GREENSCREEN REFLECTED INTO A PUDDLE

freddie bonfanti · September 13, 2005

hi, i am a student and i will shoot a short film next week with lots of greenscreen. although i already know how to light and shoot greenscreen i have a question about a particular shot which my director told me about and which is giving me hard time: he wants to have some greenscreen action reflected into a puddle on the street. the character is walking on the street and once he steps into a puddle he sees a storm of blimps flying in the sky reflected in the water. is this possible? how can i light the greenscreen above him and keep the key green colour safe into the puddle?

i know its an ambitious shot but we are not afraid...

any help will be highly appreciated

Gordon Highland · September 13, 2005

To me, it sounds like the bigger challenge is the fact that steps into the puddle. This will displace, splash, and ripple the water, and any image you key over this puddle will need to follow that as well, and that's extremely difficult.

I'd probably try to shoot that in-camera. Finish your CGI blimp shot first and then project it onto a flat "sky" surface over his head parallel to the floor. The reflections you get will be real ones.

John Allardice · September 13, 2005

hi, i am a student and i will shoot a short film next week with lots of greenscreen. although i already know how to light and shoot greenscreen i have a question about a particular shot which my director told me about and which is giving me hard time: he wants to have some greenscreen action reflected into a puddle on the street. the character is walking on the street and once he steps into a puddle he sees a storm of blimps flying in the sky reflected in the water. is this possible? how can i light the greenscreen above him and keep the key green colour safe into the puddle?
i know its an ambitious shot but we are not afraid...

any help will be highly appreciated

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Pop down a sheet of mylar,( a thin reflective flexible plastic sheeting) onto the floor, that'll reflect both the greenscreen & the talent. In the comp you'll need to rotomask round the guy's feet, to seperate the area that's going to be distorted as the puddle "splashes". Try to light the mylar sheet as little as possible, just let it reflect.

J

Phil Rhodes · September 13, 2005

Hi,

While it's certainly possible to render the complex reaction of a puddle being stepped in, I'd go with the "do it live" solution if there's even the vaguest chance your effects element can be available for the shoot. You could slide project it.

Phil