Traditional film style optical dissolve transition

SimonW wrote on 7/18/2004, 7:18 AM
Just wondering if anyone here knows of a way to make a traditional film style optical dissolve of the sort that Digital Film Tools and http://www.buena.com within Vegas?

I know there is a luminocity based transition available for free download for Vegas, but it doesn't quite do what I need as it is based around importing a picture file and bases the luminance values on that picture (from what i can tell).

I have tried making a transition using the levels filter as suggested by the writer of the Magic Bullet suite, but while this does enable whites to fade last on the outgoing picture, and to fade in first on the incoming picture, some horrible things happen to the colours in the extreme end of each pictures transition.

I'm next to useless at programming so I wouldn't have a clue how to write a new transition for Vegas!

Anyone any ideas? Any programming whizzes out there who might want to tackle this?

Comments

Jay Gladwell wrote on 7/18/2004, 6:20 PM
One way, maybe not the "easiest" way, would be to do a fade on clips A and B by adjusting the luminance accordingly, render them, then overlap them. I've not done it, but it might work. To the best of my knowledge, there is little that the plug-ins do that can't be done in Vegas (granted, they save time), it's just a matter to figuring it out and doing it.

Jay
sdmoore wrote on 8/27/2004, 12:02 PM
Hi Guys,

I've added the film-style optical dissolve, described by Simon, to my SMLuminance plugin. You can get it here
A big "thank you" to Simon for helping out with suggestions & feedback to my beta versions.

Cheers,

Scott
farss wrote on 8/27/2004, 4:01 PM
Scott,
many thanks for those, I'll give them a whirl later.
StormMarc wrote on 8/27/2004, 5:22 PM
Thanks Scott
Laurence wrote on 8/7/2005, 10:24 PM
Where can I get the "SMLuminance" plugin? The link on the other thread doesn't work.
rs170a wrote on 8/7/2005, 10:29 PM
SMLuminance
The link was messed up.

Mike
Grazie wrote on 8/7/2005, 11:55 PM
Apart from the extraordinary quality of this "free" plugin for AVI, I've been using this Opitcal Transition from Scott Moore for a slideshows too. It has a "natural" filmic look and defies my understanding of digital when I use it. It is rather wonderful. There are other settings which allow for the use bitmapped masks AND the option to INPUT your own mask shape. You can also select PNGs, BMPs, GIF, JPGs, TIFFs, etc . . . If you haven't black and whitened it, it will make an automatic transfer based, I guess, on the luminosity of the chroma and produce a best stab at the result for you!

All in all a real find and the author - Scott Moore from the UK - should be hailed as having a real understanding of making things digital>analogue.

Just try a very long transition - upto 20 seconds - of something from nature and really LOOK with your eyes and brain and you will see some of the easiest, subtle effects you will have seen for a long time.

Thanks Scott!

Grazie

PeterWright wrote on 8/8/2005, 12:54 AM
Scott,

What a beautiful looking dissolve - thank you for sharing this.
Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 2:18 AM


. . and another thing! Just made it k/f a changing progression of changing bitmaps: kf1 BM1; kf2 BM2; kf3 BM3 . . .KFn BMNn . . . koolll... This COULD lead onto animated videos AS the transition too!

Grazie

farss wrote on 8/8/2005, 2:25 AM
Isn't that pretty much what the Spice transitions do?
Bob.
Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 2:32 AM
Wouldn't know Bob. Don't have Spice . . wanna buy it for me? My birthday's next month .. !!!

Grazie
PeterWright wrote on 8/8/2005, 2:40 AM
Yes, Spicemaster can use any greyscale gradient to decide which physical part of the frame dissolves first/last and add softness/edges/textures and it produces wonderful results. For me, Scott's luminance avi dissolve provides a very nice general non-directional dissolve which can be slanted towards dark first or white first.

Having complimented Spicemaster, I have always been surprised that Vegas didn't include a standard Gradient transition, as Premiere has for 10 years or more!
SimonW wrote on 8/8/2005, 4:50 AM
Phew! I thought I was beginning to think I was the only one around who was using this plugin!

Scott did a great job, and such a transition was long, long, overdue in Vegas.
Coursedesign wrote on 8/8/2005, 7:47 AM
Phew! I thought I was beginning to think I was the only one around who was using this plugin!

Searching for past posts is good too sometimes. :O)

I introduced this plugin here back in March after having used it for a while: Silky-smooth Transitions.
JohnnyRoy wrote on 8/8/2005, 7:51 AM
Pixelan SpiceMASTER 2.5 Pro now has film dissolves. Here is the blurb from their web site:

• The MIXER. PRO's powerful new MIXER creates FILM dissolves AND more! Blend spice effects with a clip's luminance -- an industry first for incredible new effects and animations. A "must have" new feature!

I guess Scott should call them and tell them it NOT an industry first since he did it over a year ago. ;-)

~jr
Jay Gladwell wrote on 8/8/2005, 8:00 AM

I guess I'm a blind idiot. This is not an attempt in anyway to discredit Scott's plug-in! I've downloaded it and tried. I can't "see" the difference between a simple Vegas dissolve and the "luminance" dissolve.

So what am I doing wrong?


Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 9:11 AM
Ok Jay, it is not just subtle it is obviously subtle.

Okay .. no more mystery here . .

1/- Set up a standard SONY "X" fade tranisiton, with some strong colours on either side of the transition, perhaps going from predominantly red to say blue . .this way you will notice it.

2/- Now Drop onto this the Luminance cross fade, and select the Film-Style Optical

3/- Place your Cursor right in the middle of the crossfade.

4/- Now observe the Preview window as you UNDO and REDO and UNDO and REDO the action. Notice that the Sony X fade is kinda "muddy" BUT the Luminance one is crisp all the way through the transition. It holds its chroma "colour" but changes its luminance I guess?

See it now? As I think, it looks more "filmic".

Grazie
johnmeyer wrote on 8/8/2005, 10:51 AM
Grazie,

Thanks for that explanation. When I resurrected this thread by linking to it, I must admit I wasn't certain I was doing the original poster any favors, because when I tried this transition a year ago, like Jay, I couldn't truly appreciate what it was doing.
Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 10:59 AM
. .and now? - Was my explanation correct? I don't have the correct digital language . .huh? Buit I think I know what I see .. ?

Grazie
Jay Gladwell wrote on 8/8/2005, 12:58 PM

Grazie, I had to step out for a while, but I will give that a try. Thank you for such a clear explanation. I don't care what the PM says, you're a great guy!

[Test executed]
Using a red DJ clip and a blue DJ clip worked beautifully. I see exactly what you mean, and you described it perfectly. It was muddy!

Thanks, you're a real pal!


Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 1:44 PM
"I don't care what the PM says, you're a great guy!"

Who he Jay-Man?

But thanks on the pallie bit . .. well I do live in "PAL-land" HAHAHA

Grazie
PeterWright wrote on 8/8/2005, 5:27 PM
To humbly complement Grazie's observation, the way I understand the difference is:

A standard crossfade equally fades down every pixel of the outgoing event whilst gradually fading up every pixel of the incoming event.

With the Luminance dissolve, you can direct it to fade the darker parts of the outgoing first, or alternatively the brighter parts.
Grazie wrote on 8/8/2005, 9:27 PM
Thanks Peter! - Now that's more of a scientific explanation - G