Product Description

Digital Compositing for Film and Video is a hands-on, how-to guide that addresses the problems and difficult choices faced by the professional compositor in real-life situations. This book presents you with tips, tricks and techniques for dealing with the badly shot elements, color artifacts, and mismatched lighting that bedevil compositors. Included in this book is: in-depth, practical methods for bluescreen matte extraction, despill operations, compositing operations, and color correction-the "meat and potatoes" of all digital effects. Written in a completely software independent style, it is totally applicable to any brand of compositing software.

The second edition contains many important additions:
* printed in full color with over 400 color photos and illustrations
* companion DVD with 3.7 gigabytes of test images, including hard to get HiDef video and feature film scans
* new section on working with HiDef video
* new section on digital intermediate, the feature film finishing process of today
* more Adobe Photoshop blending modes and procedures
* new material that reveals the add-mix composite, light wrap, slot gags, and how to defeat banding problems

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #88688 in Books
• Published on: 2006-05-16
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 472 pages

Review
"From start to finish, Digital Compositing for Film and Video gives you the much needed knowledge to be competitive in the business...If it's a process involved in compositing it is in this masterpiece of a book." - Filmmaking Central

"In Digital Compositing for Film and Video, his 400-page-plus bible for all things compositing, Wright painstakingly describes every step of pulling mattes, tracking pixels, correcting green-screen pill, working with film and video-you name it." -Ben Rock, Back Stage, Sept. 2006

"Anyone whose business it is to know how to do compositing, motion graphics, green - or blue-screen work, or even high-end titles must have this book in his or her collection."-Ben Rock, Back Stage, Sept. 2006

"Whilst some areas are specifically aimed at specialist compositors, it is nonetheless a very good book to have many areas of technical knowledge explained in a colourful and practical way. A vital book in the current technological age we now live and work in." British Cinematographer, Sept. 06

About the Author
Steve Wright is a visual effects compositing veteran with 70 broadcast television commercials and over 60 feature films credits. He's developed video games at Atari, done 3D animations for Robert Abel and Associates, and was senior compositor and 2D technical director at Kodak's Cinesite. Steve is now a freelance, digital-compositing guru, who teaches, trains, writes, and develops on-line training programs.

Customer Reviews

Good Resource
Well written and good reference for technique, however a key tool the author uses throughout the book is not common in all applications and does not take 3d color space into account. Also check out The Art and Science of Digital Compositing, more expensive but a bit clearer in it's approach.
Not for the beginner, but for anyone with basic compositing knowledge ready to move past pro-sumer applications.

A must have for your VFX library
If you're new to the effect industry or a seasoned pro this is still the bible for understanding what is happening under the hood of a compositing software. This is not software specific, but be it 'Shake' or 'an other' this will help you truly understand the what, when and why.

This book together with - Ron Brinkman's 'The Art and Science of Digital Compositing' - also available at Amazon, will hold you in good stead throughout your career.

It truly gives you the 'wow' factor.

An Essential Guide and not just for compositors
If you've ever been on set and heard the catchphrase "fix it in post" this book is for you.

Not only is the information detailed and thorough, but also extremely readable. Some ironic asides demonstrate Wright has the experience to back up his text. He covers all levels of compositing, from basic luminance keying to green-screen/blue-screen, to color corection and matching foreground and background elements, motion tracking, alpha-channels (to premultiply or not premultiply) and the differences between film and video.

The book is not software specific, and the enclosed exercises and demonstrations can be done on most software with compositing features -- including Photoshop!

Why four stars and not five? The extra money demanded for addional exercises seems to be an unfair gouge. But the book is definitely worth the cover price! Even if you have no immediate aspirations at all to composite something, you'll at least see just how tough it can be.

Producers, Directors and Camera departments (aspiring or experienced) can all learn something here -- and with any luck they'll learn it before they light their next green/blue screen.

Too bad the cover is so damn ugly.