And, The Academy Award® Goes To… An Instruction Manual !?!

Last week, I was introduced to a superb plug-in for Final Cut Pro (I use FCP 6.0.6). It is Keylight, which is a set of compositing-tools that was created by the Academy Award®-winning software-developer, The Foundry.* My platform is a 2005 Dual 2.7 GHz Macintosh PowerPC G5, with 8 GB of DDR SDRAM, controlled by OS X 10.4.11.

The task of becoming proficient in the bluescreen/greenscreen aspect of the science and art of Hollywood make-believe can be a daunting one. Many factors must be considered, and then choreographed:

1. What are the skin colors and tones of the actors and actresses who are in the shot?
2. What are the hair colors and tones of the actors and actresses who are in the shot?
3. What are the eye colors and tones of the actors and actresses who are in the shot?
4. What are the colors, hues, and shades of the costumes that are in the shot?
5. What are the colors, hues, and shades of the props that are in the shot?
6. What are the colors, hues, and shades of the environment that is in the shot?
7. Is the shot an exterior, or an interior?
8. What time of day or night does the shot occur?
9. Is the shot to be photo-realistic, or is it to be stylized?
10. Does the shot require a bluescreen, or a greenscreen?

These are just some of the questions that must be answered during the design of a composite-shot. Many more questions may need to be answered; it depends on the number and sorts of elements, the movement (if any) of those elements, and the movement (if any) of the camera, that the shot comprises.

If, before you begin capturing your bluescreen/greenscreen imagery, you read the PDF instruction-manual for Keylight compositing-software, then the process will no longer be demoralizing; it will actually be inviting!

Being a Commercial Artist for twenty years, and having produced and/or proofread countless instruction-manuals (many of which regarded topics that did not interest me), it was a PLEASURE for me to read THIS manual. It has— what we in the graphic-art industry call— clean, crisp, and airy design:

The kerning (amount of horizontal space that exists between letters, characters, and punctuation-marks), the tracking (amount of horizontal space that exists between words), and the leading (amount of vertical space that exists between lines of type) are perfect; they allow ample room for the dark, sharp letters, words, and paragraphs to breathe. The layout is excellent; each page contains enough text, images, and design-elements in order to provide visual-interest. In no instances are the pages cluttered; clutter often causes eye-strain. This kind of design makes Keylight’s instruction-manual physically and mentally easy to read, which is paramount in holding the reader’s attention.

This manual is a data-bank of matte-work, and it is equipped with scientific and mathematical explanations that are supported by incisive, full-color illustrations. Those of us who love to read, and those who prefer to only look at pictures, will be equally pleased.

The aforementioned assets are enough to make any instruction-manual a work of art, but The Foundry goes above and beyond the call-of-duty: employing screen-captures from some of the Hollywood films that have utilized its compositing software, Keylight provides a fun and thoroughly educational step-by-step tutorial on bluescreen and greenscreen techniques and procedures.

I am always excited by any aspect of cinema, but this excellent graphic-design work has made me even MORE excited about learning these processes and this software!

The artists who produced the Keylight instruction-manual should win an Oscar®!

* www.thefoundry.co.uk