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If you connect to only one input of a multi-input node and you don’t connect to the background
input, you may find that you don’t get the results you wanted. This is because each multi-input
node expects that the background is connected before anything else so that the internal
connections and math used by that node can be predictable.
TIP: The only node to which you can safely connect the foreground input prior to the
background input is the Dissolve node, which is a special node that can be used to
either dissolve between two inputs, or automatically switch between two inputs of
unequal duration.
Node Colors Tell You Which Nodes Go Together
Each node in Fusion accomplishes a single type of effect or operation. These single-purpose
nodes make it easier to decipher a complex composition when examining its node tree.
Single-purpose nodes also make it easier to focus on fine-tuning specific adjustments, one at a
time, when assembling an ever-growing tree.
Because each Fusion node has a specific function, they’re categorized by type to make it
easier to keep track of which nodes require what types of image channels as input, and what
image data you can expect each node to output. These general types are described here.
A node tree showing the main categories of node colors.
Blue MediaIn and Loader Nodes, and Green Generator Nodes
Blue MediaIn nodes and blue Loader nodes add clips to a composite, and green Generator
nodes create images. Both types of nodes output RGBA channels (depending on the source
and generator), and may optionally output auxiliary channels for doing advanced compositing
operations.
Because these are sources of images, both kinds of nodes can be attached to a wide variety of
other nodes for effects creation besides just 2D nodes. For example, you can also connect
MediaIn nodes to Image Plane 3D nodes for 3D compositing, or to pEmitter nodes set to
“Bitmap” for creating different particle systems. Green Generator nodes can be similarly
attached to many different kinds of nodes—for example, attaching a FastNoise node to a
Displace 3D node to impose undulating effects to 3D shapes.
Chapter – 69 Understanding Image Channels 1389