Quote: I need the mask to move seperately from the video. Could someone explain how to do that? (Perhaps a suggestion for PD15, allow masks to move as a pip or overlay). Where do I get the mask I need? How to make a mask?

Tell us what you are trying to achieve with your request and perhaps there is another way to get what you want. Would more than one mask work?

Again what type of mask do you need?

From the help files:

Adding PiP MasksMasks are useful if you want to show/hide portions of your media on the timeline in the final production. Click on the Mask tab and then select a mask from the list to overlay portions of the PiP media. Click the Create Mask button to import and create your own custom mask by importing any image in the .PNG format. Click and drag the edges of the mask to move and resize it, or select Invert mask to invert the portion of the media that is being masked. Use the Feather radius slider if you want to adjust the softness on the mask's edges.Object SettingsUse the Object Settings option to change some of the basic properties of the mask. Use the Mask Opacity slider to set the desired opacity of the mask, or the Mask Scale slider to change its size. You can use the X and Y Mask Position fields to set the precise location of the top left corner of the mask on the video image.


Brian, please do not use a cell phone to ask a question; use your computer so you can use as many words as you need. .
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BoilerPlate: To posters who ask for help -- it is nice to thank the volunteers who try to answer your questions !
Anything I post unless stated with a reference is my personal opinion.

I have a video on track one with a lady seated in a makeshift studio, singing. She is swaying with the song so not much movement but some. I want to mask her in the video because there's unecessary shelving to the left and right. When I use a mask option, the mask 'sticks' to the video so when I try to keep her centred in the mask I cant because the mask stays put where it was set at the beginning. So when she sways from side to side she slightly disappears behind the mask. If I could 'motion move' the mask I could make the mask move back and forth with the sway but the mask won't move independently of the movie. The solution I believe is to have a mask on the track below which can then be independently moved. My problem is I can't use the masks within the program (something the program should do). There should be some option to use the included masks as a pip when required. Where to get masks? Or is there another way to solve this problem?

Pwrhaps some time with the tutorial will help since you are asking some basic questions. Go to the Director's Zone and sign in. Look for the tutorial on Power Director to watch the valuable Tutorials. There is one on Motion Tracker that may be useful. I don't know if this will link properly -
http://directorzone.cyberlink.com/tutorial/pdr/

You are going to have some issues with the mask. You can set it up to move with the video but you really have to set the mask motion. That means that you have to set it for when she moves left and when she moves right and then reapeat it.

Why don't you make the mask larger.

I know my roriginal eply was long but PLEASE read all of it. It cover how to make a pip mask from you own images. .
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BoilerPlate: To posters who ask for help -- it is nice to thank the volunteers who try to answer your questions !
Anything I post unless stated with a reference is my personal opinion.

Hi Brian -

You've discovered a limitation of using a mask in PDR14 (& previous versions). As you say, once applied, the mask will be fixed to the video & cannot move independently.

... and yes - if you applied the same thing as an overlay in a separate track, you could keyframe its position/scale separately (which is what you need in this case).

A mask/overlay is created in exactly the same way. The difference is how they're applied &, therefore, what effect they have on your video. They'd each have a solid area & a transparent space... (not necessarily true of masks)



Here are two little toots - one showing how to make a mask/overlay & the other showing how they're each applied.





Any of the masks included with PDR could be used as an overlay. Just go to C:\Program Files\CyberLink\PowerDirector14\Masks and copy the mask (not the thumb) and paste it where you can access it & use it as an overlay.

Alternatively, as Steve suggested, you could apply a mask but resize/reproportion it to include all the swaying movement.

Cheers - Tony
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Thank you Ynotfish and Stevek. Ynotfish has given the perfect answer (and perhaps understood my problem better), and the two videos were just what I needed. I did try making masks but I was missing a step somewhere and they just weren't coming out right. Stevek I couldn't make the mask bigger as I was already at the limits (it was a narrow room with shelves on both sides). I have actually been making videos (family and otherwise) for 20 plus years so although I sometimes go blank on problems (like this one) I'm not a complete newbie.

Surely a simple check box (or something) that would allow masks to act independently of the image or video beneath it would be a good extra to be added to the next upgrade or version of Powerdirector.

Thanks again for your swift replies and assistance.

Brian

P.S. Despite my negative comments concerning 'Titler Pro' (mainly the inability to integrate with Powerdirector 14, versions above version 1), it is still a great piece of software for making Titles. I was wondering if anyone who has used this could help. Making a title using the efffect 'bow' causes the letters to 'bow' either up or down. But I'm getting letters cut off at the top (see enclosed photo). Anyone know how to fix this? https://www.btcloud.bt.com/?shareObject=e48a1256-aaf4-7026-c1f0-683362303b05







Don't know why the photo isn't showing, I think if you right click on it and 'open in new tab' it will work