SpiceMaster revolutionizes
the creative possibilities with PIP (picture-in-picture) compositions. No longer
must they be limited to hard, straight-edged looks. With SpiceMaster, you can
easily apply a soft or organic edge between such images. The PIP edges even can
be animated for entirely new looks! And PIPs can be entirely new shapes -- from
geometric to organic. Then
easily apply softness, animated edge texture, dynamic borders, shadows, glows,
or bevels. Virtually all effect enhancements in SpiceMaster are available for
PIPs, giving you a huge range of fresh looks that previously were unavailable.
 More Examples
With SpiceMaster's bezier keyframing, PIPs can smoothly
accelerate/decelerate in motion or scale. And you can easily fly-in/hold/fly-out
any PIP or organically reveal/hold/hide it.
Steps
1.
Apply the SpiceMaster transition between the
clip (that will become the PIP) and an overlapping background clip, as shown below
left. Or apply the SpiceMaster as effect (if
available) to the PIP clip,
as shown below right. If you applied the SpiceMaster as effect,
be sure to also activate the alpha channel key in the PIP clip, if required by
your editing software.
 
2. Click Load Preset * button
in SpiceMaster. To use or modify an pre-made PIP effect, choose any saved setting in the PIP+ or Animated PIPs folder within the Saved Settings folder. To build a PIP effect from scratch, choose the Basic
Setup -- PIP file from the Saved Settings folder. Turn Switch Clips option On if SpiceMaster is applied onto the clip's tail.
* COOL TIP: To time-reverse the preset keys right-click the graph's background in the Keyframes Window, then choose Flip Horizontally (All).
3. Choose an iris-like spice. In the main area of SpiceMaster, click the Choose Spice File button to select an iris-like spice
with the shape you desire for the PIP.
Iris-like spice files are in any of the following folders of the Library: OrganicFX\Bursts, OrganicFX\HotIrises, OrganicFX\Plasmas,
or Spices\Irises. Shown below is OrganicFX\HotIrises\Slatta2.
4. Adjust the iris opening size by moving the flat keyframe line for Completion
up or down in the Keyframes graph, as shown below.
5. Customize the PIP's edge, using any of the controls in the Edge or Depth panes. To soften the PIP edge, for
example, use the Softness sliders. To animate the
PIP edge, use the Texture section and activate its Motion slider. Dynamic borders, shadows/glows and bevels are also available for PIPs -- try the various presets provided in the FX folder icon at the right edge of each effect section. In the example below, an aqua glow plus
extensive All Edges softness surround the organic
PIP edge.
 More Examples
You are done unless you want to customize the PIP further, such as to position
it, put it in motion, change its opacity, etc. as described below.
How
to Enhance the PIP
•
To reposition or scale the PIP, adjust the Matte sliders in the PIP+ pane.
• To
reposition or scale the image within the PIP opening,
adjust the Image sliders in the PIP+ pane. This can be very handy
to keep a moving subject within the visible PIP area.
• To
change the opacity of the PIP, drag the Opacity slider in the PIP+ pane as desired.
• To keyframe any of the above adjustments, such as to put the PIP in motion, first turn on (click) the round stopwatch icon at the left of the relevant
control (such as Matte > X). The Keyframes graph for that control
will appear. Drag the blue vertical playback marker in the graph to the desired frame for a keyframe, as shown below. Then do the
desired adjustment for the control, such as setting the X to .5. Go to another
frame (such as the last frame), then set different values for the control. Repeat
for as many keyframes as desired.
• To
try other common PIP moves, click the FX folder icon at the right edge of the Matte section and choose a preset.
• To reveal, hold, then remove the PIP, choose the 'Hold then reverse' Progress Preset (the small Presets button  to the right of the Progress control). Then adjust
the middle keyframes to set the PIP's size and hold duration.
• To
reveal, hold, then expand the PIP, choose the "Hold for partial duration" Progress Preset.
• To switch which clip is used for the PIP and background in the SpiceMaster transition, click the Switch
Clips check box in the PIP+ pane.
• You also can move/scale the PIP with the motion controls in your editing software. That can be handy if you have pre-built motion paths there that you like to use.
But SpiceMaster can independently manipulate the PIP image and mask, and has bezier
keyframing for silky-smooth custom acceleration/deceleration of motion or scale.
More
Examples
 View
movie at our web site
An organic animated PIP with a multicolor border (that pulses colors over time)
frames the high-energy ski action.
View
movie at our web site
A soft glow and organic shape adds a unique touch to this PIP. SpiceMaster also
allowed the runner clip to be independently zoomed within the PIP area.
 View
movie at our web site
This organic PIP flies out of the eye and features a beveled organic edge, then
returns to the eye. SpiceMaster enables you to precisely position such a PIP easily.
 View
movie at our web site
A traditional frame-shaped PIP has a distinctive touch with SpiceMaster's edge
softening. In this case, the softness is keyframed to decrease over time, using
a Spices\Iris1\Frame C spice.
 View
movie at our web site
If you have motion paths already available in your NLE, you can apply SpiceMaster's
PIP power to that rather than using SpiceMaster's PIP controls. In the above example,
a butterfly-like motion path is combined with an OrganicFX\Burst spice (with a hard shadow added for depth) to create a very unusual PIP.
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