xparent png in xparent png out - how to?

[charlie pomaski]

I'm just an old stump. How can I import a series of xparent pngs, manipulate them with StudioArtist and then export xparent pngs so that I can assemble them into an xparent  video overlay with ffmpeg? I can do the ffmpeg with no trouble.

Can I skip the last part and export xparent mov files directly from StudioArtist?

[Synthetik]

I also wanted to mention that there's an Action : Process with Paint Action Sequence : Image to Movie menu command, that allows you to process a folder of images with a PASeq and output a movie file. So if you want to process a whole folder of images, this might be the right way to automatically do that.

[Synthetik]

I wanted to point out that you can use Content Context action steps in a PASeq to associate specific movie files with specific layers in Studio Artist. Depending on what you are tying to do, this might be a better way to do it rather than outputting embedded alpha movies and compositing that somewhere else.

This would be especially true if you want to use paint presets that are wet. Because the kind of mixing that occurs in them isn't really compatible with alpha style painting, because they wet mix the background directly into the paint nib. And that process occurs recursively as the paint stroke is drawn, leading to really nice visual effects.

Here's a tip on PASeq Contexts.

So you'd associate your backing movie with a specific layer using a Content Context action step and then directly paint into that layer on top of the movie frame image that was automatically loaded into that layer for each frame of PASeq processing. 

[charlie pomaski]

Thanks for the tip reference. I'll study it along with the other references you've given. But, all of this is good only if you have SA. If I want to design an overlay effect and send it to a friend, who doesn't have SA, for an overlay in his video editor I need xparency. If I use a single color background in my output and he uses chroma key then the system works. I just have to continue using ffmpeg, or EPS output to images, modify the background color to xparency and then ffmpeg back to xparency .mov like I'm doing now. I'll keep studying. Thanks again.

[Synthetik]

If you want to turn on alpha enabled painting, then just make sure the complete RGB part of the paint nib is filling with solid color. Most factory paint presets do not work that way (they often mix in the canvas at the edges of the nib), so you might need to tweak them in the paint synth editor.

This topic has come up before in discussions on the user forum. At some point in the past i posted a detailed explanation of what is going on in alpha enabled painting, and why you have to pay attention what is being put in the RGB part of the paint nib if you want to avoid color ghosting.