Know how to make "invisible man" effect?

dibbkd wrote on 8/18/2005, 6:57 PM

Does anyone know how to make "invisible man" effect?

For example, either totally invisible, where you just see the objects moving around, or "somewhat" invisible where you can just barely see the person in a clear glassy kind of way, like the "Predator".

This may be over Movie Studio's head, but thought I'd throw it out there.

Comments

Chienworks wrote on 8/19/2005, 4:49 AM

It has more to do with camera work than anything else. Typically you will have to shoot the scene twice. The first time you will shoot it without the invisible person. The second time the invisible person will be in a blue suit covered head to toe against a bluescreen background and you will shoot him/her manipulating objects. You can then use the chroma keyer effect to remove the blue background and place the moving objects into the scene already shot.

For a slightly invisible person, skip the blue suit, still use the chroma keyer, and reduce the opacity so that you can see through them. Various effects can be applied to distort the image.

This isn't easy to do, but it can be accomplished after a fashion with a home camcorder and Vegas Studio.

Storyman wrote on 8/19/2005, 6:54 AM

Chienworks,

You have a good solution, but I think Predator had more of a translucent effect where you could see the image behind the creature--though it was somewhat distorted. I've been thinking of ways to achieve the effect but all of my solutions use either Commotion Pro or After Effects.

Tim L wrote on 8/19/2005, 10:13 AM

This isn't quite what you're asking for, but you can make a "ghost" image pretty easily, without a chromakey setup. (At least I think so -- I haven't tried this).

For example, a ghost image of a person walking through a room:

First of all, you need an absolutely, rock-steady tripod. Make sure the camera doesn't move at all for the whole shoot.

Now, tape 10 seconds of the room just by itself, then 10 seconds with the person walking through or around the room. No panning or zooming allowed -- camera shot has to remain constant.

Split the two clips and put the "10 seconds with nothing" on a lower track, and the "10 seconds with the person" on the upper track. Adjust the transparency of the upper track, and voila -- a ghost.

This works because while *everything* in the top image is transparent, everything there except the person has exactly the same image underneath it. You have a transparent lamp, sofa, table, etc., in the top image, but they are exactly over top of the same lamp, sofa, table in the bottom image, so when you "see through" the sofa in the top image, you are then looking at a "solid" image of the sofa in the bottom image.

Anything that moves in the top image will be a ghost. If you pick up a coffee cup, you will be holding a ghost coffee cup, but the orginal, solid cup will still be sitting on the table -- although it might look *slightly* ghosty too, because now the top image is putting a transparent image of the empty table surface there.

Tim L

dibbkd wrote on 8/19/2005, 11:17 AM

Hey guys, thanks for all the great ideas!

I have never used a green screen yet, so probably won't be able to do the green screen outfit thing, but it does sound neat.

And I wasn't thinking of it this way, but I had done something similar to what Tim L said, I made a video of my baby crying on the floor, then I "beamed him up" like on Star Trek.

It was basically doing an effect like Tim mentioned.