Operation Manual

130 Pinnacle Studio 9
Chroma-key tool controls
The chroma key tool constructs a “mask”, shown in the
Key channel graphic on the left side of the tool, where
the transparent part of the frame is drawn in black, and
the opaque part – the part you will see in the final video
– is drawn in white. Most of the remaining controls are
used to define exactly which areas of the frame will be
included in the transparent part of the mask by setting
the “key color” and related properties.
Transparency: Use this slider if you want the
underlying video to show through the normally opaque
overlay. Moving the slider to the right makes the
overlay, with its border and shadow, increasingly
transparent.
Presets: The tool provides two presets, called “Green
screen key” and “Blue screen key”. These provide good
starting points for setting up the tool if you are using
one of the standard chroma key colors.
Key color: Use the color swatch or eye dropper buttons
to select the color that will be removed from the video
frame leaving only the desired foreground. See page
135 for information on how to use the color controls.
Rather than an actual color, you are really selecting
only a hue, without regard to the other properties –
saturation and intensity – that in combination with hue
make a complete color specification. The chosen hue is
shown by the position of the highlighted region on the
circumference of the color circle display.
Color tolerance: This slider controls the width of the
range of hues that will be recognized as belonging to
the “key color”. Moving the slider to the right increases
the angle of the arc covered by the highlighted region
on the color circle.