Flash 8 with Alpha Channel
by Pete Zaini
on
Jul 10, 2008 at 4:06:57 am
Hey guys,
Just downloaded trial version of Episode Pro and of Sorensen Squeeze 5 to try to compare the encoding to flash with alpha channel for the onscreen presenter type deal.. (shot in front of a green screen)
OK.. The sorensen trial doesn't include the On2 VP6 codec.. you can get it when you buy Sorensen 5 Pro, but I cannot try it before I buy. Episode Pro just keeps making either full black screen videos or sometime White screen depending on what I do.. Maybe as for the Sorensen trial the VP6 codec isn't included in the trial version? Checked the Episode forum..bit of a Ghost Town that, and couldn't seem to find much info about alpha channel support.. a couple of post a few months old saying it was coming, but nothing since..
So please, does anyone here know...
1/ if episode pro supports alpha channel encoding, and does it work, and if it works is it nice?
2/ is Sorensen a better choice for Alpha channel support or for any other reason?
I know the Abobe Flash encoder works but is like buying a sledgehammer to drive tacks.. (way expensive now) plus I heard it doesn't have as much flexibility in this particular area which is the only thing i want..
Oh.. I also tried Flix Pro.. cannot get that to work either.. Not having a good time..
Re: Flash 8 with Alpha Channel by Jack Arky on Jul 10, 2008 at 4:32:00 pm
Yes Episode Pro supports Flash 8 encoding with Alpha channel, but you need to pay extra for the Flash plugin that includes On2 licensing. Check Telestream's site for Episode Pro with Flash pricing. Not sure if the demo would give you full Flash functionality. We've had good results with exactly the type of work you describe. Our source is rendered using FCP to Compressor with the Animation w/Alpha preset. Occasionally I've seen a bug where incorrect timing information gets written to the header of the Flash file (a 2min file is 6mins long with 4mins of blank space). Setting an "Out" point fixes the problem. I've reported the bug to Episode and expect they'll have it fixed in the next rev. I've only seen it happen a few times. Otherwise, works fast and looks great.
Re: Flash 8 with Alpha Channel by Pete Zaini on Jul 11, 2008 at 1:43:18 am
Hi Jack and thanks for the reply..
The trail says it's fully functional. When I do a SWF I get a just black screen with audio. Dunno what's going on there yet..
I can make a flv, but the background is black. But I suppose that doesn't necessarily mean the alpha channel is not there T suppose.. I don't know of an option to select a checkerboard background in the player I'm testing it in, so how could I tell?
I suppose I could send it through to the client's web designer and ask them to try it on the site.. Kinda embarrassing though if it doesn't have an alpha channel afterall..
Should the alpha channel show as transparency in a player? I'm using Flix FLV player to test..
Re: Flash 8 with Alpha Channel by Jack Arky on Jul 11, 2008 at 4:59:38 pm
Hey Pete,
1) Confirm that your source has alpha channel. Open the file in Quicktime. Select Window "Show Movie Properties." Click on the Video Track. Click on the "Visual Settings" tab. On the lower left of the window there is a transparency pull-down, select "Straight Alpha." You should see your keyed source with a white background. This is exactly how your Flash file should look. If you don't see this, then something's not right with the alpha channel. Like I said, we've had best results rendering out of FCP to Compressor using the Animation NTSC Alpha preset. You may have already done this, but I figure it's worth mentioning.
2) I've only rendered FLV not SWF so can't say if SWF works. I've viewed the file using free SWF&FLV player from eltima (http://mac.eltima.com/freeflashplayer.html). If you see a white background in the encoded file, your alpha channel is there. If it's a black background, it's not. i've also used a free player that's PC-based that's called FLV player (don't know the site). On that player the alpha background shows up as gray (rather than black). But really the best way to confirm that the alpha is there is to look at it in Flash. Still, if you see that white background in the freeplayer, you should be good to go.
3) Lastly in Episode...this is a silly question, but since you're trying out the demo you may not have seen this, but when editing the setting, under the video tab, twirl down the Flash 8 Video settings and make sure the "Encode Alpha Channel" check box is checked.
Best of luck,
Jack
PS Thanks Craig...I'm going to download 5.0.1 right now!
Re: Flash 8 with Alpha Channel by robinson alexandr on Jul 18, 2008 at 10:51:40 pm
I use flash video mx pro 5.0 do that, encode video to swf/flv with flash 8 alpha codec for video overlay, convert my wmv video to flv along with a flash player embedded in the flv, h264 codec can be chosen, output video quality will be better than h263
