Paint effect to create an alpha channel

Can one use the paint effect in Motion 3 to create an alpha channel. I want to be able to create a matte around someones eye. I wanted to be able to create my key by painting it on. Will paint effect do this or do I need to use shake. Or is there another way of achieving this with Motion 3.

This is really easy to do and there might be an even easier way, but this i how I did it:-
1) Create a group with your image you want to mask
2) Add an image mask to your image and toggle to invert mask and stencil off
3) Create another group but turn the visibilty off
4) drop this group into the image mask
5) Within this group, select the paint stroke tool basic solid and paint away!
Be careful you don't have the write on enabled as the mask will draw on, but maybe thats what you want!
Peter
MacPro 3G 6G RAM FCP6 M3 FxF1.06 Mac OS X (10.4.9) XSR Decklink & loads of cool new plugins, Gaggia TD auto

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Creating an alpha channel in an odd way ?

My question is about the functionality of After Effects. I highly doubt it's possible but would like to run it through people who would know. My question may not be clear as I'm not sure how to describe it!
I'm wondering if I can create an alpha channel using the still background of a shot, as an alternative to green screens and making it easier outdoors without needing crazy lights.
Here's an example. Say you film yourself using a tripod (so the background is still) walking away from a building and want to add an explosion behind you without masking every frame, would you be able to have it recognize the background using a picture without you in it or a still that has the same lighting, and using that to automatically have it differentiate that background from you thus creating an alpha channel or an automatic mask...
Thanks

For a Difference Matte to work absolutely nothing can be moving in the scene. Difference Matte will not work with compressed original footage. I know I've tried many times. If the wind is blowing in the grass or the trees are moving the Difference Matte will not work.
if you are planning this kind of shot then the best thing to do is try to find some good areas of contrast in the shot so you can create a procedural matte. A little garbage matte and a procedural matte created by adjusting levels or color or hue can create a much better matte and does not rely on the pixels being exactly the same on every frame.
Even easier is a carefully planned shot and Roto brush.

How do i create an alpha channel to place into edge animate?

HowHow do i create an alpha channel compatible with edge animate?

I don't use Edge, but since it is a web tool it stands to reason it would use standard web techniques, meaning it would rely on built-in transparency functions of formats like PNG and GIF, which you can easily produce by using Save for Web after creating normal transparency on a layer in Photoshop. No extra Alpha channel or otehr extra steps required. Perhaps Edge even has some stuff that does the conversion on the fly by allowing you to open a native PSD like in Dreamweaver, but beyond that I don't see what else it could/ would do - all the features it can provide are limited by standard specifications for HTML, CSS and JavaScript. There is simply no way to do something sensible with a TIFF in a browser, if you get my meaning .
Mylenium

Can Photoshop Element 12 create new alpha channels?

Can Photoshop Element 12 create new alpha channels? I wanted to create one to help with blurring the background and I saw the step by step on line, but I can't find where the channel panel is? I have a PC

There is no channel panel in Elements. You could add some paths and channel features with third party add-ons like Elements+, but the real solution is to use a tutorial for Elements, not for Photoshop. There are always several ways to achieve something in Elements or Photoshop. Using alpha channels is only one way to help with blurring the background.

Using the difference between two shots to create an alpha channel

If I were to lock my camera down and first film a shot of a non-moving background (say, my living room), then take another shot of someone walking into the room and sitting on a sofa, could I use the difference between the two shots (the person walking and sitting) to create an alpha channel?
What settings in Motion would I use to get this?

If you really want to do it within Motion, try stacking the clean frame and the the frame with the moving person over each other. Then set the blend mode to Difference for the top clip. You can clean this up a bit with a blur and a threshold filter, but Difference mattes are often a bit iffy.
If anything the person is wearing matches the background, for instance, that will be transparent.
After you've created a black/white representation of the "difference", you can add your person clip again to a new group, ⌘-shift-m to add a mask, then drag your difference group into it and set the source to luminance...
make sense?
Patrick

Trying to Keep an Alpha Channel From After Effects to Final Cut Pro

I've created a nice little transition in After Effects that uses an alpha channel. When I export it from AE I save it as a Quicktime movie with RGB + Alpha.
When I drop it on the timeline, though, in Final Cut the bar above it turns orange and therefore it plays very jerky. It makes it hard to tell if the transition is looking like it should without exporting first.
I tried converting to ProRes, but then the alpha channel is lost and so the transition is useless.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to get my very short transition clip to play correctly on the timeline without losing the alpha channel. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Ray

You need to render it in the sequence. CMD R.
You're working in +Unlimited RT+, so the orange bar means that it is unrendered and FCP will try to play it back as well as possible, given your hardware specs.
When you render it, it will take on the compression codec of your +Sequence Settings+, and play in real time.
Have a look at the manual for understanding Sequence Settings, Unlimited RT vs. Safe RT, and Rendering.
BTW, unless you rendered your transition from AE with a Straight alpha channel, as opposed to a Premultiplied one, the edges of the graphic will look wrong.

Creating alpha channels

Say I've got a shot of still image.
It's a white spaceship against a black background.
The clip has no alpha and is a photo still rendered as a dv clip.
Can I somehow make it so the black part of the shot becomes transparent, leaving the white spaceship, so that a layer underneath shows in place of the black part of the shot?
I'm not clear if it's possible in fcp to create an alpha channel on a clip that didn't have one.
Thanks!

one thing you can do is use the chroma key filter and key out the black bg. That will get rid of it. If the whole point is to use the clip out of final cut (in shake, after effects, etc.) and you need an alpha layer, you have to export the clip. put it on it's own timeline and export using quicktime conversion. Choose quicktime, then in the options, select 'animation' as the compression type. Under the compression menu, choose milions of colors +.
export that and you will retain the alpha layer that you keyed out.
good luck.

How to create Alpha Channel automatically?

I have a folder containing about 100 TIFF files, each containing an intricate shape against a transparent background.
I need to create an Alpha Channel in each one which replicates the transparent background.
Is there a way to do this "automatically" with Photoshop 7.0.1 (the only version I have access to) under MacOS X 10.4.11?

Record into an action and batch: select layer transparency, save selection as alpha channel. Watch your matting though, as it sounds like these files will be flattened and any feathering in the alpha channel will leads to a fringe of [white? black?]. You could tuck in the alpha channel mask a bit before you save. It depends on the final usage...

Minumum sufficient commands to create PSD containing transparent alpha channel

I was recently typesetting some leaflets in InDesign under time pressure. I had a JPG file with a white background and wanted to create a PSD from it in Photoshop CS5 with an alpha channel making the background transparent.
I managed this in the end by blundering around, but the help file is no help, and the obvious way of creating a layer mask doesn't work.
I'd like to know the minimum sufficient command sequence to do it.
Suppose we've got this in Photoshop, with the bit we want already selected:
Double clicking the background layer and then clicking ADD LAYER MASK looks good, but it doesn't create an alpha channel. It actually creates a channel named "Layer 0 mask" but if you save it in a PSD and then import into InDesign it is not transparent.
There doesn't seem to be a "convert layer mask to alpha channel" command. Nor a "make alpha channel from selection" command.
There is a button at the bottom of the CHANNELS tab that's named "create new channel" and if you click it when a selection is active it does create a new layer named "Alpha 1", but unfortunately it is not the wanted mask but rather just the path of the marching ants.

Yes, this does work. Don't know why it didn't for me yesterday.
There's no need to delete the background because in my example, after unlocking the padlock and adding layer mask, there's only one layer there. It does create, as I said above, an additional channel named "Layer 0 mask" which is what one would want as an alpha channel.
If I SAVE AS PSD, the box to include LAYERS is ticked and the box to include ALPHA CHANNEL is greyed out, but InDesign still treats it as transparent.
If I take the selection and SAVE SELECTION AS NEW CHANNEL, it creates a second channel looking exactly like the "Layer 0 mask" one above, but if I then SAVE AS PSD the box to include ALPHA CHANNEL is ticked. So the channel created by ADD LAYER MASK is of a different ilk than the one created by SAVE SELECTION AS NEW CHANNEL, although this is not apparent from the CHANNELS tab. Slightly confusing.

Printing swf error (no alpha channel?)

Hi,
I don't know if this has been covered before but I have tried the following:
Printing to PDF via the print menu from the swf
and
Printing to paper via the print menu from the swf
In both cases, the images that are on screen are PNGs created as a PNG sequence from After Effects. They contain alpha channels and the background of the swf is non-white. However the bounding box of the image gets printed as white, so I have a sequence of overlapping white regions, some of which occlude the image beneath. With alpha channels on the monitor, this is not apparent, but when on paper or in PDF format the occlusion is clear. I don't mind the white background; however I cannot deal with the occlusion. How can I solve this?
Sincerely,
-markerline

Eureka!! That works better than a vacuum cleaner. Only problem is I was using the AS3 reference and some of the PrintJob examples that were listed threw errors so I had to use the final example:
package
    import flash.printing.PrintJob;
    import flash.display.Sprite;
    public class BasicPrintExample extends Sprite
        var myPrintJob:PrintJob = new PrintJob();
        var mySprite:Sprite = new Sprite();
        mySprite.graphics.beginFill(0x336699);
    mySprite.graphics.drawCircle(100, 100, 50);
        public function BasicPrintExample()
            if (myPrintJob.start()) {
            try {
                myPrintJob.addPage(mySprite);
            catch(e:Error) {
                // handle error
            myPrintJob.send();
I did away with the package and the class and just called the function as a mouse event for a print-button. I'm not sure why the if(myPrintJob.start()) call works because nowhere am I declaring the print job to start. I guess that's something that happens automatically?

The odd tale of Quickmask and the alpha channel

I'm posting this in hope rather than expectation - as I keep requesting this is fixed, but I seem to be a lone voice.
I understand that this code was written back in the 90's - and I get the impression (from a senior Photoshop engineer no less) that no one really understands it...
The odd tale of Quickmask and the alpha channel
Try this:
With Quickmask set to it's defaults (double click the quickmask icon and ensure it's set to 'colour indicates : masked areas'), paint in black to create a 'red' quickmask area. Hit Q to return to the selection border. You should see two selection borders - one at the edge of the image defining the outer edge of the selected area, and one defining the inner edge of the masked area that you painted.
Now hit the 'save selection as channel' button at the bottom of the channel palette to create an alpha channel.Everything's as expected - the alpha is black ('unselected') where you painted.
Now repeat the process, but with the Quickmask mode set to 'colour indicates : selected areas'.
In this case where you paint in QM mode should be selected. Paint a patch and hit the Q key - it is. You have a single selected area. Now hit the 'save selection as channel' button at the bottom of the channel palette to create another alpha channel.
This time the alpha is incorrect - it's the inverse of what it should be.
And it gets worse:
Ctrl / Cmd click on the alpha thumbnail to load the alpha as a selection -
notice that it even loads the black area as a selection.
It's been like this as long as I can remember... and I really wish it was fixed.
I'm a Photoshop ACI. QM is a tool I'd like to get my students to use more, but this behaviour makes it 'difficult' to teach Quickmask to users, particularly in conjunction with alpha channels. In my experience it seems that most users find it more natural to 'paint on' a selection, rather than than 'paint off' a mask.
So most users would prefer to set 'colour indicates : selected areas'
I've been around long enough to know the rubylith heritage upon which Quickmask is modelled, however I now think it's time that baggage was left behind. I wonder what proportion of current Photoshop users even know what rubylith was?
There are two points here:
1. There should be NO connection between the QM paint state and the subsequent creation (or loading) of an alpha channel.
Whether you choose to label it a feature or a bug, it's clearly wrong to toggle out of QM mode, see a selection on screen, make an alpha channel - and find your alpha is reversed.
And in addition to that - it's a 'freak' alpha that subsequently loads reversed...
2. I think it's time to drop the rubylith baggage and set the QM paint mode to a default of set 'colour indicates : selected areas'.

Charles,
Thanks to your replies I've now discovered another twist to this tale...
When I'm saving a selection, I typically use the 'save selection as alpha' button in the channels panel. That shows the issue I'm referring to.
However, I've just discovered - thanks to your comments - that if instead you use the 'Select > Save selection' menu command you get a 'correct' alpha.
If you care to try that second example again you'll find you can get two different alpha's from the same selection - depending upon which saving option you choose!
This is now getting so complex, I'll have to put a pdf together explaining it and send it to our fiends at Adobe.

How do I prevent the image from shearing when I have an alpha channel?

I'm using After Effects to prepare some videos for the web. They are running at 320x240. The settings are Flv/F4v, Millions of colors, 15 FPS, RGB and Alpha, 44K/16bit Mpeg III audio, CBR 1 pass with a bit rate of 872, On2VP6 encoding.
I create the alpha channel from a greenscreen behind the actor using standard keylight and garbage mattes.
When I do not encode an alpha channel, the image is fine. My problem is that when I try to encode the alpha channel, the image shears to the left from bottom to top, and the whole image is transposed about 40% to the left. But we need the alpha channel.
This is what the shearing looks like. Any ideas on what is happening and how to prevent it? Thank you.

To check the clip, I made a small swf file the same dimensions and frame rate, 320x240 @15fps. It's a single frame, single layer with no skin. It just plays the flv file when you open up the swf. The flv file is external, so to test the results, I just keep rendering in AE to the same flv file name.
The first two seconds play okay. The shearing doesn't begin till after that. So I'm suspecting there is something strange with the keyframes. I even tried messing with the keyframe distance settings at 30 and 15, without effect.
The original video is an 854x480 mov file playing at 14.99 fps, millions of colors, Sorenson 3 coding. When I bring it into the comp, which is set at 320x240 @15 fps, I scale the movie to 50% in size. At your suggestion, I just tried making sure that all the frame rates are 14.99 instead of 15. Sadly, without any benefit. I'm still baffled.

Saving transparent tga files without making alpha channel

I've been using Photoshop 7.0 for awhile now. I haven't upgraded to any other version yet because the original 7.0 actually has a certain bug in it that has been very useful.
The bug has something to do with transparency, alpha channels, and TGA files. Somehow this bug lets me save transparent TGA files without creating an alpha channel. All I have to do is save the image as 32 bit and it will come out exactly how I made it. No white backgrounds, just smooth transparent edges. Its easy since I don't have to waste time manually painting a black/white map. I'm wondering if theres a way to do this in the newer versions, but after trying the demos it seems like there isn't.
I don't know much about alpha channels, but I make dozens of TGA images with clear backgrounds so I really hope there is an easier way around this. To have to manually color the clear/solid areas with a paintbrush and lasso for each image seems like a nightmare. I wanted to get CS4 but I think it would be easier to just stick with this old version for this reason.
If anyone understands me and could offer some insight, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks

To my recollection this isn't a bug. I read in the forums awhile back that Adobe changed how the TGA format works with transparency and apparently they received complaints about it so they changed it back. I imagine there probably is a KB article about it.
However creating an alpha channel isn't a big deal especially if you have the transparency already done. Go to your actions panel and load the video actions, you will find an action that converts the transparency of all visible layers into an alpha channel.

How do I save a PNG file with an alpha channel in Photoshop CS5?

I have a PNG file created in Photoshop and I need to save it with an alpha channel for web purposes. I tried 'Save for Web & Devices' and selecting the Transparent box. Then, after saving, when I select 'get info' for the file it says there is no alpha channel. I'm stumped I can't seem to create an alpha channel from within Photoshop while I'm editing. Help!

If you save as a 24bit png with transparent checked photoshop will save the png with transparent background (ie alpha transparency). The png will appear transparent in a web browser.

Alpha channel from photoshop changes on import to FCP

I'm new to alpha channels. I have an image, to which I added an alpha channel in Photoshop, which now gives me a cut-out of the image. I imported the psd of this into FCP 5.0.4 (I was not allowed by FCP to import a tiff with an alpha channel.) However, the alpha channel on the clip in FCP has now become the whole rectangle of the image area, not just the mask area as it was in Photoshop, so when selected, the whole image is masked. Changing the alpha type, or reversing it, does not make any improvement. Is there a solution to this?
Many thanks
John

David,
I just had a breakthrough with this. The original file was CMYK. Creating an alpha channel and importing it into FCP gave me the problem. Converting it to RGB first, then creating the alpha channel and importing it, solved the problem. Doh!
Your line "sounds like you didn't create one" gave me the clue. Many thanks.
John

Paint effect to create an alpha channel

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