【Shoost Tips】 Screen Composition Tips for Blending Characters with Backgrounds (Color Edition)

Hello everyone!

In my previous article, I discussed various atmosphere creation techniques. This time, I'd like to introduce important points for creating those screen compositions. I'll be focusing specifically on shadow color adjustments in detail.

Step-by-Step Process

Let me start by working with this.

I'll be working on blending a character into a nighttime background. Let's start by using Shoost Screen Effects auto color feature to blend them together.

Here's the result after auto color matching.

The feature automatically adjusts colors to match the background, but it tends to create a somewhat darker impression. Using Color Correction to brighten it up can reduce this dark impression.

While this already looks more integrated with the background compared to the initial state, I'll introduce methods and tips to make it even better.

Tips for Better Results

The key element when adjusting dark scenes is, quite simply, the shadow color.

In nighttime scenes, when you apply the night sky color to the entire character, it becomes too dark. So instead of applying color to the entire character, we change the shadow color to alter the atmosphere. This is the crucial point.

When shadow colors are clearly separated like in this case, you can use Select Colors to choose and modify the shadow color. Let's compare the results.

Just by changing the shadow color, doesn't it look more integrated with the background? Unlike applying color to the entire character, it doesn't become dark either.

Combining this state with auto color produces this result.

The atmosphere is much better compared to simply using auto color adjustment. Once you've made these adjustments, you might also consider manual adjustment instead of using auto color.

Manual adjustment allows for finer nuances, so if you want to be particular about the details, manual adjustment is recommended.

Let's compare the final result with screen effects applied.

You can clearly see that adjusting the shadow color makes the character stand out more while blending naturally with the background without becoming too dark. When you want to create a dark atmosphere with no surrounding light sources, I recommend making adjustments like reducing the saturation of skin tones.

Adjustments Using Color Grading

When shadows are clearly separated like with this character, you can adjust using Select Colors, but when that's not the case, Color Grading is a good option for adjustment.

Color Grading offers two types: "Color Wheels" and "Log Wheels." Each wheel allows you to adjust dark areas, mid-tones, and bright areas.

Lift and Shadows: Adjust color tone in dark areas

Gamma and Midtones: Adjust color tone in mid-tones

Gain and Highlights: Adjust color tone in bright areas

While they may look similar, "Color Wheels" and "Log Wheels" apply effects differently.

Color Wheels apply effects more globally based on the adjustment range, while Log Wheels have more clearly defined application ranges. You can choose between them based on your scene and preferences.

Summary

In this article, I explained the importance of shadow color in screen composition. Rather than simply changing the overall color tone, by consciously adjusting shadow colors, you can blend characters with backgrounds without making them too dark.

These detailed adjustments can elevate your screen composition to the next level, so please give them a try!