Question / Help Green Screen help needed

Hello everybody!

I've been having this blanket for a long time. So i sat it up
http://imgur.com/v9O5GXB

But as expected. It didn't work.
I have a lot of grimse thing. Looks like distortion..
Do you think i need something else?
I think of buying a dark green paper or just papers'
 

Tidy

Member
Hey dude,

I too had the same problems with my greenscreen. It all comes down to lighting. You need to try and create a constant colour across the green.

In your pic u have a light coming in from the left, which in turn makes the right hand side of the screen look darker.
 

FerretBomb

Active Member
Yep, seconded. The problem isn't the color of the fabric, it's getting it lighted correctly. You need a uniform shade across the screen, and in that pic you have a HUGE hot-spot tailing off into a gradient shadow.

For that kind of setup, I'd almost recommend a fluorescent shop-light (the kind with 3' tubes) set up on-end or hung above the screen, with a homemade 'barn door' light guide/shade to keep all of the light pointed only at the screen if possible ad not splashing back on you. Also using a tube to match the color-temperature of the rest of your room/studio lighting (to make it easier to set up the white balance correctly).
 
Hi guys thanks.

Tomorrow i'll be buying some green paint color code *RAL 6018* Which is heard should work really good...
Sadly i only have 1 light which is the one you see in the picture.
Let me take some pictures of my room and you can see what i'm talking about.
 
Here you go guys. Hope i can get some help :)

http://imgur.com/a/FJxCI/all

The pictures seems to be a little darker than what it actually is.

Sadly, i do not have anymore light than those 2 as you can see. Idk how to posistion this damn light i have since the light is funny.. Been trying all kinds of way. But i've seen in streams that light in their room is a lot darker than mine and it still works out.

I noticed also my shadow. In the backdrop.
The shadow makes it glittery as well..

Found 2 more light 2 cables on 1 meter each L.E.D i can place one on the floor level and top level of my wall for it to light properly take a look at them

http://imgur.com/a/GHjHb/all

That should hopefully do the trick. These 2 L.E.D's are used as aquarium lights.
They are really bright and can light bright for up to 50% of a 2,50m wall. They can light around 1,50 meter clean
 

Tidy

Member
Hey dude, im no pro by any means, but i always found the best light comes from both sides - however you cant do this. What i would do is have the light coming in from over my head... so like have the lamp on the desk pointing the light at the green screen.

Dont have the light too low otherwise it will cast a shadow of you lol
 

FerretBomb

Active Member
It's a possibility, but rather than buying that stuff, I'd just buy a cheap clamp-light or two, a shiny/aluminum automotive windshield shade, and set up a bounce-light to help cut down on the shadows. Alternately, you can get some THIN fireproof material (silk/blend is traditional) and stretch it over your current greenscreen light to act as a diffuser, help to spread out and soften the light, eliminate the shadows.

No idea how those aquarium LEDs are going to work out. I'd be a bit skeptical though... if you're talking about the wall being lit up from an aquarium, do remember that water acts as a diffraction filter and will help scatter light. So using the LED strips alone may not be as effective.

I'd still say that investing in a proper lighting setup is really what needs to happen.
 
Thanks for the replies. I'm going to buy the painting tomorrow. So i always have a green screen. No need to pack it down and what'so ever. Second of all. I might get myself some of those projector lights with the thing that recudes the shadow.
But that's a lot of money as far as i know.. But yea.
 

FerretBomb

Active Member
I'd again recommend not buying the paint. The cloth you have will work fine, if you light it correctly. If you paint the wall, you'll have the same problem... plus a non-removable, green wall. If you're going for a dedicated studio, painted (matte) walls can be convenient. But it really, really shouldn't be used to try to fix what is absolutely, 100% a lighting problem, NOT a color problem.
 

Tidy

Member
I would also assume paint (even matted) would create more of a shadow/shine issue. One of my offices have matt paint and its surprising how much light it actually reflects
 
But well lightning is my problem, so a wall that would reflect more is even better. I had 2 more lamp 100w but they are 2 different lights - Flurocent and *the cold one*
 

FerretBomb

Active Member
No, a wall that reflects more means a surface that will have a bright 'hot spot' in the reflection, and be harder to chroma-key out.
 

Tidy

Member
I popped out my green screen (has been used as a very comfy cat bed for the past 2-3 months lol). This thing is bad (my poor bad choice), it is not like a normal soft cloth screen, its very thick and some what shiny, and creases don't come out lol - put it near heat and it melts!.... however, even with my LED spotlights i managed to get OBS to perform the greenscreen effect.

The whole greenscreen does not work (due to bad lighting), however just by angling the spotlights and "clipping" the webcam works.

If you can get your head in the frame with the greenscreen effect - but NOT the rest of the webcam - just clip the webcam area so you hide the bits that are not working well :)
 
the green screen solution i went with was a mix of bright lime green poster board from Walmart (quite a few sheets) and a couple of 1x1 yard sheets of lime green cloth.

The poster board I mounted to my wall ( i am sitting with my back to the corner of the room). The corner is about 5 feet behind me.

I then have 4 mounted light fixtures, 2 on the legs of my compute table aiming at the back wall, and two others mounted higher up covering the upper portion of the wall. The room light overhead lights me (and the other 4 mounted lights negate any shadow cast by the room light).

In the corner behind me is my audio mixer on a metal cart. I lined the sides of the card with additional poster board, and then draped the cloth over top the mixer. It adds the nice effect of the mixer magically appearing out of nowhere when i need to adjust it on stream.

The cost-per-square-inch different between the cloth and the poster board is extremely negligible ($0.0013 per sq-inch poster board vs $0.0019 per sq-inch cloth), but i find the poster board works better than cloth for the back walls due to them not being as reactive to drafts as well as not bunching up. The cloth, the way i am using it, works great for an adjustable cover for the mixer.

As for the mounted lights, they are all LED bulbs. The two lower ones are about 2.5w, and the two upper ones are 9w.

Full Green Screen
9w light
2.5w light
Mixer uncovered

Me, Chroma Key off
Me, Chroma Key On, Red Background Fill

The most expensive parts of this setup, not including the computer equipment, was the light bulbs and fixtures. Since the bulbs themselves output no real amounts of heat, they work really well.
 
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