TABLE OF CONTENTS Compositing is the combination or interaction of two or more graphic or video images to create a single finished image. Compositing can be as simple as laying a title onto a visual image or as complex as combining hundreds of photographs, video, and animated elements to create complex images.
Compositing in its most complex forms is absolutely an art; there are compositing artists all over Hollywood, Austin, New York, Sydney, and other major cities who do nothing but create complex imagery for major networks, film, and corporate media departments. The fantastic imagery seen on ESPN, CNN, and in most major motion pictures is the result of these artists work. It is most likely that not one major motion picture has been released in the past few years that didn t contain significant compositing, whether it s titling, green/bluescreen work, or overlaid imagery. The Matrix is an amazing example of how greenscreen work is brought to the big screen through the creative use of composited images, as is the Lord of the Rings and even the heralded Titanic. Many of the full ship images in Titanic were composited together, including animations of people walking, driving, and loading the ship. Most of the scenes including fish are composited and animated. So in short, compositing is very much about eye candy and illusion.
Compositing in its most basic form is titles laid over images. Vegas has a fairly powerful titling toolset, capable of creating all but...
