WaveFilter 2.0 ReadMe File ----------------------------- ************************************************ WaveFilter 2.0 Wide Beta II Release Version 2.0.12 - 10/1/97 ************************************************ This upgrade addresses nearly all the challenges that remained in the previous version. Only a few minor changes, more sample scenes, a tutorial or two and a final pass over the manual remain to wrapping up WaveFilter 2.0. We will continue to update the wide-beta plugins as new plugins, features and bug fixes become available. We want to get WaveFilter plugins to in the hands of artists as quickly as possible. There are few known bugs in this version at the time of release, but do understand that this is a beta release, and some bugs still may have to be eliminated or located. Your feedback is very important. We feel that this is a production ready tool, but the user is responsible for testing the plug-in and determining the applicability to any project. If you have uncertainty, do not use this beta release in your project. Changed from WaveFilter 2.0 Wide Beta Release Version 2.0.11c: 1) Memory manager was fixed. This fixed the crash that occurred when a plugin was removed after a render. 2) Fixed bug that caused High/Low Range to load reversed. 3) Null Objects were activated to allow animated filter settings. 4) Preferences/Use Equalizer Object in Scene menu item was renamed to Animatable Settings and menu option was enabled. 5) Added scene files for a prototype slider panel for the #4 plugin. 6) Image and Alpha White were removed, and a Alpha White button took it's place. Combine Image White & Alpha White for the same effect. This allows the alpha to be painted without destroying the image itself. 7) A feature was added that renames a Null object to the correct name when a single newly created Null Object exists and a numeric field is selected in the options dialog. 8) Null Objects now move on the X axis and no longer on the Z axis. This is because the X axis is the default in the motion graph and saves steps during setup. 9) Tab order was corrected in the color filters section. 10) Links to the WaveFilter website now all work correctly if the user is logged on to the Internet. 11) Blur on selected surfaces no longer blends over the edge. This allows blurred reflections to be simulated on reflective surfaces. 12) Cancel button was removed. 13) "Post" button was renamed to "Adjust Following Render" to better describe its function. Known Challenges ------------------- 1) No sample scenes are included. 2) Need all 4 Sliders scenes. 3) Manual is not complete. 4) Preview of Matte Filters does not reflect turning the matte filter off. This causes negative to toggle the preview. The final output is correct. 5) Some PhotoShop palette files read incorrectly. Some files create a black only palette. 6) Install program does not add plugins to the lw.cfg file. 7) Sometimes Intel plugins are installed on Alpha machines. Install lets the user know what platform the installer detected. If you have trouble getting Alpha versions to install correctly, a Alpha only patch is available. Simply download www.wavefilter.com/WF2-WBA.ZIP and unzip the included files into the NewTek\Plugins\Layout\UnlimitedPotential\WaveFilter2 folder. 8) Shift-Click zooms the Scaled to Fit preview display to a course close-up. The feature was tagged a bug and will be eliminated. *********** Hints and Tips *********** Web Site and HTML: 1) All docs will be in HTML format on the final CD. 2) The www.wavefilter.com web site is a slightly modified version of what will be included on the CD. 3) Use the web site as your manual until CDs are distributed. 4) Check the web site often for updates, news and new plugins. WaveFilter ImageMagic is still growing. General: 1) These beta versions of WaveFilter 2.0 will timeout on or about December 1st 1997. 2) These are Image Filter plugins, find them on the effects panel. 3) Using more then one WaveFilter 2.0 in multiple image filter slots allows control of order of operations, which is normally the exact order the filters appear on the interface. It also allows each filter to effect a different portion of the image. 4) Grain works best at high % (300-3000) settings with very low color settings (8,8,8-16,16,16). 5) The Show button in the Edge Blend filter DOES paint on the final output. 6) All filters can be applied to the entire image or only portions of the image usign the Filters Affect controls. 7) If Adjust Following Render is depressed, WaveFilter will open the option panel after each frame is rendered. To render without the option panel opening each frame, raise the Adjust Following Render button. Preview: 1) Left click on preview window toggles between Zoom-To-Fit and 1:1 view modes. 2) Shift-Left click while in 1:1 zooms to a 4:1 blowup of the image around the click point. 3) Ctrl-Left Click and drag allows the preview to be panned while in 1:1 zoom mode. 4) You do not get pixel color information in 4:1 mode, nor can you right click select in that mode. Using the Keyboard: 1) Alt-Underlined Key can be used to quickly jump to many controls on the interface. 2) Alt-1 through Alt-5 can be used to select the drop-down list boxes. 3) If you manually change a number, press enter or click Update. Selection: 1) Selected surfaces is based on the special buffers for a surface having a value greater then zero. 2) It is recommended that 255 be used as that will show as white in the preview when the special buffers are viewed. 3) Using values less then 255 but not less then 1 work equally as well, but will show dimmer in the preview. 4) All Settings other then zero cause the filter to be applied equally. Palettes: 1) Palette files must reside in the same directory as the plugin file. 2) PhotoShop palette files may be used, but the filename must be 12 or less characters in length. A PS as the first two characters easily identifies PhotoShop palette files in the palette list. Color Ranges: 1) To select a color range, click Reset then use the right mouse button to adjust the range by adding or subtract pixels. 2) Attempt to keep the selected color range as narrow as possible. 3) Use more than one WaveFilter2 to remove all the background if color ranges need to be too wide and include unwanted pixels. 4) When you add or subtract a pixel from a color range, all pixels that are effected by the range change will update as well. 5) When using the Image White and Alpha White filters for background removal, be sure to select Filters Affect High/Low Color Range. 6) If the character you are trying to isolate from the background has colors that too closely match those of the background, use a front projection mapped polygon over the area that is incorrectly removed and select Alpha Black and Object Only and those portions of the alpha will be cleared. 7) The results of a WaveFilter2-1 in slot one is passed to a WaveFilter2-2 in slot two for further background elimination. ScreamerNet: 1) WF.lic file is created and stored in the windows folder. 2) Copy the WF.lic file from the windows folder on the main machine to the windows folder on each ScreamerNet node. WF4-Sliders: 1) Use load from scene, and don't load the light. 2) The Sliders panel will show in Wireframe and Open/GL but will not render in the scene. 3) Use WF4-Sliders to move/rotate/size the Sliders panel. 4) The X axis position in meters of each knob controls the value for the associated numeric field. 5) Key the knobs at different positions at different frames and you created an animated effect. 6) Use the Motion Graph in Layout to control the X axis of each null for great envelope control of each filter. 7) Parent your camera to the CameraHandle object and use that object to move the camera. Save the camera motion, clear the camera motion, then load the saved motion into the CameraHandle null. This makes the camera move as it did before, but now you have a null to move rather then the camera. Move the Sliders panel to a visible position. Now the panel will stay in place, in front of the camera even when the camera moves (via the CameraHandle null). ********************* Quick Description of Filters ********************* Filter: Blur Description: Blurs the portion of the image selected by the user. Blur is the only filter that can not be previewed in the preview window. Common Uses: Blur the background to accentuate the foreground. Softening the entire image. Blurred reflections using special buffers. Filter: Sharpen Description: Sharpens the contrast of edges. Common Uses: Sharpen video, Balance with Edge Blend to keep maximum detail while removing jaggies. Filter: Edge Blend Description: Blends pixels along the edges between items. Both the sensitivity to edges and the power of the blend are controllable. Common Uses: Augment LightWave’s Low or Medium Antialias settings to give an improved image quality and/or faster rendering. Blend foreground composites to the background using the Edge Blend/Alpha Edges only feature. Turn Video into a simple cartoon look with Show pressed and a palette selected. Run renderings that need extra Antialiasing through LightWave 3D as a background image sequence and let Edge Blend clean it up Really cleans up old renderings! Filter: Saturation Description: This filter differs from the Saturation control in Layout in the fact that you can apply it to selected portions of the image. Common uses: Colored objects on a black and white background without preprocessing the background footage. Filter: Negative Description: This filter produces a color negative of the image Common uses: Animated negative effects. Filter: High/Low Limit Description: Limits the colors output between the lower and upper limits. Common Uses: VideoToaster Lumakey Prep - White 234,234,234 and Black 21,21,21, Broadcast Limits Filter: Palette Description: Reduces the number of colors in the image based on a user supplied palette or using posterization. Common uses: Game sprites Filter: Grain Description: Adds random moving noise to the image. This noise can be clumped and colored to match many grain types. Common uses: Video and Film Grain. Video Noise. Use on Objects only to blend rendered objects into the background. Filter: Flip Frame Description: Flips the image side-to-side, top-to-bottom or both. Common uses: Change an enter stage left to an enter stage right. Filter: Contrast Description: Adjust the contrast of an image. Common uses: Image Correction Filter: Mid Description: Brightens the pixels with brightness near the midpoint, while darkening the pixels that differ the most from the midpoint. Common uses: Image Correction Filter: Gamma Description: Gamma allows control of the range between the darkest and lightest areas of your image. Common uses: Image Correction. Filter: Lum Description: The brightness of each pixel is equally raised and lowered. Linear Brightness. Common uses: Image Correction. Fade to/from Black Filter: Bright Description: Each pixel is brightened or darkened based on its original brightness. Shadows are affected least, while bright areas are affected most. Common uses: Image Correction. Fade to/from Black Filters: Red, Green & Blue Description: Color correction: Multiply, Add and Replace modes. Common uses: Tint Shadows only. Image color correction, Composite matching. Virtual lens filters for the LightWave 3D camera. Filter: Image Black Description: Paints black (0,0,0) on every selected pixel. Common uses: Creating RGB mattes. Temporarily marking selected areas. Makes identifying affected areas straightforward but don't forget to turn it off. Filter: Image White Description: Paints white (255,255,255) on every selected pixel. Common uses: Creating RGB mattes Filter: Alpha Black Description: Paints black (0) on every selected pixel in the Alpha channel. Causes the selected areas to show in the Alpha channel as if they were the background. Common uses: Keep selected surfaces from marking the Alpha channel. Great for Garbage Matte polygons that need to mark areas as background that would normally be set to object. Filter: Alpha White Description: Paints white (255) on every selected pixel in the Alpha channel. Causes the selected areas to show in the Alpha channel as if they were objects. Common uses: Use with High/Low Range to select Blue/Green screen backgrounds and matte them out. Save that affected Alpha channel and you have a clipmap for your footage.