Fade to Black in FCP at DVinfo.net

John C. Plunkett · June 13th, 2008, 09:55 AM

I recently shot a movie that was edited on iMovie. I wasn't present for the editing process, but their is a fade to black transition that is far greater than anything available in FCP. Like I said, I wasn't there so I don't know if he was using a special plug-in transition or if that is just a standard transition in iMovie.

Does anyone know of a good plug-in package that includes a fade to black that is more like film? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Mike Barber · June 13th, 2008, 11:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John C. Plunkett

a fade to black that is more like film?

Can you quantify what you mean by "more like film"?

Other ways of fading to black than with a plug-in is to add keyframes to the video track's opacity and use bezier handles to create a logarithmic curve for a smoother fade, rather than a straight linear fade.

Boyd Ostroff · June 14th, 2008, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Barber

Other ways of fading to black than with a plug-in is to add keyframes to the video track's opacity and use bezier handles to create a logarithmic curve for a smoother fade, rather than a straight linear fade.

That's the only way I ever do fades to black or dissolves in FCP, and it seems to provide a lot of flexibility.

Frank Simpson · June 14th, 2008, 08:38 PM

I'll echo that as well. About 95% of the time I'll just key-frame it.

John C. Plunkett · June 16th, 2008, 07:42 AM

I guess the best way to describe it would be to say there were different curves set to different gamma thresholds, anything dark or semi-lit would fade smoother over time while the brighter or well-lit areas wouldn't be affected till the very last few frames. The standard fade to black seems to fade both the high and low lit areas the exact same way.

Mike Barber · June 16th, 2008, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John C. Plunkett

I guess the best way to describe it would be to say there were different curves set to different gamma thresholds, anything dark or semi-lit would fade smoother over time while the brighter or well-lit areas wouldn't be affected till the very last few frames. The standard fade to black seems to fade both the high and low lit areas the exact same way.

I think the Non-Additive Dissolve will give you something more akin to that.

Richard Alvarez · June 16th, 2008, 11:16 AM

I don't know how it works, but in AVID there is a different effect for 'fade to black' for film and video. But yeah, it does exactly what you describe.

Scott Anderson · June 16th, 2008, 12:19 PM

How about Graeme Nattress' G Film Dissolve, part of his wonderful $100 Film Effects plugins:

http://www.nattress.com/Products/fil...m_Dissolve.htm

I have the set myself, and apart from some rather slow render times, I can't recommend it highly enough - overall, a great value for the money.

And the G Film Dissolve pretty much lets you dial in the dissolve to your taste.

Abdessamad Idrissi · February 5th, 2010, 02:03 PM

it seems a little bit an old post, but may help other people :
------------
by Dave LaRonde on Jan 25, 2010 at 11:13:25 pm

Put a black slug on the track below the footage in the timeline.
Set the footage to ADD blending mode.
Bring the opacity up from 0 to 100.
--------
Other Articles you can mix with the above technique:
http://www.lacquer.fi/blog/?p=8
http://www.lacquer.fi/blog/?p=5

Robert Lane · February 5th, 2010, 05:33 PM

100% spot-on; one of the complaints many Avid-to-FCP users have is the most simple of things: The basic dissolve to black. The default drop-in isn't filmic and very dull. I couldn't get some of the links that A.I. posted but the concept Scott and others posted is solid: if you want a more organic or filmic appearance to FTB transitions from Final Cut then adopting another plug-in or using manual additive dissolves will do the trick.

June 13th, 2008, 09:55 AM	#1
John C. Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Jacksonville, Illinois Posts: 130	Fade to Black in FCP I recently shot a movie that was edited on iMovie. I wasn't present for the editing process, but their is a fade to black transition that is far greater than anything available in FCP. Like I said, I wasn't there so I don't know if he was using a special plug-in transition or if that is just a standard transition in iMovie. Does anyone know of a good plug-in package that includes a fade to black that is more like film? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

June 14th, 2008, 08:38 PM	#4
Frank Simpson Major Player Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Bozeman, MT Posts: 217	I'll echo that as well. About 95% of the time I'll just key-frame it.

June 16th, 2008, 07:42 AM	#5
John C. Plunkett Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Jacksonville, Illinois Posts: 130	I guess the best way to describe it would be to say there were different curves set to different gamma thresholds, anything dark or semi-lit would fade smoother over time while the brighter or well-lit areas wouldn't be affected till the very last few frames. The standard fade to black seems to fade both the high and low lit areas the exact same way.

June 16th, 2008, 11:16 AM	#7
Richard Alvarez Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: San Mateo, CA Posts: 3,840	I don't know how it works, but in AVID there is a different effect for 'fade to black' for film and video. But yeah, it does exactly what you describe.

June 16th, 2008, 12:19 PM	#8
Scott Anderson Major Player Join Date: May 2003 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 327	How about Graeme Nattress' G Film Dissolve, part of his wonderful $100 Film Effects plugins: http://www.nattress.com/Products/fil...m_Dissolve.htm I have the set myself, and apart from some rather slow render times, I can't recommend it highly enough - overall, a great value for the money. And the G Film Dissolve pretty much lets you dial in the dissolve to your taste.

February 5th, 2010, 02:03 PM	#9
Abdessamad Idrissi New Boot Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Ouarzazate (Morocco) to Berlin (Deutschland) Posts: 21	it seems a little bit an old post, but may help other people : ------------ by Dave LaRonde on Jan 25, 2010 at 11:13:25 pm Put a black slug on the track below the footage in the timeline. Set the footage to ADD blending mode. Bring the opacity up from 0 to 100. -------- Other Articles you can mix with the above technique: http://www.lacquer.fi/blog/?p=8 http://www.lacquer.fi/blog/?p=5

February 5th, 2010, 05:33 PM	#10
Robert Lane Go Go Godzilla Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 2,826 Images: 15	100% spot-on; one of the complaints many Avid-to-FCP users have is the most simple of things: The basic dissolve to black. The default drop-in isn't filmic and very dull. I couldn't get some of the links that A.I. posted but the concept Scott and others posted is solid: if you want a more organic or filmic appearance to FTB transitions from Final Cut then adopting another plug-in or using manual additive dissolves will do the trick.