As a 3D VFX and digital composition artist, I’m always looking to improve my skills and tackle new projects. Recently, I was given the opportunity to work on a project called “Black Cat” in my VSFX 715 Compositing 1 course. The project involved taking raw footage of a black cat walking on a green screen and compositing it into a new background.
“Black Cat” was a challenging but rewarding project that allowed me to put my VFX skills to the test. The project’s objective was to transform raw green screen footage of a black cat into a seamless composite that blends into a new outdoor setting. I utilized various compositing techniques and tools in Nuke software to achieve a photorealistic and visually stunning result.
Key Features and Improvements
To remove the green color from the original footage, I used the Expression node, which allowed me to precisely select and remove the green screen background. Then, I utilized the Primatte node to create a clean alpha channel and separate the foreground from the background. With the Transform node, I adjusted the position and scale of the cat to match the new background.
One of the critical steps in creating a believable composite is to add shadows to the object. I used the Merge node and a custom Shadow pass to add shadows to the black cat that matched the direction and intensity of the new background’s light source. Finally, I added grain and color correction to the composite to blend the foreground and background seamlessly.
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