Inverting a Chroma Key?

[Mike Truly]

Imagine you have a small, colored dot that moves across the image. The dot is pure red (and there is really no other red in the image).

What is the best method to color correct just the dot and change it's color?

I have duplicated the clip and placed it above the original. I have added a 'chroma key' to the upper clip and I can isolate the red color by picking with the eyedropper (this is a minor miracle since picking the tiny color on the thumbnail image is **** near impossible). Problem is, this blacks out the dot. I want to keep ONLY the dot and then apply a color correction to change it's color.

Is there a way to reverse the chroma key so I can keep just the dot?

Thanks!

[Mike Truly]

Ahhh... OK, I figured out one way to do this. If I place a color matte below the Chroma Keyed clip, the color now shows through the dot. This should work.

Thanks!

[GrassValley_BH]

You can also do this by using the Chrominance filter. Essentially Chrominance does a selection like Chroma Key, but instead of "knocking out" the color (range), you apply a filter to it. In your case, you can Solid Color it, or if it's a (video) legality issue, then you could also try a Color Correction filter on it to either hue-shift or luma-shift it.

[Mike Truly]

Brandon,

Thanks very much for this tip... I'll give this a try.

I think one thing that would help me from asking such dumb questions is if the Edius helpfile was far better. I would like to see not only a comprehensive documentation on all features but also simple, visual examples in the helpfile that help to explain features. Autodesk does a great job of this with the MAX documentation. The simple visuals accompanying the help go a long way to burning these functions into your brain.

Thanks again.

[GrassValley_KH]

Help content is something that we're hoping to have altered in a very noticable way, with the next major release. If it all goes to plan, it should be a significant improvement.

[Mike Truly]

Kenneally,

Thanks for the update. I look forward to it as someone who frequently needs to refresh my memory on how to do something. As it stands now, when I try to dive into the helpfile to find an answer it turns out to be a very frustrating process.

Thanks again.

[GrassValley_BH]

The help is designed as a reference.
The video tutorials on the EDIUS Training site, however, are designed as tutorials. :)