Creating Your Own Mask Patterns for Matrox Axio

May 11, 2006

Trademarks Marques dposes Warenzeichen Marchi registrati Marcas registradas

Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. ....................................... Matrox, Axio, Axio.utils Adobe Systems Inc.......................................................... Adobe, Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Photoshop CS

(English) All other nationally and internationally recognized trademarks and tradenames are hereby acknowledged. (Franais) Toutes les autres marques et tous les autres noms dposs reconnus nationalement ou internationalement sont galement reconnus par les prsentes. (Deutsch) Alle sonstigen national und international bekannten Warenzeichen und Produktnamen werden hiermit anerkannt. (Italiano) Eventuali altri nomi di prodotto menzionati in questo manuale sono dei propriet di rispettivi produttori. (Espaol) Por medio del presente se reconocen todas las dems marcas y nombres comerciales reconocidos a nivel nacional e internacional.

Copyright 2006 Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. (English) All rights reserved. (Franais) Tous droits rservs. (Deutsch) Alle Rechte vorbehalten. (Italiano) Tutti i diritti riservati. (Espaol) Reservados todos los derechos.
Disclaimer Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. reserves the right to make changes in specifications at any time and without notice. The information provided by this document is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, no responsibility is assumed by Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. for its use; nor for any infringements of patents or other rights of third parties resulting from its use. No license is granted under any patents or patent rights of Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. Unauthorized recording or use of broadcast television programming, video tape, or other copyrighted material may violate copyright laws. Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. assumes no responsibility for the illegal duplication, use, or other acts that infringe on the rights of copyright owners.

Matrox Electronic Systems Ltd. 1055 St. Regis Blvd., Dorval, Quebec, Canada H9P 2T4 Tel: (514) 685-2630 Fax: (514) 685-2853 World Wide Web: www.matrox.com

Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................... 1
Requirements ....................................................................................................................................1

Creating your own mask patterns in Adobe Photoshop CS ............ 1 Converting your mask to the .gfx format .........................................3 Installing the .gfx file ........................................................................4 Bitmap dimensions ..........................................................................5

ii

Your notes

Contents

Introduction
This document explains the steps required to create a mask pattern (.gfx file) that can be used with the Matrox mask effects on Matrox Axio. We recommend that you experiment with the Matrox mask effects before completing this tutorial. That way, you will have a better understanding of some of the principles discussed in this document.
Note While these instructions are for creating mask patterns with Adobe Photoshop CS, you can use any imaging software you likeas long as you specify the correct image size, select 8-bit grayscale, and save your pattern as a .tga file.

Requirements
You must have a Matrox Axio system with Axio.utils installed.

Creating your own mask patterns in Adobe Photoshop CS

To create a mask pattern using Adobe Photoshop CS:
1 Start Adobe Photoshop CS, then choose File > New to create a new image.

2 From the Preset list, select Custom. 3 Enter the Width and Height of your mask pattern in pixels.

Note If you plan to use your mask pattern for more than one format, you must recreate it for each format with the proper dimensions. For more information on the dimensions a mask pattern must have for a specific format, see Bitmap dimensions on page 5.
Introduction

2 4 From the Color Mode lists, choose Grayscale and 8 bit. 5 Under Advanced, choose a Pixel Aspect Ratio that matches your projects

ratio from the list.

Note It is not mandatory that the Pixel Aspect Ratio match the ratio of your project, however, this will create a better looking mask.
6 Click OK. 7 Create your mask pattern using any of the tools in the toolbox. You can use

the 256 shades of gray available to you. Areas of white in your mask pattern create an opaque area that prevents the underlying clip from showing through. Black areas of your mask pattern create transparent areas, and gray areas create semi-transparent areas.

8 When you are satisfied with your mask pattern, choose File > Save As,

name your file, and select Targa *.tga as the file type.

Creating your own mask patterns in Adobe Photoshop CS

Remarks If you want to use your mask in many different formats, it may be useful to create it in the largest format first, and scale it down for the smaller formats. Just be sure you have the correct aspect ratio when you do this. If you plan on transforming your mask, youll get better results if the edges of your bitmap are all the same color (usually black or white).

Converting your mask to the .gfx format

Axio.utils includes a converter tool that allows you to convert your mask .tga file to a .gfx file. The converter tool also supports converting .bmp files, but it is highly recommended that you use .tga files.
Important Make sure Adobe Premiere Pro is closed before running the converter tool. To convert your mask .tga file to a .gfx file: 1 Go to the Axio.utils system folder. If you chose the default location when you installed Matrox Axio.utils, this folder will be installed at: Program Files\Matrox Axio.utils\system.
2 Double-click on mvTGAToGFXConverter.exe.

3 Under Input, click the ... button on the right to browse to your input image

(the .tga file you created in the first part of this tutorial).
4 From the Aspect ratio list, choose the aspect ratio of your .tga file. 5 Under Output, click the ... button on the right to specify a name and

location for the .gfx file that will be created.

6 Click Generate. This will convert your .tga to a .gfx. A dialog box will

inform you if the conversion was successful.

Converting your mask to the .gfx format

Installing the .gfx file

The .gfx file must be installed in the proper directory so that the next time you apply a Matrox mask effect, your new pattern will be available from the Select Shape list.
To install the .gfx file: Open the directory where the mask effect patterns are installed. If you chose the default location when you installed Matrox Axio.utils, this folder will be installed at: Program Files\Matrox Axio.utils\Effect Patterns\Masks.

The particular folders displayed depends on which effect pattern formats you chose to install. Open the folder that corresponds to the format of your new .gfx file. For example, if your .gfx is an NTSC 16:9 file, you would open the NTSC-16-9 folder. This will list all the types of effect patterns for that format.

Installing the .gfx file

5 7 Copy your mask pattern into the folder that corresponds to the type of

pattern it is. For example, if the .gfx file you created is a gradient pattern, copy it to the Gradient folder. You can also create a new folder for your .gfx file if necessary.
Tip Placing your .gfx files in subfolders will enable you to find your files faster when youre working in Premiere Pro.

Bitmap dimensions
The following table lists the dimensions required for your mask based on the format you are working in: Format
NTSC PAL 720p HDV1080i 1080i 1080p

Width
720 720 1280 1440 1920 1920

Height
486 576 720 1080 1080 1080

Bitmap dimensions

Your notes

Bitmap dimensions

www.matrox.com/video