So, what's involved in adding visual effects to a shot?
Look at the following video:
It's a fairly simple shot, made up with a several elements, these elements are the same for all effects shots you'll work on, see the video below:
So we have our:
Plate Shot
Filmed footage from the shoot with whatever you need in the shot. If you're moving the camera like in the example above you may need your shutter speed increased to prevent motion blur if moving the camera fast, this allows you to still match move the footage because if there is excessive motion blur, the chances of a successful match move is greatly reduced and we don't want that now do we?
3D Elements
Now this is pretty generic in my description, but you need to add the effects to be composited, these will be manipulated to match the background plate in colour & brightness/contrast & also account for any blur or grain the camera might introduce.
Colour Correction
The final part of any shot is colour correction or grading, which helps the CG sit nicely in the shot. Don't be tempted to appy colour correction before the visual effects, clean plates are best.
Now i know this was pretty brief, but it gives you an idea of what's involved in compositing 3D footage to live action. Full tutorials coming soon.
