Need help with a matte.

[Patrick Janka]

I'm reading the book, Color Correction Handbook, by Alexis Van Hurkman. Excellent book. I'm in chapter 4, which deals with pulling color keys using HSL qualifiers. I'm using secondary color correction in the Three-Way Color Corrector. There's an element in the shot that needs to have its color altered. However, altering it affects other parts of the image with similar hue. The book suggests creating a garbage matte for the item so that the color change only affects that portion of the image. How do I go about creating a matte like that? Creating a garbage matte permanently discards the image around the item. How can I create a matte so that alterations to the image affect only what's in the matte while keeping the rest of the image intact? Thanks.

[Battle Vaughan]

Make a duplicate of your video track on the next track up. Apply your mask to that track, whatever is discarded on the top track will let the (unaltered) content show through from the bottom track, leaving your masked material happily in place on top. You can do a track mask and have the mask follow the content if it moves. Probably a peek at lynda.com or, probably, one of the Adobe TV tutorials would help, as the process for a track mask is a wee bit complicated. The on-line help file, however, will give you the basics.

[Patrick Janka]

I was hoping for a solution that only involved one track, but, I guess I just have to deal with the limitations. Thanks!

[Ann Bens]

I wonder which program can do that with just one track.

[Bart Walczak]

Any decent color correction software, Colorista plugin or Color Finesse in After Effects.

[Patrick Janka]

I think Premiere's color correction tools are pretty comprehensive. There might be a little circumnavigating, but overall, all the tools are available.

[Ann Bens]

I meant native.
You can use CII also in Premiere.