Transparent backgrounds in AVI clips

[Velcro Face]

Using Ulead Cool 3D I've created an animated title card with a black background. I'd like to superimpose the title over picture in Ulead VideoStudio 6. The User Guide suggests making 32-bit alpha channel AVI clips with transparent backgrounds for this purpose. However, I'm at a loss as to how to do this, either with VideoStudio or Cool 3D. I'd appreciate any help or ideas on where to find a tutorial.

--
Michael

[housepig]

take a look in Video Studio and see if you can find any filter or setting that lets you do "chroma key".

That should allow you to select a color in your top layer (your animated title card) and make it transparent, so the second layer (your picture for the background) will show through.

You may want to re-render your title card with a neon green or neon blue background, rather than black, so you don't lose any details from your title card that you want to retain.

[mkelley]

Not to argue with housepig (who gives *excellent* advice) but you can also use a luminance key for this, if you've rendered over black background.

Basically a "key" is something which "keys on" or highlights one particular aspect/color/type of an image, letting the other part of the image go transparent. There are all kinds of keys: chroma meaning color, luminance, being brightness, etc. etc. Look up keying in the software of choice and you'll find all the details.

[housepig]

I bow to superior knowledge!

(of course, if I only had 3 posts to my name, I'd be saying

"NO! NO NO NO NO NO! YOU HAVE TO DO IT MY WAY! Your way is crap! You don't know what your talking about! Your parents never married!!.

by the way, anyone know where I can d/l Matrix 2?")

[version20]

Matrix 2 isnt worth the time it would take to D/L

-v20

[mkelley]

I bow to superior knowledge!

(of course, if I only had 3 posts to my name, I'd be saying

"NO! NO NO NO NO NO! YOU HAVE TO DO IT MY WAY! Your way is crap! You don't know what your talking about! Your parents never married!!.

Hmmm, you aren't by any chance refering to a thread about lost frames, are you?

I dunno, sometimes I kind of think I should just sit by and keep my BIG mouth shut (as my wife often tells me to :>) Ah, but it's good folks like you and others here that make it worthwhile to keep coming back.

[Velcro Face]

VideoStudio 6 doesn't have chroma key. VideoStudio 7 does, but I'm not sure it's worth the upgrade. According to the version 6 User Guide, clips can have a transparent background. It doesn't say how to go about making one, though.

--
Michael

[Velcro Face]

After some experimentation, I've discovered a way to use Cool 3D 3.0 animated titles in VideoStudio 6. In Cool 3D I exported the title as a series of TGA images, setting the background color as transparent. I then imported those images (numbering 60 in all) to the Overlay track in VideoStudio, setting a time value of three frames for each image. To make the title fade in, I gradually decreased the transparency on each of the first nine images. It was a lot of work, but the results are quite dazzling.

--
Michael

[housepig]

Michael -

way to go! when in doubt, improvise!

[terjeber]

OK, there are easier ways to do this... but some upgrades will be required... The first upgrade I would do is on Cool 3D to Cool 3D Studio. Your fade-in would then be done in C3DS, and you would not have to bother with the hazzle of your fade-in.

If you wanted to fade the movie from/to black at the same time, you could use the fade to/from black in Video Studio.

I do not remember whether Video Studio 6 (or 7 for that matter) supports alpha channels in AVIs. If they do, then create a 32bit AVI with alpha channel from C3D, and set the overlay option with transparent alpha channel. Alpha channels are better than chroma/luminance keys.