Color Draining an Asset

Color Draining an Asset

The term refers to removing the color from an asset to which there are several methods to accomplish this task in Doodly. This is simply to do with imported character or prop assets but not so easy to accomplish with Doodly provided assets. This documentation will talk about all the known methods for Doodly provided assets. The methods taught in this DTD can be used in the reverse as well to put color into an asset instead of draining it out, if you don’t own the rainbow addon.

Note: There are times we want to remove the color from an asset for a special effect. Doodly provides the rainbow addon for adding color but nothing natively for removing that color once it has been added. If you’ve ever tried this trick by simply having a non-colored Doodly provided asset on top of a colored one, I am sure you found out that it is not that simple and that method provides a potentially undesired effect.

1. Instant Removal (Same Scene)

Draining the color instantly. This involves 2 assets one with color and the other without.

• Disable Erase Mode in the Video Settings.
• Drag the colored asset onto the canvas.
• Copy and paste the colored asset.
• Disable the rainbow in the Objects Library.
• Drag the black and white asset on top off the colored asset and choose Yes, Replace.
• Set the desired delay time.
• Set the duration to 0.

This will provide instant removal of all color from that asset on the canvas.

2. Erase the Color (Scene To Scene)

We can, however, provide our own pseudo effect by exporting the scene at the desired resolution with a white asset in its place, taking a screenshot or using a photo editor that can open .mp4 files, saving that full screen asset back into Doodly as an image.

I provide a full demonstration of this technique in my scene transitions video tutorial in the behind the scenes footage. Watch that video tutorial to see how to accomplish this. The only difference between what I am showing you in that video and telling you here is you will use a white asset for a whiteboard or chalkboard asset for a chalkboard instead of no asset. The chalkboard makes it difficult because you lose the ability to move the asset since the chalkboard background within the asset won’t match up with any other part of the chalkboard but where you originally captured the asset around.

Review the partial erasing video tutorial in the Scene Transitions video tutorial and it will show you exactly how to accomplish this effect.

• Doodly Beginner Video Tutorial: Scene Transitions

3. Color Removal

This involves exporting a white asset from Doodly in the same spot. Either taking a screenshot of that asset or opening up the video in a photo editor that can handle opening .mp4 files, removing the white background behind the asset without removing the white inside the asset, cropping the image and importing it back into Doody.

• Export the desired resolution (typically 1920 X 1080) with the non-colored asset.
• Play the exported video and capture a full screen screenshot of the non-colored asset.
• Paste the screenshot in a photo editor (or open up your .mp4 file if your photo editor can handle it.)
• Remove the background from around the asset without removing the white or chalkboard inside the asset. Any of the free background removing software packages we provide in our list in question #5, Where can I obtain Free commercial use assets?, of our Top 50 Doodly F.A.Q.should help with this step.
• Crop the asset down
• Import the asset back into Doodly and remove it from the canvas when it automatically adds it there.
• Duplicate the colored asset.
• Replace the colored asset that is now on top with the non-colored asset.
• Play the doodle and the arm will now remove the color smoothly instead of adding it.

Note: Don’t resize the asset before you have them both on the canvas and then resize them together at the same time.

4. Color Drain

I have a video tutorial to explain how to accomplish this trick. Watch my Fade to Color video tutorial and the same exact concept applies for this trick.

• Doodly Beginner Video Tutorial: Fade to Color