Need help with a little VFX ask

CharlesPapert

CharlesPapert

Director of Photography
I'm currently grading a small project I shot for an upcoming filmmaker a few months ago. I need to remove someone from a static shot. I've never learned any VFX stuff, gave the Magic Mask in Resolve a shot but just couldn't get it clean enough. It's all of 40 frames and I have the clean backplate, just need someone to roto them out. Anyone feel like taking a shot...?
 
No promises, but happy to take a look during the dog hours. Just PM a download link for the clip.

Chris Young
 
Much appreciated, gents. Here is link to the clip and backplate:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/07geborlsl4cyr8/AAAX9-0VedgdbmhMrXqOvSbja?dl=0

The guy to remove is the one on the left side of table, next to the dealer (playing with his chips). I took him and the woman next to him out of the backplate to keep it clean, but she should remain intact in the final version. I found it impossible to get her profile clean because of crossover onto his sweater, so her nose kept warbling.

I'm thinking to keep you guys from doubling up on each other, maybe if you can circle back here with thoughts on whether you can do or not? Feel free to email me with private thoughts (whatever those may be).
 
Clearly us male humans are programmed to spot any nose error on females.

Im struggling not to get a noe wiggle. His shoulder seems to have some nose colour patches on his jacket.

In terms of frame by frame key in resolve it seems that maybe frame 3 and 4 are duplicates.
 
It was my first time using Magic Mask and found it pretty infuriating in instances like this--trying to figure out where and what kind of little line to draw to get a different result (vs some sort of refine tool where you can draw an actual line around the nose and have it track that).
 
markfpv Wow, I think that looks great! Really nice job. Thank you so much!

So now I'm curious, what software did you do it in, and how involved was it to separate her face from his sweater?
 
Thanks Charles. Well, it's not what I'd normally do... but long story short, I just used FCPX and did a mask with key frames... it ended up being not every frame .... but more than I initially expected.
:D
 
I'm sure it would be about the same in Resolve. And it likely was user error - but when I initially stacked the plate below the footage - they didn't align at all... or maybe it was an aspect ratio thing... but I had to eyeball it to align...and then I did add a slight tweak of adjustment (I think just mids & highs on exposure) to the plate to better match the footage when they were combined.

If it bothers you or your friend, I think I could finesse the feathering / fall off on that mask - to make it a little less noticeable...just didn't want to spend the time last night if it wasn't necessary. I spent about an hour messing with what you have.
 
Oh right, I totally forgot that I built the plate off the camera original and the actual clip had been blown up--I had done that manual alignment myself when I tried the comp but subsequently forgot all of this. Sorry to give you extra work! I don't remember having to make adjustments to the levels though. But my apologies, I could have saved you that time if I had re-exported the backplate after matching the sizes.

Definitely no more work needed on that mask. The viewer's eyeballs simply aren't going there in a shot that short, you have to be staring right at it and even then it's hard to detect. Especially with the look applied which is pretty dark. I dropped it into the timeline and added appropriate grade and it really works perfeclty. Thank you again for making it happen!
 
Got a chance to have a look today. Could still be improved given time. Couldn't use the backplate. It didn't have 100% line up once resized. Looked almost like the original clip had lens comp and the backplate didn't as its Z axis when centered was out the further you got from the center of the image. So used sibling roto cloning to get there.

Chris Young

https://drive.google.com/file/d/17zz...ew?usp=sharing


Sample image
Sample Roto_1.1.1.jpg - Click image for larger version Name: Sample Roto_1.1.1.jpg Views: 0 Size: 41.7 KB ID: 5703740
 
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CP yep I was working in resolve and could not get the keyframes to match the actual frames .. hense me suggesting a dropped frame.

I worry resolve is play some sh it to make playback good.. but actually meaning that it is for ever broken.
 
morgan_moore said:
CP yep I was working in resolve and could not get the keyframes to match the actual frames .. hense me suggesting a dropped frame.

I worry resolve is play some sh it to make playback good.. but actually meaning that it is for ever broken.
Click to expand...

"FCP is better than Resolve..."

edd03c1979602d3b879317dcbda2fbb5.jpg
 
Chris, thank you for doing it although I don't have access privileges for that download (can you add charlespapert@gmail.com). I'm confused about the backplate--I pulled it off the camera original, I should have used the clip itself from that same original but I took it out of the edit which has already gone through a couple of editor's hands, so I wonder what tomfoolery has been done to it (it did have a partial log correction baked in for some reason).

In any event, thanks again although I could have saved you the bother as Mark had already done it as seen above!
 
CharlesPapert said:
In any event, thanks again although I could have saved you the bother as Mark had already done it as seen above!
Click to expand...

Share mail sent mate. Yes, I had already done it and uploaded it before I realized Mark had done the good deed. Not a problem. It was done in the dog hours.

Chris Young
 
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