Green screens are the holy grail of creating special video effects. They're the one thing that unites seasoned Hollywood filmmakers and newbies learning their craft.
As such, if you are new to filmmaking or want to boost the quality of your videos, then your shooting set remains incomplete until you have a green screen. However, since green screens used by professionals cost hundreds of dollars, you might benefit from creating your DIY green screen.
But, before we show you how to make a green screen, let us look at the purpose and importance of green screens.
A green screen is a solid-colored background, often green, that is used in photography and videography. It makes it easier to change the background and add effects during the post-production phase for a more appealing and visually detailed image or video.
A green screen gives filmmakers flexibility over their production by supporting Chroma Keying.
Chroma keying is a visual effects technique used by editors to remove the green screen or chroma key backgrounds from a video scene. Once removed, another background that best suits the foreground is layered onto the video scene, making it more appealing.
The good news is that as a DIY filmmaker, you never have to worry about manually altering backgrounds after using a green screen. Today, even high-ranking filmmakers use software to simplify their activities, and so can you.
Roxio's Creator NXT Pro 8 is an affordable and powerful multimedia suite that supports amazing video editing capabilities. It allows you to become an instant professional by enabling you to create green-screen visual effects similar to what movie-makers do.
If you are on a budget and cannot afford to invest in a professional green screen, you should not give up on creating a chroma key video. You can always learn how to make a chroma key green screen that works just as well as a professional one. The best way to create a DIY green screen is to:
You can easily find large sheets of non-glossy paper and paint it vivid green. The next step would be to arrange them to form a screen large enough to be used for your background. You can place them side by side on a wall behind you or use a lightweight board to hold them in place.
Another simple solution when you need a DIY green screen is to buy a bright green muslin cloth or fabric. Still, you need to be careful about the type of green screen fabric that you choose. A rule of thumb is to avoid shiny fabric that will reflect light and go for heavier fabrics that are less prone to creasing.
Green-colored poster boards are easily available in most craft stores, and they are a great option for a DIY green screen. If you do not find poster boards in green (avoid those with glossy surfaces), you can paint the boards on your own.
Finally, you can opt to use a wall as your background, especially if you mostly shoot from the same location. Green matte paint is the best pick. And while shooting your videos, it will be important to ensure the entire wall is well lit.
One of the simplest yet most effective ways of making your videos more appealing and immersive is using green screen effects. As a beginner, you can easily make a DIY green screen backdrop and create the desired video effects using Roxio Creator NXT Pro.