of the frame, not to stand out. The best effect is the one you DON'T see.

M. Scott

 

really, try not to have a white background, but if you cant get away from an overexposed sky, I think the best thing to do is bite the bullet and shoot it darker (higher F stop), or darken it in post, either changing brightness on the whole image, or using animated masks to rotoscope the sky (or bright object) then darken it, and you wouldnt have to darken it a lot, just so you can see the hint of the white saber in there. Also if you dont feel like rotoscoping the sky or its extremely difficult, you can copy the layer and do a luma key or something that keeps just the sky, then darken it (and whatever else you have to do to make it mesh with the original image).

just some ideas.