Export Quicktime Without Alpha

[mediasaurus]

I personally like to export SGI sequences, but here and there I need to export quicktimes, be it for preview or because the After Effects designers prefer it. Anyway, when I export a quicktime animation out of Shake I can't seem to get rid of the alpha channel, thus making a larger file and having to reexport from quicktime pro.

I've tried the following in all combinations:

• fileout node with .mov extension, fileFormat 'Auto' or 'Quicktime'
• clicked codecOptions and changed 'millions of colors+' to 'millions of colors', reverts back when I go back in
• set a reorder node right before to either 'rgbn' or 'rgb0'

When I'm viewing the fileout node in Shake it says rgb, but in Quicktime it always seems to have an embedded alpha, even if it's solid black or white. Any thoughts? Thanks

[user_deleted]

hmm.. did a test, switching the codec to millions (without +) didnt work, but this did:

CODE
Checker1 = Checker(720, 576, 1, 32, xSize/GetDefaultAspect());
Rand1 = Rand(720, 576, 1, 1, time);
Copy1 = Copy(Checker1, Rand1, 1, "a", 0);
SetAlpha1 = SetAlpha(Copy1, 0);
test_alpha = FileOut(SetAlpha1, "/Volumes/RAID/temp/test-noalpha2.mov",
    "Auto", "Shake 3 QT 1", "Apple Animation", 0, "100W@c6000WDcsuHpoe10pFnKA6W230PPMMRH#0LgfI5ALV1EaKGn3DG322egJHLPII0OIY#W@LGX82kdb08WbG1ffpWCOMfPD21mGjbck6vwZSWeqwDY9QqYHYGhu2W99guibl8rOZP1fM48XireY5iIiB1XE40K7yIDMofbjgBYZJZoPbS2IChgkX3a2B0JnfaYP#dxAK92roeacHcpX10F00eg8Tb1",
    0, 44100, 16);

quicktime still reports millions+ in the info panel, but the filesize of a 1sec clip is 1.6MB compared to the 39MB with embedded alpha
++ chris

ps: not sure if it really got rid of the alpha but since animation compresses pure black (or white) so well i wouldnt bother.

[user_deleted]

ok, i you reexport the shake generated file in qt again, the file looses the millions+ and gets slightly smaller.
another option would be to use sheer.

btw, i had issues once with compression keyframes with animation.. not sure if it was a user error, but i usually choose key every 1 frame now, or use PNG inside QT. anybody experienced something sililair?

++ chris

[user_deleted]

you might also try add a reorder node set the rgbn

that might do something.

[user_deleted]

I'm having the opposite problem. What is a good way to export just alpha? Or how do I get alpha inside the quicktime? I don't see that rgba options inside the file out node. I'm using version 4.1

[aaron-marine]

to make it simple just change your export codec and most of the time it will give you the option for rgb rgba and so on right in the settings for the fileout node.

ive never had artists ever prefer quicktime files, cause thats just asking for trouble hahaha. everywhere i have worked its been either tiff or targa so that seems pretty weird lol.

[user_deleted]

Interesting. I can't seem to figure out how to create an image sequence, it just turns into one file that after effects cant open, only shake. I did however figure out the alpha. I am using quicktime the codec needs to say millions + on it, animation, none, and tiff all work. My boss wants animtion, not sure if that is the best format, but it dosn't look to bad and the file size isn't too huge cranked up full quality. Thanks for the quick answer!

[user_deleted]

for QT with alpha, animation is a pretty good choice as it's lossless and supported by a lot of old systems. as you found out, tiff (and png) would also work. all RGBA QT codecs have the danger of gamma change issues though, and none of the default ones supports 16bit.

for image sequences, you need to name your fileout properly, like: fileout.#.tif
nearly all image formats support alpha (jpeg being one of the exceptions), which one you choose has a lot to do with compability, efficiency and bit depth of your workflow.

i suggest having a look in the shake manual as there's a long section about this.
++ chris

[user_deleted]

Thanks for telling me how to save image sequence. Good info.