Quicksand Fans

Before I embark on a wild goose chase of trial and error trying to learn about green screen for amateur video usage, I wanted to ask the experienced producers here how they use this technology. Specifically, what hardware and software do they use? Do they have any "hot tips" they want to share?

Google has loads of hits on the subject but this seems like a good place to tap some people with real knowledge.

First, let me say the process can be tricky. You will need a green screen (which need not actually be green, it can be any color). The color needs to be something that is NOT in any part of the foreground scene (any part of the actress, the set, or clothing. It needs to be well and evenly lit and should be positioned well back from the actress. If it too close, the green reflection may be reflected back onto the actress.

Your camera must be firmly mounted in a fixed position. You cannot do any panning or zooming unless you can somehow EXACTLY match the movement in preparing the background footage. The background footage is what will replace the green.

You will need an editing system that has strong "keying" effects. Adobe Premier is fair for this and I believe but cannot confirm that Adobe's After Effects is stronger.

QuicksandMania wrote:Before I embark on a wild goose chase of trial and error trying to learn about green screen for amateur video usage, I wanted to ask the experienced producers here how they use this technology. Specifically, what hardware and software do they use? Do they have any "hot tips" they want to share?

Google has loads of hits on the subject but this seems like a good place to tap some people with real knowledge.

Thanks, Fred. This is actually an idea I had for a YouTube video blog. I thought about perhaps recording myself with a background relevant to the topic discussed, e.g. a photograph of a stellar background if I had something to say about some new cosmic discovery. I will investigate this further.

Fred588 wrote:First, let me say the process can be tricky. You will need a green screen (which need not actually be green, it can be any color). The color needs to be something that is NOT in any part of the foreground scene (any part of the actress, the set, or clothing. It needs to be well and evenly lit and should be positioned well back from the actress. If it too close, the green reflection may be reflected back onto the actress.

I'll add emphasis to the "evenly lit" part of the quote! Any shadows on the screen will likely disturb the background.

The best way to light it is to use three light sources: Two floods at a 30-40 degree angle from the centre line of the screen and a spot to illuminate the model.

Also, as Fred pointed out, the model should be at least 4-7' (1-2m) from the screen, and not wearing anything that is the same colour (or even close to the same colour) as the screen.

I use Vegas Pro for my video work, and the chroma key feature in it is fairly forgiving. But it's always easier if you start out with a high-quality source file.

This used to be a bit of a hobby of mine. If you are looking for a good resource for files you can practice with, you can find a number of green screen plates here. http://www.hollywoodcamerawork.us/greenscreenplates.html This will give you an idea of what your footage needs to look like, and how well whatever software you use can handle plates of various quality.