Nuke: Zdefocus and shuffle nodes

Final renders all downloaded from the render farm!

Now into compositing using both Nuke and After Effects.

My render files are open_exr files, all with associated passes.

Using Nuke and the 'shuffle' node, plus a colour correct node, I can adjust the levels for each pass.

Below, final render shot in Maya - showing the perspective panel and geometry and a render test

Nuke interface using a background node (lilac rectangle) to differentiate between node groups

Colour correction node (highlighted in pale yellow), using the ID pass

Colour correction node [tab>colorcorrection] outlined in red - applied to the specular pass. Double clicking on the colour correction node, brings up the properties dialogue box and then I can adjust the levels

First view of the composited image 

Selection of the 'reflection node' (highlighted yellow) and then press '1' shows just the reflection pass in the viewer. I can then adjust the properties to suit

Zdefocus node, with an inverted node applied. I can then alternate between the 'result' and 'focus plane set up' to adjust the focal point and create a 'tilt shift' effect. The red areas of the tree are closest to the camera, the blue furthest away (therefore having more blur) and the green is the focal point. 

Dialogue box (highlighted in cream on right) explains the focus plane set up

Composition still, showing the 'focal point' centre.

Next step is to import into After Effects and create some light rays

Render check list and Nuke

One to one tutorial session with Sean, using Nuke to start compositing.

Below (top): Nuke UI, with render passes (Camera Depth, Diffuse, Indirect, Refraction, Reflection, Specular) and merge nodes.

The green rectangle, is a 'background' node, which allows for the node graph (equivalent of the layer system in After Effects) to be organised clearly. In this case, all nodes relating to the passes are on a green background; orange = CG elements; pink = green screen footage. . 

We omitted the Ambient Occlusion pass, as the tree geometry has only a bump map, rather than a normal map, and the ice men material shader doesn't require accentuation of shadows.

 My check list for render, which includes all settings for render, render layers, render passes; and to make sure I've got all texture and sourced images in the correct folder, prior to sending to the render farm over the weekend....
So far, shot 07 is out of the render farm and the quality looks great
In for render this weekend
Shot 05, 11, 11a, 11b

TOY SCANDAL 'Hunny Bunny Stole My Money': 3D CG Animation

TOY SCANDAL 'Hunny Bunny Stole My Money': Going Live group project with Axis Animation, Glasgow. May 2016

   

TOY SCANDAL - Going Live Vimeo -Axis Animation from Andrea McSwan on Vimeo.

Nuke, GodRays and Macro focus

Our first composition using NUKE!

Matt Cameron took us through this step by step, using the render passes that we achieved over night.

(The render of this sequence, about 77 frames in total, took about 2 hours, using 5 computers)

Matt then showed us different nodes to apply to these render passes in Nuke.

The focus depth on the ZDepth was adjusted, to show the trolls in the background out of focus. I found this staggering to watch, as it completed adjusted the scene, as if we were viewing it through a macro lens; making the toys really shrink down in size...

My favourite node label today.

God Rays! 

I cannot wait to apply these to the reverse shot of He-Man as he is backlit by sunshing pouring through the windows...

I would definitely like to test some GodRays for my final film, and the backlit ice figures!!

Nuke Compositing, inteface and concealing tracking markers

Nuke tutorial and training with Matt Cameron!

Wow, Nuke is brilliant and I love the interface....very simple, flow diagrams, that develop a tree of nodes...and nothing at all buried or hidden.

We were given a sample of footage from 'Ratking'. The footage was of a hysterical pregnant woman, whose belly was full of writhing rats, pushing and moving under her skin.

Creepy.

This effect was achieved by placing a  'plastic' pregnant stomach on the actress.

A shadow map of moving rat feet was created, by placing real live rats on top of lycra stretchy fabric, and filming them running around from the underside.

Nuke was used to composite both the live action and shadow map sequences and included the use of tracking markers.

Our task today was to get to know the Nuke interface and to mask out the tracking markers (black dots)

 1. The Nuke Interface.
Showing imported 'read' live action footage (already including the shadow map of the running rats). The 'A' output of the 'read' footage is then connected onto a 'Tracker' node (peach rectangle ringed by the smaller red circle)
The 'A' output from the 'Tracker' node is then connected to the 'Viewer' node below.

2. We then created a 'constant' node (thin red circle with grip points), to cover the black tracker. There is the simple option of creating just a plain colour, or a cloned colour, which completely matches to the varying pixel colours. The areas ringed in yellow, show a keyframe on the timeline (left) and where it appears in the properties box on the right.

3. Using a  'background' node (as shown as a lilac rectangle) to collectively present all items clearly, that belong in a certain part of the script. This is brilliantly simple and what a great tool, especially when working in a team. The importance of labeling, and being clear when passing on the job to the next person is crucial.

 4. Adding a 'grain' node (circled in yellow below the lilac rectangle) and showing the sliding values on the right (also circled in yellow) for the RGB channels. B (Blue) seemed to show the most grain...