Ultra Tutorial 7 :Using ULTRA as a multi-layer compositing tool

By Karl Soule'

ULTRA can handle up to 7 layers of stills and video in a single pass, and is very fast and easy to use. In this tutorial, we are going to create a 4 layer composite, with 2 still images and 2 video clips. We will key someone into the cover of a magazine, with another video clip playing behind the magazine. The videos and one of the stills are part of the sample content included with ULTRA. The other still image can be downloaded by clicking here. 1. Start by using the "Simple Keyed with B Source" set found in the Basic folder. 2. Set up your key in ULTRA normally, using the green-screen clip as your input clip, and the background video/image as a Background. In this example, we are using the Suzy - Tight.AVI file as the Input Clip, and Africa.jpg as the background.

3. now, we are going to add in the magazine cover. You should already have downloaded the picture. It'll look something like this:

The checkerbox area in the middle and around the edges should be transparent. Drag and drop this image into the OVERLAY window in ULTRA.

4. Select the Input Clip, and go to the Scene tab. Use the "Input Position in Scene" control to resize and position the keyed person into the window in the magazine. Remember that holding down SHIFT while dragging the green box resizes the layer.

5. Select the Background, and do the same.

6. To fill the background area, drag and drop the clip into the B-source icon. In this example, we are using Contemporary World News.mpg found in the Animations folder in Backgrounds.

7. The B-source will appear in the upper left corner of the image. Use the Scene tab to scale and size it to fit full-screen. The easiest way to do this is to enter in 0.00 for the X, Y, and Z values.

8. Now, to rotate the magazine cover - Select the Overlay icon. Use the Input Orientation in Scene control to set the rotation of the magazine cover.

9. Copy and paste the X, Y, and Z values from the Overlay to the Input Clip and Background layers. You may need to make a minor positioning change to each of the layers to get them to match up to the hole in the magazine cover.