And so, like rain, into every effects artist's life a little rotoscoping must fall. The tools outlined here are mostly sufficient for the type of rotoscoping work that compositors will have to do. Dedicated rotoscope artists would likely choose software other than After Effects to ply their trade, or perhaps employ Silhouette as an After Effects plug-in. As long as rotoscoping isn't your stock in trade, however, the After Effects tools will usually allow you to complete the shot without having to look for other software.
The next chapter completes the picture by adding motion tracking to your areas of expertise. As mentioned, motion tracking plus rotoscoping can equal a shortcut around tedious tasks.
Effective Motion Tracking |
Section I. Working Foundations
The 7.0 Workflow
The Timeline
Selections: The Key to Compositing
Optimizing Your Projects
Section II. Effects Compositing Essentials
Color Correction
Color Keying
Rotoscoping and Paint
Effective Motion Tracking
Virtual Cinematography
Expressions
Film, HDR, and 32 Bit Compositing
Section III. Creative Explorations
Working with Light
Climate: Air, Water, Smoke, Clouds
Pyrotechnics: Fire, Explosions, Energy Phenomena
Learning to See
Index