like a dark cloud over my head...

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 10:08 pm

Hello

Im wanting a nice white fluffy cloud effect..what the heck..just a white cloud will do...inserted into this little cloud that drifts across the screen i want to play a clip.

Now im not looking for anything professional here...if anything..the rougher it looks the better so to speak. But i would like a video clip to be placed with a nice white cloud.

The backdrop, VS10+, is blue with the cloud effect that videostudio comes with. So wanting this little cloud on top of that...any thoughts? I have tried using mask..or copy n paste from google pics a cloud..chromakeyed kinda effect but really i would like the cloud to look like a cloud nice n white...almost kid-like..it is for my daughters 2nd video afterall.

Any thoughts on how i can do this?

sjj1805 · Post by **sjj1805** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 12:05 am

I did ask members to share any suitable material some 15 months ago
Members Shared Material.

Best I can suggest is to check
Free Stuff for use with Ulead Products
ThirdParty Commercial Software for Intervideo-Ulead products
failing that
Google

EDIT:
Found one on my computer amongst the zillion or so clipart files I seem to have accumulated.
Click here to download

Trevor Andrew · Post by **Trevor Andrew** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 11:11 am

Hi

Have a go at shooting your own cloud, a nice blue sky would help when using the chroma key to make it transparent

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 2:55 pm

Thanks - as usual - SJ and Trevor..is there really no-one else who answers questions on here!

Ok, so its not the most exciting of questions i admit.

Well, i logged in and tried your cloud...the problem is..the background is white as well...what im after is a cloud - same as what you had there - to to remain white once on my blue background and then place into that white cloud a clip.

I cant chromakey the clip though...say for example...my daugher in a carseat...i want to appear in this cloud...at the start of my video ( not as bad as it sounds honest! ).

Any other thoughts.

yes, thought about filming real clouds..but i live up north in england..hence..at the moment at least...dark skies.

Clevo · Post by **Clevo** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 2:59 pm

With that cloud image open it up in a picture editor and use the "fill" option to change the area outside the cloud to something like pink or green or purple...anything except white or grey.

You can then choose to that colour as the chroma key colour in VS.

While you have the picture editor open you might as well draw a few more of your own clouds.

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 3:08 pm

Clevo - thanks too for the reply.

I have done as suggested, and used SJ cloud...with a differnt backdrop.

The problem i have is...now i have my nice white cloud onto the blue background. I need to place inside that white cloud a video clip.

I dont want perfect results..and not even interested if the cloud moves...although would be nice..and i know at this stage easy to do....but its this...getting a moving image inside the already chromakeyed cloud.

Any thoughts?

Have placed a clip inside but of course having to chromakey that makes the image look almost inverted if you know what i mean. Another way of getting an image onto that white cloud?

neonbob · Post by **neonbob** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 5:28 pm

Have a look at a program called PARTICLE ILLUSIONS.

I don't use Videostudio so I don't know if it's capable of importing alpha channels (that's a video with a transparent back ground so you can composte or blend it in with your original video)

With PI you can create clouds, animations, explosions, smoke, fire and about a million other things then import as an alpha channel to blend in with your video. It's a great program and it's not that expensive.

http://www.wondertouch.com/

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 6:28 pm

Bob...thanks for the looksee.

Impressive, i download the trial, however cannot get it to load into VS...format mismatch etc

Unless others know a way around?

Been playing around with it, cant seem to save a moving image though...however, at the moment irrelevant as, as i say, cant load it into VS anyway.

any thoughts?

Trevor Andrew · Post by **Trevor Andrew** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:20 pm

lakewud wrote: yes, thought about filming real clouds..but i live up north in england..hence..at the moment at least...dark skies.

sorry about the weather, its been nice down hear today. Send me an e-mail, if the weather is good tomorrow i will send you some clouds.

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 9:50 pm

Ha thanks trevor for the offer..im sure your serious too.

Wanted a more cartoony effect anyway.

So, i take it then once i have my superimposed cloud..no way of placing a video clip on top of that then?

As for that Particleillusion download...wow...impressive..at first any rate..nice little explosions..and yes, managed to save it in a format so allows me to bring into VS.

30 day trial..better get cracking.

Shame no cloud effect though..there is a mouse thou.

Black Lab · Post by **Black Lab** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 10:23 pm

Impressive, i download the trial, however cannot get it to load into VS...format mismatch etc

Save it as an uncompressed AVI. VS has no trouble dealing with them, even with an alpha channel.

lakewud · Post by **lakewud** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 10:54 pm

Still playing around with the program...impressive stuff.

So..whats the benefit of the alpha channel thang?

I can bring them into VS with / without that. Please tell me.

That aside..next question. I see on that program, theres LOGO's...loadsa fancy looking effect spiriling towards you etc....now how do i change the wording....from LOGO..to my own wording?

neonbob · Post by **neonbob** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 11:37 pm

Alpha channel allows you to import your work with a transparent back ground so that you can overlay it onto your video.

If you don't use alpha channel then when you import and overlay it onto your video, the black background of your imported work would overlay on top of your video and block it out completely.

And BTW... if there is no cloud there, you can easily make one. In fact you can take any emitter they have and completely change it if you wish. You can import you photos to PI and have them explode or catch fire....etc.

Play with it a little and you'll soon figure out how to customize and create your own emitters... You can even import that cloud picture above and have it move around... expand... contract.... change shape....explode....implode... whatever. it's quite easy after you get the hang of it.

neonbob · Post by **neonbob** » Sat Feb 21, 2009 11:43 pm

lakewud wrote: That aside..next question. I see on that program, theres LOGO's...loadsa fancy looking effect spiriling towards you etc....now how do i change the wording....from LOGO..to my own wording?

Again that's pretty easy too. I think there is even a quick video on the website that shows you how. But as soon as you work out how to import your photos then it's all a piece of cake. Import your logo/word/title as a jpg and PI will split it up and treat it like particles to explode or move or what ever you want.

And BTW... there are literally hundreds of emitters and variations for free download. Just go to emitter libraries on the website.

sjj1805 · Post by **sjj1805** » Sun Feb 22, 2009 1:35 am

What you need to do is to use two overlay tracks not one.
Dependant upon how you want the video to appear inside the cloud - perhaps an oblong or circular shape - cut an area out inside the cloud and colour it the same as the area outside the cloud that you will later chroma key out. (As per the earlier suggestion by Clevo.)

Now do the following:
Video Track - your background with the sky.
Overlay track 1 - the video of your daughter (This appears on top of the sky)
Overlay track 2 - the cloud. This masks the edges of the video on overlay track 1 making it appear to be inside the cloud.

I quickly put this together to demonstrate. Obviously you would need to toy about with it a bit.

Alternatively:

Place the clip of your daughter on to of the cloud like this:

Going further still:
Chroma key the first overlay track and then
Add a mask frame to the second overlay track!