rafael wrote: ↑Sun Jun 20, 2021 9:31 pm
Btw, when you say "output layers using Layer Comps" are you referring to the DS Layers to AE?
I'm not sure what 'DS' Layers are, but I'm talking about using Moho's Layer Comps window to create special passes for compositing.
At the most basic level, Layer Comps can be used separate a project by foreground, mid-ground, background and character passes, and a more advanced use can be to create custom mattes and texture passes. Then, using Moho Exporter, I use the Split button to automatically break out the passes and render them.
For me, a custom matte pass might be an element that lets me apply light and shadow effect inside a character and not just round the outer edged (like along an arm that crosses in front of the body, or on an inside feature of the face.)
A texture pass can be as simple as the full texture image parented to a rig's root bone so it follows the character. This texture can then be punched out in compositing (i.e., Ae) using the character pass as a matte, and applied using a fancy blend mode of your choice. But sometimes I'll go an extra step and bind the texture image to the character's skeleton; this makes the texture deform with the character's motion, avoiding the 'Chowder' look when it's comped over the character. An example of this latter trick can be seen in the Kung Fu Panda footage on my reel.
The compositing itself could be done inside Moho of course, but as mentioned earlier, I gain way more flexibility and interactivity when I do this inside a dedicated compositing program.
I mentioned this in another thread recently but here are some tips for using Layer Comps:
1. Always make 'master' Layer Comp before creating your 'render' Layer Comps. This way, you can easily switch back to your full render version of your project.
2. After adding your project to Moho Exporter, set the render output path
before you click the Split button. Moho will output each Layer Comp to that path but with a separate folder for each Layer Comp.
3. Moho Exporter includes the 'master' comp if you created one. Since you don't really want to render this pass, you should delete it before clicking the Start button.
4. Before clicking Start, you should use Save Profile to save the current batch list. One of the few things I dislike about Moho is that it doesn't really remember the preferred output path for a project, but you can assign a specified path to the Profile file, so when you load it for a future render, everything should be set up and ready to go, including the preferred path. For me, using this option more reliable than remembering to select the output path from the Destination list, assuming my preferred path still exists in that list, or browsing to the preferred location again, every time I want to render the project. (Ideally, the preferred output path should be embedded in the Project file itself, maybe in the Project Settings window. Still hoping LM will add this feature...it will simplify the render process, and eliminate my inevitable 'wrong path' errors.)
Hope this helps.