Pull a clean key by dialing in clip black, clip white, and despill.
Clip Black0.050
Clip White0.920
Despill0.50
Problem Frames:
Keying is the foundation of modern filmmaking. A chromakey works by isolating a specific hue (usually green or blue) and making it transparent — enabling actors to be placed in any digital environment.
Section 03 — Multi-Pass Compositor
Render Pass Compositing
Toggle passes on/off, blend them, and watch the composite update in real time.
Render passes give compositors surgical control. Instead of one baked image, the renderer outputs each lighting contribution separately — allowing colour grade, blur, or effect adjustments per-element without re-rendering.
Section 04 — Tracking Demo
Motion Tracking Visualizer
Watch the tracker lock on, see the position data graph, and compare before/after.
Tracking converts motion into usable position data. 2D tracking follows a single point; planar tracking solves perspective on a flat surface — used for screen replacements and sign changes.
Section 05 — Before/After VFX Machine
8 VFX Shot Pairs
Drag the wipe handle to reveal the before and after of each technique.
Section 06 — Light Match Challenge
Light Match Challenge
Adjust the CG sphere to match the reference scene lighting. Score >90% to pass.
Reference Scene
Your CG Sphere
Key Direction (°)220°
Color Temp (K)4000K
Fill Ratio4.0:1
Roughness0.50
0%
Adjust lighting to match the reference
Light matching is critical for CGI integration. In professional VFX, HDR light probes (chrome balls and grey balls) are photographed on set to capture the exact lighting environment — feeding data directly into the renderer.
Section 07 — Z-Depth & VFX Timeline
Z-Depth & Focus Control
Move the focus plane through the scene. Elements outside focus appear defocused.
Focus Plane40% depth
DOF Strength0.60
Post-DOF using depth passes is non-destructive and adjustable — compositors can change the focal point without re-rendering. This is why depth passes are an essential deliverable from the 3D department.
History of VFX
Click any milestone to expand the technique description.
Section 08 — Node-Based Compositing
Nuke-Style Node Graph
Click any node to learn what it does. Watch data flow through the network.
Select a Node
Click any node in the graph to learn about its function in the compositing pipeline.
Node-based compositing (as used in Nuke, Fusion, and Flame) treats every operation as a node with inputs and outputs — building a tree of transformations. Far more flexible and re-entrant than layer-based workflows.