Primatte

What doesn't Primatte do?

We have highlighted three questions that are often asked about Primatte. This information will help you decide if Primatte is the tool you need. If you are still unclear about what Primatte does (or, doesn't) do, feel free to contact us.

Not a general masking tool.

Primatte Chromakey is not a general masking plugin. There are many third-party tools that are sold for non-specific masking situations. Typically, these plugins concentrate on finding the edges around your subject, which allows you to delete out the background imagery.

In contrast, Primatte examines a photograph's color space. This allows Primatte to expertly define a narrow range of tones to extract. It's the best way to mask around fine details that are otherwise difficult, like wispy hair and sheer fabric.

NOT a Primatte job. The background of this scene does consist of mostly solid colors. However, Primatte removes only a SINGLE color or color range.

NOT a Primatte job. This model wears a color that is in the scene behind her. Primatte extracts only one color, and that color should be unique from original background.

Doesn't create new backgrounds.

Primatte is great for situations in which you want to substitute one background for another. It does NOT, however, create those new backgrounds. Instead, Primatte is the tool that deletes the current background you want to get rid of.

In the steps shown at right, Primatte is only responsible for Step #2. That is the extraction of a single color background. Primatte leaves a transparent area around your model, and it's up to you to generate a new background. The new background shown in Step #3 was created and inserted outside of Primatte.

By the way, there are many software packages that will create new digital backgrounds for you. One great tool is our Photoshop plugin Backdrop Designer. This tool ships with beautiful resolution-indpendent textures that look like muslin drapes and are customizable. Otherwise, arm yourself with a camera, a scanner or a few stock photography CD's to create your own custom backgrounds.

May not fix lighting issues.

Like all areas of photography, chromakey work needs good lighting and good props. If the photograph is too dark or bright, if your subject is not well-lit or the lighting is uneven, then Primatte will have difficulty creating a mask.

Primatte WILL create a mask, but that mask may be less than perfect. You will most likely need to do a little manual work (like garbage mattes and Photoshop retouching) before or after the keying process.

The photo at right was poorly lit and is too dark overall. The photo also has two bright hot spots. Primatte does not have good digital material to work with. The plugin will compensate, but probably not perfectly. Read about how to light properly here.

May not fix shadow issues.

After your photoshoot, you may notice a deep shadow cast along the backing screen. This shadow generally happens from the subject being placed too close to the chromakey screen. Primatte will do its best, but the plugin can't always properly define the shadow's tonal range (which you want to extract) as different from the dark tones that you want to retain in your subject.

In the photo at left, the heavy shadow behind the girl's arms comes from her sitting too close to the screen. Our 'princess' is sitting only 1-2 feet away from the green screen. Ideally, your model will be positioned at least 4-6 feet away from the screen, and preferably up to 10 feet. Read about how to work with a screen here.

 

May not fix wrinkle issues.

It is also possible that the backing screen you used was not ideal. For instance, the screen may have an uneven tone or deep wrinkles. This causes Primatte some difficulty in defining the range of color that it needs to remove.

In this closeup at right, the green screen shows a texture that's quite varied in tone. Unfortunately, this uneven tone hides the target color from Primatte. Read about how to work with a screen here.