 dlk
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| Joined: 11 Sep 2004 |
| Total Posts: 2027 |
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Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 09 Aug 2005 07:29 PM |
This seems to be a popular request, so I thought
I could create a very simple method to achieve this look.
This description may seem complex, but it really is very simple.
It's only long because I am trying to give a very detailed
description, step by step, like a cookbook.
MM2 does not support multiple video tracks, so we are
forced to do this in multiple passes, but hopefully this
method will make the job easy and understandable.
*PIP+ is REQUIRED - available at www.rehanfx.com
(that's the only way I could make this as simple as possible)
A 9 Window Brady Bunch effect
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Step 1 -
Take a deep breath
Step 2 -
Add all 9 videos to your project
Step 3 -
Left click on the the 1st clip, hold shift and left click on the last clip
Open the Effects Window(View Video Effects), find the effect
titled Brady Bunch Window,right click it and then click the
"add to story board" selection.
Step 4 -
Verify that each clip is now a smaller window in the upper left
(click on each clip to preview)
Step 5a -
Find the effects titled Brady Bunch Shift and Brady Bunch Drop
within the effects window. You will be using these for a while.
Step 5b -
At this point you need to visualize where you want each
window to be located. So if clip#1 stays in the upper left,
leave it alone. If clip#2 is located to the right of clip#1,
drag the Brady Bunch Shift effect onto that clip.
The preview window should show you where it moved
Each window is still isolated by itself at this point.
Step 5c -
Repeat the above step. If the clip needs to shift twice, drag the effect
twice. If it needs to drop...drag the Brady Bunch Drop effect.
Drop twice? Drag the Brady Bunch Drop twice. Drop and shift?
Drag drop and the drag shift. Again, the preview window will
show you what you have done. Move all clips to the proper
location. You will start merging the windows in the next step
Step 6 -
Switch to the transition window(view video transitions) Find the
Comp A and B transition. Drag that transition between
clip#1 and clip#2, between clip#3 and clip#4, between
clip#5 and clip#6 and between clip#7 and clip#8
There should NOT be and transitions between 2&3, 4&5, 6&7 and 8&9
Step 7 -
Go to timeline view and make sure that the clips are dragged across
each other as to maximize the transition time, or your windows will not
be merged for very long. View the movie so far. There will be short sections
where the windows are isolated...but you should have extended periods
where 2 windows will be on the screen together.
Step 8-
Make the movie
Step 9-
Import the movie made in step 8
Step 10-
Cut the clip between transitions, clean up the movie where windows
are isolated(except clip9), and then repeat the method used in step 6 to
add clips 1&2 to 3&4 and add 5&6 to 7&8. Clip 9 stays alone.
Step 11-
Make the movie
Step 12-
Import the movie made in step 11
Step 13-
Repeat step 10, and combine 1&2&3&4 with 5&6&7&8. Clip 9 is still alone
Step 14-
Make the movie
Step 15-
Import the movie made in step 14
Step 16-
Repeat step 13, and combine 1&2&3&4&5&6&7&8 with Clip 9
Step 17-
Make the final movie
Yikes...seems like a lot, but this is as simple as it gets I think.
Let me know what you think.
PIP+ effects
<TransitionsAndEffects Version="1.0" SpecialIconFileID="1033" SpecialIconResourceID="101">
<Effects>
<EffectDLL guid="{0BEDE179-3361-4eea-9058-11CBB1739D50}">
<Effect name="Brady Bunch Window" iconid="0">
<Param name="RectA" value=" 0.0, 0.00,0.00,0.334,0.334" />
<Param name="Background" value="0x000000" />
</Effect>
<Effect name="Brady Bunch Shift" iconid="0">
<Param name="RectA" value=" 0.0, 0.334,0.00,1.00,1.00" />
<Param name="Background" value="0x000000" />
</Effect>
<Effect name="Brady Bunch Drop" iconid="0">
<Param name="RectA" value=" 0.0, 0.00,0.334,1.00,1.00" />
<Param name="Background" value="0x000000" />
</Effect>
</EffectDLL>
</Effects>
</TransitionsAndEffects>
<TransitionsAndEffects Version="1.0">
<Transitions>
<TransitionDLL guid="{9A43A844-0831-11D1-817F-0000F87557DB}" >
<Transition name="Comp A add B" iconid="0" comment="DXCOMPFUNC_A_ADD_B">
<Param name="Function" value="9" />
</Transition>
</TransitionDLL>
</Transitions>
</TransitionsAndEffects>
As usual... copy paste the xml code into notepad and use File->Save As to save as brady.xml
and COMP.xml extension in folder C:\Program Files\Movie Maker\Shared\AddOnTFX. Create the AddOnTFX folder if necessary. Confirm the file has .xml extension by turning off the "hide extensions of known file types" from Explorer > Tools > Folder options > View. Restart WMM.
dlk
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 10 Aug 2005 08:52 AM |
Thanks DLK,
I've been looking for some one to explain this. Could never really get a straight answer out of them. It's a little long, though. |
Now rid of those bright colors
http://TpFlash.50webs.com/ |
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dlk
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| Joined: 11 Sep 2004 |
| Total Posts: 2027 |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 10 Aug 2005 08:59 AM |
ok...here is an abridged explaination.
See above for detail if needed.
Add the 9 clips to your project.
Apply the new Brady Bunch window effect to all clips
Move the position of the clips using the new shift & drop effects
Combine the clips (in pairs) using the comb A and B transition
Make movie.
Import movie, cut and repeat combine until all 9 are combined.
hope this is better
dlk |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 10 Aug 2005 09:57 AM |
| Much better! I don't the attention span to read the other one. |
Now rid of those bright colors
http://TpFlash.50webs.com/ |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 10 Aug 2005 07:45 PM |
| Thats great dlk. I would like to mention that this method would work even with freeware use of PIP+. |
www.rehanfx.org - do more with Windows Movie Maker...
rehanfx.x10hosting.com - mirror site |
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glow
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| Joined: 17 Jan 2005 |
| Total Posts: 1434 |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 10 Aug 2005 07:52 PM |
I did successfully make a 3*3 in the days before PIP+,
just using the original PIP frozen split transitions with a nudge here and there
- it got the desired "Wow! - how did you do that?" from my audience.
However it took me a few hours just to make a few seconds of finished video.
The next time I did it, I just used a 2*2 to save time.
Movie Maker really is a clumsy tool to do this effect.
So last night I had another go using an avisynth script and virtualdub.
Seems a lot easier than MM.
If only we could get MM to import avisynth scripts....
# AviSynth script for 3*3 Brady bunch effect
# glow August 2005
w=720/3 #PAL
h=576/3
a1=AviSource( "c:\Temp\a1.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
b1=AviSource( "c:\Temp\b1.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
c1=AviSource( "c:\Temp\c1.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
a2=AviSource( "c:\Temp\a2.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
b2=AviSource( "c:\Temp\b2.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
c2=AviSource( "c:\Temp\c2.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
a3=AviSource( "c:\Temp\a3.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
b3=AviSource( "c:\Temp\b3.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
c3=AviSource( "c:\Temp\c3.avi" ).BilinearResize(w,h)
StackVertical(\
StackHorizontal(a1,b1,c1),\
StackHorizontal(a2,b2,c2),\
StackHorizontal(a3,b3,c3))
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glow
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| Joined: 17 Jan 2005 |
| Total Posts: 1434 |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 12 Aug 2005 12:08 AM |
I've done a bit of research and found that WMM can be tricked into reading AviSynth scripts using the makeavis tool with the ffdshow codec.
You install ffdshow, ticking "AviSynth scripts serving".
Make your avisynth script e.g. bradybunch.avs
Then run start - all programs - ffdshow - makeavis
This makes a new (small) file with an avi extension e.g. bradybunch.avi which can be imported
into WMM.
The trick is that the avi file calls the ffdshow codec which then calls the avisynth script (normally WMM won't like an avisynth script).
I think this is more convenient than having to use virtualdub+avisynth to create intermediate avi files.
So now we can use avisynth scripts within WMM to do reverse video, brady bunch, read vob files and many other things which are normally not so easy in WMM.
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 12 Aug 2005 12:19 AM |
| WOWSA Glow.... you're glowing brighter and brighter. |
... my website isn't here... it's at www.papajohn.org
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glow
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| Joined: 17 Jan 2005 |
| Total Posts: 1434 |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 12 Aug 2005 02:27 PM |
Yes glow, I have also previosuly tested this method of using AviSynth scripts but did not mention it due to caution. ffdshow codec itself is the problem with Movie Maker, perhaps somewhat understandably because it is not tested/optimized for MM.
I found Link2 to be more stable for this purpose... but that is not free. Another one is VFAPICodec whch requires further complicated steps... |
www.rehanfx.org - do more with Windows Movie Maker...
rehanfx.x10hosting.com - mirror site |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 14 Aug 2005 01:44 AM |
... so I'm back to playing on the sidelines... while the techies in here sort things out some more.
No hurry... I'm doing a PIP with AVISynth that puts 16 videos together at once, but in Virtual Dub, not Movie Maker. |
... my website isn't here... it's at www.papajohn.org
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glow
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| Joined: 17 Jan 2005 |
| Total Posts: 1434 |
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 14 Aug 2005 06:20 AM |
Although the makeavis AVI file was generally unstable with WMM, it was stable enough for me to render a 5 second 3*3 brady bunch with WMM using the above Avisynth script.
As a test movie, I used a couple of the creativity fun pack countdown movies.
It was certainly quicker and easier than 8 iterations using WMM PIP transitions and all the videos were in sync since I didn't have the non-overlapping frames at the beginning of each iteration which is a nuisance when using the PIP transition in MM.
Of course using VirtualDub with the same script was just as quick (actually quicker since I didn't have to run makeavis first).
I also tried a makeavis+avisynth script for reverse video - also worked with WMM as long as I wasn't too ambitious with the editing.
Reverse video also had better real-time preview than the bradybunch as you'd expect since the latter was trying to combine 9 video sources.
So at this stage because of the instability I wouldn't be inserting a makeavis+avisynth into a general WMM project - just using it as a single clip project and rendering a separate intermediate movie for later inclusion in a longer movie - much the same as using avisynth+virtualdub.
The main reason I'd prefer WMM (or Windows Media Encoder) over VirtualDub is so I could use a smaller WMV intermediate file rather than a larger AVI file (couldn't seem to get Virtualdub to use the Windows Media codecs). I also tried out Nic's Windows Media 9 Encoder described in the Avisynth help
http://www.avisynth.org/Section+2:+AviSynth+and+frameserving
It reads avisynth scripts directly but seemed to be slower than Microsoft's windows media encoder.
Of course by rendering an intermediate movie we've negated the main advantage of using frameserving.
I had a look at the VFAPIcodec referenced by Rehan - as suggested it does seem complicated to set up and probably not worth the effort for the odd time one wants to use an avisynth filter in WMM.
Sorry if dlk's thread has gone off topic somewhat - I still reckon avisynth is a more convenient way to do 3*3 brady bunch than using WMM PIP transitions.
Perhaps we'll re-visit this fake avi topic some other time if stability improves.
Please return to the pitch PapaJohn and tell us about your 16 video experience...
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 14 Aug 2005 03:06 PM |
Here's a test clip with 10 videos... I don't like the visual of the 16 as much as I like these with some variety of box sizes.
PiP Testing - Clip
I did it in 3 passes to get it done quicker.
I wasn't resizing the input DV-AVI files as I added the checkerboard together.... at the point of doing 8 of them in parallel, my RAM needs were pushing up there, and the CPU was really low during rendering.... without the CPU cycles, rendering was going too slow.
Just playing... it was made with AviSynth and Virtual Dub, with Movie Maker used to add the text and render it to the final video.
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... my website isn't here... it's at www.papajohn.org
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Re: Creating a Brady Bunch Effect - A simplified method(I hope)
Posted: 15 Aug 2005 02:13 PM |
Here's the next text clip.... a bit shy of a minute
PIP Test 2
with 1 GB of RAM in my laptop and wanting to use DV-AVI source files, I found that I needed 1.7 GB or RAM/Virtual Memory to process a 4 pack... so I took a few passes to make the 4 packs and then put four 4 packs together into a 16 pack.
A growing checkerboard needs something more, so it's Movie Maker for finishing text, an overlay frame using a custom text clip, and rendering with the right profile.
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... my website isn't here... it's at www.papajohn.org
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glow
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| Joined: 17 Jan 2005 |
| Total Posts: 1434 |
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