Demystifying mattes, masks & alpha channels!

Demystifying mattes, masks & alpha channels!
This tutorial explains how mattes, masks and alpha channels apply to the idea of isolating parts of a frame. It covers Photoshop masks, alpha channels and paths, Premiere Pro alpha and luma mattes and rotoscoping in After Effects.
HUGE masking update that allows you to subtract multiple masks!
• Easily cut holes (mult...
For detailed information on rotoscoping, check out Mary Poplin and Mocha!
vimeo.com/114850269
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THANKS!
😃 To all the wonderful people who have supported VideoRevealed 😃

[@DeezNuts-cg9gl]

Your channel is such a big help and the fact you're still going - unlike many other channels on these matters- is something to be proud of. Thank you.

[@VideoRevealed]

And thank you. I have many more tutorials on the way.

[@tomasduque565]

This is one of the simplest and BEST tutorials I've found on this subject, watched a few others trying to figure out what I was doing wrong and none of them was able to explain it so clearly! THANK YOU! :)

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks, I'm glad your found it useful.

[@amaedesign]

Collin, love your videos, thanks for continuing to produce great content. Been subscribed for a while now. I find myself rewatching many of your videos while learning a technique.

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks for taking the time to watch all those tutorials and thanks for your support.

[@3deste233]

Dude! I came here trying to get some quick knowledge about a video alpha channel I was trying to get to work, but your video left me in awe. Thank you very much for this. I loved it! I'm now a fanboy.

[@VideoRevealed]

Yay! So glad you liked it and thanks for your support.

[@pvillez]

Wonderfully explained and presented. One of the best I have seen. Uncluttered of background music etc. Thank you very much.

[@VideoRevealed]

Wow, thanks so much. This one took a while to put together so I appreciate your comment.

[@Audiotechnical]

Wow. Incredible video as always Colin. Thanks so much. I certainly predict I'll be watching that video again, several times, over the next several... years. Exactly what I was looking for though, as I already dabble with masks, paths, refining edges, alpha channels, trk matting etc in PS, PP and AE, but I needed to really get to understand these on a broader scale, as I'm essentially a beginner with a lot to learn!

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks for taking the time to go through all the information.

[@simplesimon755]

Thanks for the basics info on mattes, masks, and alpha channels. I am very interested in this topic and as you have said, there are plenty of other sources for more detailed info. I've tried to watch some of those other sources but soon realized that I needed to understand these basic facts and terms first so this was very useful. BTW, every once in a while you literally make me LOL with some of your comments like in this one when you mention rotoscoping towards the end and let out an dreading, "Oi!" haha I appreciate your work and encourage folks to support you at Patreon like I do.

[@VideoRevealed]

Thank you so much for your kind words and support. I'm glad you like my tutorials as they take a great amount of work to create. Your support on Patreon is also very much appreciated and it really shows how much you care about great content!

[@wasted1350]

GOLD!!!! nobody Explained this effect anywhere else on the whole youtube... everybody just showed the procedure but nobody explained...THIS IS PPURE GOLD!!

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks so much. I had to do it because way too many people think roto is easy.

[@ASYLUMCUSTOMWOODWORKING]

thanks, Collin. you are my go-to guy when I need it done right. love your vids

[@VideoRevealed]

Awesome! More to come.

[@mortmann]

Seriously I think that you are the most intelligent person on the Adobe creative suite!! Thank you SOOOOO much for your help!

[@VideoRevealed]

Wow, thanks for your wonderful words and support.

[@alphazoom]

Thank you Colin to share your knowledge - very interesting !

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@gauthamc5833]

Loved your presentation and your techniques. Keep those coming :)

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks, I sure will!

[@abhishekmather8453]

this tutorial was on another level, thanks colin.

[@VideoRevealed]

Cool! Now you can store it away as a tool for the future.

[@TrineReinOfficial]

OMGosh!🤯 This will be on repeat for a while... Thank you!

[@VideoRevealed]

Wow, you're going through a ton of tutorials and you'll be an expert in no time! 😍

[@Audiotechnical]

Same for me! I'll be coming back to this video many many times in the future!

[@FoolTheViking]

You rock man! Great videos always

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks so much.

[@CarlMazur]

Thanks so much Colin. I am an experienced editor and I've already learned a few tricks I didn't know. :)

[@VideoRevealed]

That's great to hear. Thanks for watching.

[@sylvainbermudes]

Your videos are very helpfull ! Thank you for your amazing work ! :)

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks for watching.

[@zach_blackburn]

Coliiin!!! Thank you SO much for this.

[@VideoRevealed]

And thanks for your support.

[@frankwagner2161]

Excellent job on explaining....

[@VideoRevealed]

Glad you liked it.

[@goczbela8469]

its a great tut as yours always! thx men!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@SNORKYMEDIA]

another great video Colin, nearly at 30K !!!

[@VideoRevealed]

Yeah, I know. We're finally getting some attention...only took two years. ;-)

[@anthonyj.dipasqua4676]

Thanks! Good looking out!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@rahulsharma-df7py]

Best Channel...Great knowledge👍👌💐

[@VideoRevealed]

Thank you!!

[@MUENTERMEDIA]

Excellent video!

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks!

[@faisalmmian]

You are a Best teacher .. I have learned a lot from you. THANK YOU.

[@VideoRevealed]

You are very welcome

[@TheElThomaso]

That was super helpful, thank you! =D

[@VideoRevealed]

Glad it helped!

[@craigwendler7204]

I like the new graphics pkg you have. Clean and simple.

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks! I will be doing a tutorial in the future on how I set up the spinning title and blur so I can use it as a template.

[@resslerartstudios]

Thank you so much for that opening statement! Im still laughing...and exactly what I needed to hear.

[@VideoRevealed]

Glad you liked it Rich. Too many companies oversell roto as an easy process. It ain't!

[@thebestcraft7445]

Incredible video❤

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks so much.

[@katharineparsons2171]

Thank you, Colin.

[@VideoRevealed]

You're very welcome

[@felipehenaovideo]

Right to the point as usual

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks.

[@jimb196233]

Dont usually like long vids but so informative n interesting

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks for sticking around.

[@Adilkhan_Sairan]

Thanks for lesson!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@emanuscriptgraphics]

Nice video, thanks!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@oborofolusho212]

Amazing

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks!

[@alloneword154]

Everyone should be thankful for having watched anybody's videos for FREE! He doesn't make a living off this (as far as I know), give the guy a break. Yes this is difficult to learn all at once, so gear yourself up and stop complaining. Stop waiting for someone to always hold your hand. And Thank you Colin.

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks so much for your kind words and support. I really do appreciate it.

[@alloneword154]

I came back again three years later. I’m still learning.

[@bebespurs]

thank you!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome.

[@yomarcelojeje]

Holly shit, this IS intense. But so good. Perfect for quarantine times such as this one. Happy 2020 everyone... said no-one-ever.

[@VideoRevealed]

I did pack a lot of info in this one. Thanks for watching.

[@onemagicdude]

Good one Colin!

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks buddy!

[@TheWorldOfLeinster]

Hi Colin! I have an issue when using masks in Premiere or AE. When i click the "advance/rewind one frame" button when I'm trying to tidy up a mask that I've keyframed or tracked, often the mask will move, but the video stays seemingly on the same frame. But when I watch it back, it's clear that there are some frames that I'm simply not seeing when I go frame by frame, as there's suddenly massive errors in the mask placement. Occasionally then I will find them as I go frame by frame, but it's really hit and miss. I wondered if it was my computer being overwhelmed, but I've just pit a new processor in and, while everything is generally running a lot more smoothly, I'm still having this issue. Any idea if there's some kind of rendering or playback setting which could be causing this issue? It's really very annoying! I've tried the Adobe Forums but haven't been able to find anything which helps. Help?! Many thanks for your time.

[@VideoRevealed]

The first place to look is the graphics driver, so try turning off GPU acceleration and see if that makes a difference. If it does, then it's a driver problem that needs to fixed by the graphics card vendor. If that doesn't fix it, then try creating a new project and if that fixes it, then there's something wrong with the old project. You can try to import the old project into a new project and see if that fixes it. If you've tried all these options and it's still a problem, them I am stumped. Sorry.

[@thealldaycrew]

Thank You!!!!!!!!

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome!

[@DaveHuxtableLanguages]

Hi Colin. I love your channel and have learned tons. This one I found a bit rushed, though. I'm still mystified.

[@VideoRevealed]

Sorry if it seemed rushed, I know this subject deserves more time but it was already long enough for the KZbin viewers. If you need clarification, just let me know and I'll do a follow up.

[@DaveHuxtableLanguages]

VideoRevealed Thanks Colin. Maybe I'm just being lazy. I could just google terms like 'alpha channel', 'anti-aliased' etc. On the other hand, I'm sure you could do an amazing job of explaining than and showing us why they matter.

[@oiko2k4]

VideoRevealed i have to agree with Dave. I've seen almost all of your great videos and this was the first one i had to rewind multiple times to keep up. Usually your explanations are simply perfect, even when the subject is tough. +1 for an extra video in this topic. And thanks for your valuable videos so far

[@VideoRevealed]

I think the confusion may be that I'm not really showing "results", I'm just showing different transparency attributes. There are no steps to follow. For me to do a full transparency tutorial in all the applications, with step by step procedures, would take a couple hours and that's too long for the KZbin crowd.

[@VideoRevealed]

I already have numerous masking tutorials in Premiere Pro, After Effects and Photoshop. None of those addressed common terms and similarities with nomenclature. That was the focus. Here's the issue with going deep beyond what I've already shown in my existing tutorials, all this leads to the subject of Visual Effects. I've say it may times that I am not interested in doing Visual Effects tutorials and by that I mean complex rotoscoping, 3D camera tracking, painting and all the other techniques that I find absolutely frustrating and no fun at all. Yes I know I would get interest in tutorials like that but just so you know, the preparation time would be months of testing/shooting/crying/screaming and there are already much better tutorials out there for that kind of stuff. I hope you understand. As an example, I did some roto for someone the other day that was 8 seconds long. Well, 2 hours of brutal work later and my whole day was ruined.

[@HelloWORLD_Verlag]

thanks for the gurgel in the background. it calms me down a little bit to understand this not so easy issue... :-) keep on "gurgle" for difficult lessons pls. OOhhhmmmmm... .-)

[@VideoRevealed]

Glad you liked it.

[@ruscool7]

Are you a qualified educator because you have a great nack for explaining things! Thanks again!

[@VideoRevealed]

I try my best! :-)

[@jaystellwagen9587]

Thanks Colin! +1 more for a "series" on this topic. Maybe its just me, but I would like more the "why" for each of those (mattes, masks, and alpha channels). I think I started to understand when you showed the eagle flying and different layers behind it, as far as what creative options are available. Back at the beginning however, I don't understand why one would need the black and white mask of the car (for example). Then again, I haven't been in "the industry" that long. Love the vertical wipe of the Star Wars example at the beginning too!

[@VideoRevealed]

Hey Jay, I understand what you're asking for but addressing all the "whys" would take a significant amount of time as there are countless reasons for isolating. They are things like removing or blurring the background, lightening up a face, changing a car colour, removing an object. Lastly, I really hate this kind of work; it's very tedious and full of issues. Here is an example of just how involved something simple like removing wires (rigging) from a scene is: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eGPId4tsZbJ6htU

[@jaystellwagen9587]

Colin, thanks for the reply! Totally get what you're saying about all the different reasons etc. Rotoscoping just isn't your thing eh?

[@VideoRevealed]

Nope, roto is not my think at all. :-)

[@DKShubhamFilms]

u r channel is aewsome..

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks. More to come!.

[@zelezo777]

Remember the surfer or suffer? :D Great Holly grail into the mate/masking!

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks. Oh yeah, that surfer is crazy. After I created this tutorial, I looked at it again and it sure looks like someone used Mocha Pro to roto it.

[@zelezo777]

So what do you suggest in case with surfer, matting should work? Is there a way to spend less time then adding tons of keyframes? Thanx

[@VideoRevealed]

You need Mocha Pro. After Effects would fail trying to track that roto. Here's a deep tutorial on Mocha Pro: borisfx.com/videos/webinar-replay--remove-objects-from-moving-video-with-mocha-pro/?

[@shivaprasadmuddagowni2247]

Sir, Thank You :)

[@VideoRevealed]

You're welcome and thanks for your support.

[@cryptclown]

thanks for the vid. I am still not getting it. I have 2 videos, 1 is of someone dancing but its a small part of the clip. The second is of that same person, but their eyes is being zoomed in on slowly. I want to put the dancing girl in the eyes of this moving video. how do I do that.

[@VideoRevealed]

You need to first track the camera motion of zooming into the eyes and create a virtual 3D camera in After Effects. Next, mask the dancers using rotoscoping in After Effects. Place that into a PreComp, add it to the 3D camera Comp. Set that as 3D and hopefully the tracking works. So the bottom line is, it's really difficult and you must know how to do roto and tracking. Here's a tutorial on roto by one of the best in the industry, Mary Poplin. vimeo.com/72848512

[@cryptclown]

Thanks for the quick reply. Will check out the video. Im actually glad to hear its difficult. I thought this might 2+2 easy.

[@helionfilm1992]

Hi Colin. I love your channel and like many others, I learn a lot from your videos. I'm doing a project in Premiere Pro cc 2017 with some clips I need to stabilize, using the Warp stabilizer. To be able to play the timeline fluidly, to check if everything is okay, I've rendered previews of the "warp clips" (using the enter key). No problems there, but when I close down Premiere Pro and the computer for the day, the previews I've made is no longer linked to the clips in the timeline, the morning after... - They are still on the computer though.. Is there a way to ensure that the clips stay linked to the rendered previews? Thanks a million and keep up the good work. /Kent.

[@VideoRevealed]

I would not rely on that workflow as you've found, it doesn't work. If you need to render the clips then render them as GoPro Cineform and replace them in the Timeline.

[@helionfilm1992]

Thanks for your fast reply. I just thought there was a way to keep the previews in the timeline.. I'll look into replacing the clips instead. Thanks again

[@dennispeeters4800]

Normally on your channel i get well defined and structured tutorials. This is a bit over my head. You need some basic understanding if you want to follow this one. Keep up the good work, already learned a lot!

[@VideoRevealed]

If you need me to clarify anything, just let me know.

[@kmmuhammedbasheer1317]

Nice teaching like

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks.

[@ady7d77]

i got really and very confused but i need to learn this stuff. pls do it in slow motion.

[@VideoRevealed]

I'm not sure slowing this tutorial down would help to better understand the topic. What part is confusing you?

[@EktorJerry]

Hello Mr Collin,very nice video.I liked alot the bird flying trick...can you give me some more details how you doing that?If its rotoscoping then not need to explain something its too hard for me and i ll pass it.But if its something easier i would like to know if you can ofcourse...tnx alot again for your videos anyway :)

[@VideoRevealed]

The bird video is just a black and white video of a bird flying. I can't remember where I got the bird from but you use that as a track matte.

[@EktorJerry]

hello again and tnx for your answer,i hear on your video that you said black and white video but when i search about it in youtube i find only how to do a color video to black and white effect... its maybe with a deferend name or something so i can search it better?tnx again

[@VideoRevealed]

Black and white video is color video. It's just made up of two colors instead of many.

[@ayebihashmi469]

Please anyone tell me how to create a mask around an object and where to find it in adobe cs5

[@VideoRevealed]

There are about 12 Adobe applications that have the CS5 moniker so it's hard to answer.

[@ayebihashmi469]

@@VideoRevealed sir im speaking about adobe premiere pro

[@mdmomin-du5qp]

i love u bosssss.....u r great

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks!

[@rogerbeltz2370]

Okay I have a question (which I doubt will be answered)......nevertheless the scenaro: Okay say I have just spent hours creating a mask (or a selection) of an object (let's say a car). Btw- I normally use Quick Mask and meticulously "paint in" those areas that are to be my selection). Okay now I save my selection - in Channels of course. Now let's say I delete the Selection in Layers. If I want or need to re-select my selection, all I need to do is Command-click on the mask in the Alpha channel. Okay all is fine but now what if I move the object (the car) in my Layer's palette. The Mask - the Selection will no longer be aligned with the image in the Layer's palette. My question: Is there any way one can move "both" the object in the Layer's palette and the mask in the Channels palette so that the object and the mask remain aligned? * I am working with Photoshop CS6 on a Mac - JFYI. Would greatly appreciate hearing back.

[@VideoRevealed]

There's no way to do that. If I've moved a transparent layer, I'll Cmd-click (Mac) Ctrl_click (Win) to create a new selection and I'll save that.

[@rogerbeltz2370]

@@VideoRevealed I sincerely appreciate your reply Collin. Yes, I am well aware of the procedure of CMD-click on the transparent layer. Excellent tutorial - very straightforward and easy to understand. Thanks.

[@Ruffedges]

I am a subscriber, love all of your videos except this one. Feels like I left more confused than entering lol

[@VideoRevealed]

Oh no, so sorry about that.

[@BrooklynSkinnyPigs]

I agree with you Colin, it's GIF, not JIF. JIF is peanut butter lol.

[@VideoRevealed]

Yep, let's keep the peanut butter where it belongs. 😆

[@gislehillesund1694]

Is there actually a button to "turn her on"? :D :D Sorry for my dirty mind, but that was the very first thing that popped into my head at 5:47 :D. Great video and good info (as always).

[@VideoRevealed]

Ha, ha, ha...didn't realize I said that.

[@PritishBharti]

Can you make a video on how Guava Juice creates his thumbnails? Please

[@VideoRevealed]

I just searched ('cause I had no idea who that is) and came up with Roi Wassabi; is that what you mean? Are you talking about the white border around his image with a drop shadow?

[@mariocarnival]

Beautiful. 09:30 Footage of Perú?

[@VideoRevealed]

Actually I'm not sure where it's from.

[@ivotenotocensorship5247]

Are you accepting students for tutoring?

[@VideoRevealed]

I don't have students, I just post tutorials on KZbin.

[@ivotenotocensorship5247]

@@VideoRevealed would you be willing to edit electronic repair videos? Name your price

[@HelloWORLD_Verlag]

I hear that a new feature for After Effects is coming out. named cloaking. maybe that's could be stuff fo a new tutorial... :-)

[@VideoRevealed]

I would hold off on your expectations on anything you see at MAX becoming a final product. Those demos are not Beta demos, they are technology "explorations" that may or may not become a product.

[@horrorspidey7033]

epic

[@VideoRevealed]

Thanks.

[@EDDIEGARAGE]

here is an open door to a new tutorial on luminosity or clipping mask

[@VideoRevealed]

I would but luminosity masks are rarely used. Vector masks are much more manageable and you can't automatically track luminosity masks.

[@greysongladney4403]

Look at all these freakin key frames!!!

[@trollface1994]

...so what's a Garbage Matte?

[@VideoRevealed]

Just another name for a mask, just less accurate.

[@KamilsView]

Yes, it is a gif, not a jif.

[@VideoRevealed]

You got that right.

[@nathanaelgraham5333]

The man who invented GIF's said it is pronounced "JIF" so he is actually right.

[@notthesixoclocknews6618]

Nice video buy got to be honest, all im staring at is that green tooth. You need to get it sorted buddy.

[@VideoRevealed]

It's not green, it's bruised from slamming into someone while running through the cornfield as a little kid. I know we live in a world with fake white teeth, and fake hair extensions, but at 56 years-old, I have no need to pretend that I'm something I'm not.

[@sangawanga7462]

8:00

[@VideoRevealed]

There's a whole lot more in this tutorial than just the Track Matte Effect.

[@sangawanga7462]

VideoRevealed yeah I know but it’s the one I need to come back to the most. Nice video by the way.

[@ayebihashmi469]

I dont understand you sir not that i cannot understand english the point is i cannot understand what your trying to say sir

[@VideoRevealed]

Sorry you couldn't understand my tutorial.

[@ayebihashmi469]

@@VideoRevealed no need to say sorry sir its just i tried to listen to you but maybe its too complicated for me anyways how are you sir its a pleasure that you replied to me 😊

[@darlingtonojobo5061]

After effect is headache

[@VideoRevealed]

But in the right hands it's magic.

[@darlingtonojobo5061]

VideoRevealed ok I’ll keep learning 😏

[@latbat58]

Umm... mister... Can a complete beta soyboy learn about aa- alpha channels too?

[@VideoRevealed]

Sure, that's who this tutorial is for.