com·pos·ite k ə m ˈ päz ə t/ verb Compositing is the combining of visual elements from separate sources into single images, often to create the illusion that all those elements are parts of the same scene. Live-action shooting for compositing is variously called "chroma key", "blue screen", "green screen" and other names."

There are five categories of blend modes: Those that combine images based upon alpha values Those that combine images based upon lighter gray-scale values Those that combine images based upon mid- tone gray values Those that combine images based upon darker gray-scale values Those that combine images based upon color values

In Final Cut Pro, composite modes dictate how the brightness and color values of two clips interact with each other. You will only use composite modes if you are compositing and layering. When you are compositing, you are stacking multiple clips on top of each other. Composite modes are often referred to as blending modes. This guideline will go over how the different composite modes offered by Final Cut Pro affect the clips that you have stacked. Normal Composite Mode When you have stacked two or more clips on top of each other, Final Cut Pro will automatically apply the Normal composite mode. When using the Normal composite mode, you can still adjust the transparency levels. Composite (Blend) Modes in Final Cut

Add Composite Mode With the Add composite mode, Final Cut Pro will add together the color values of every overlapping pixel. This results in all mid-range color values being lightened. The Add composite mode also tends to emphasize the color white. If one of the clips that you are using has the color black in it, the Add composite mode will make those images transparent. The order of the clips affected by the Add composite mode does not matter.

Subtract Composite Mode The Subtract composite mode darkens all overlapping pixels. If the foreground image contains white, the Subtract composite mode will turn the white to black. The Subtract composite mode will not affect black background images, but black foreground images will become transparent. (This is another way to do a luma key without having to apply the luma key filter) For colors other than black and white, the Subtract composite mode will darken images based on the color of the background image. The order of two clips affected by the Subtract composite mode is important.

Multiply Composite Mode If you are using the Multiply composite mode, images that contain mid-range color values will be evenly mixed together. The main purpose of the Multiply composite mode is to emphasize the darkest portions of every overlapping image. If a lightly colored image has been stacked on top of a darker image, the Multiply composite mode will make the lighter image translucent, which allows the darker image to show through. The order of the clips affected by the Multiply composite mode does not matter.

Suggested Uses for Multiply Composite Mode The Multiply composite mode is particularly useful in situations where you want to knock out the white areas of a foreground image and blend the rest of the image with the colors in the background. For example, if you superimpose a scanned sheet of handwritten text over a background image using the Multiply composite mode, the resulting image becomes textured with the darker parts of the foreground.

Screen Composite Mode While the Screen composite mode will emphasize the lightest parts of every overlapping image, images that contain mid-range color values will not be touched. The Screen composite mode, like the Multiple composite mode, will mix mid- range color values together more evenly. If an image contains black, the Screen composite mode will allow the lighter color to show through the black completely. Here, for instance, is the Screen mode. This combines lighter pixels from both images to share the background texture with the foreground. The order of the clips affected by the Screen composite mode does not matter.

Suggested Uses for Screen Composite Mode The Screen composite mode is especially useful for knocking out the blacks behind a foreground subject and is an alternative to using a luma key. Screen is mainly useful when you want the rest of the foreground subject to be mixed with the background image as well, based on its brightness. It’s good for glow and lighting effects, and for simulating reflections. You can also use the Add and Lighten composite modes to create variations of this effect.

Overlay Composite Mode The Overlay composite mode causes black and white on foreground images to become translucent. With background images, the Overlay composite mode will allow black and white to replace overlapping areas. For mid-range color values, the Overlay composite mode will use the brightness of the background image to determine how the mid-range color values are mixed together. Lightly colored background images will be mixed together by using the Screen composite mode, while darkly colored background images will be mixed together by using the Multiply composite mode.

Whites and blacks in the foreground image become translucent and interact with the color values of the background image, causing intensified contrast. Whites and blacks in the background image, on the other hand, replace overlapping areas in the foreground image. Overlapping midrange values are mixed together differently depending on the brightness of the background color values. Lighter background midrange values are mixed by screening. Darker background midrange values, on the other hand, are mixed together by multiplying. The visible result is that darker color values in the background image intensify overlapping areas in the foreground image, while lighter color values in the background image wash out overlapping areas in the foreground image.

MID-TONE GRAY VALUES DARKER GRAY-SCALE VALUES The order of the clips affected by the Add composite mode does not matter.

Suggested Uses of Overlay Composite Mode The Overlay composite mode is particularly useful for combining areas of vivid color in two images.

Hard Light Composite Mode With the Hard Light composite mode, portions of the foreground image that are black and white will block any overlapping areas in the background image. The white and black of the background image will interact with the mid-range color values of the foreground image. The Hard Light composite mode will use brightness levels to determine how mid-range color values are mixed together. The order of two clips affected by the Hard Light composite mode is important.

Soft Light Composite Mode The Soft Light composite mode is similar to the Overlay composite mode. Whites and blacks in the foreground image become translucent but interact with the color values of the background image. Whites and blacks in the background image, on the other hand, replace the overlapping areas in the foreground image. All overlapping midrange color values are mixed together, creating a more even tinting effect than that created by the Overlay composite mode. The order of two clips affected by the Soft Light composite mode is important.

Suggested Uses of Soft Light Composite Mode The Soft Light composite mode is useful for softly tinting a background image by mixing it with the colors in a foreground image.

Darken Composite Mode Darken emphasizes the darkest parts of each overlapping image. Whites in either image allow the overlapping image to show through completely. Lighter midrange color values become increasingly translucent in favor of the overlapping image, while darker midrange color values below a certain threshold remain solid, retaining more detail. The order of two clips affected by the Darken composite mode not is important.

Suggested Used for Darken Composite Mode The Darken composite mode is useful for using one image to add texture to another selectively, based on its darker areas. You can also use Screen for variations on this effect.

Lighten Composite Mode Lighten emphasizes the lightest parts of each overlapping image. Every pixel in each image is compared, and the lightest pixel from either image is preserved, so that the final image consists of a dithered combination of the lightest pixels from each image. Whites in both images show through in the resulting image. The order of two clips affected by the Lighten composite mode not is important.

Stencil Alpha / Silhouette Alpha Alpha channel” is simply a fancy word that means “transparency.” When we create an alpha-channel effect, we are playing with the transparency values in a clip. The order of two clips affected by the Stencil / Silhouette composite is important.

Light Leaks and Film Burns

Light leak using different blend modes

How to use light leaks in final cut How to use light leaks, colour flares, film burns in Final Cut Pro How to create your own light leaks and use them in Post Production Free film burns and transitions Free Film Burns

Larry Jordan blend mode vs. opacity Creating grad effect with blend mode (ripple training) Video in text effect using blend mode (ripple training) Creating Video in Text Effect Using Blend Mode

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