User Manual

Inspector
Controls Tab
The Controls tab is used to refine how the mask appears after the Wand makes a selection in
the viewer.
Show View Controls
The Show View Controls checkbox is used to enable/disable the display of the masks onscreen
controls in the viewer. Onscreen controls, including center position, polylines, angles, and
others, do not appear when this checkbox is disabled, even when the node is selected.
Level
The Level control sets the transparency level of the pixels in the mask channel. When the value
is 1.0, the mask is completely opaque (unless it has a soft edge). Lower values cause the mask
to be partially transparent. The result is identical to lowering the Blend control of an effect.
NOTE: Lowering the level of a mask lowers the values of all pixels covered by the
mask in the mask channel. For example, if a Circle mask is placed over a Rectangle
mask, lowering the level of the Circle mask lowers the values of all the pixels in the
mask channel, even though the Rectangle mask beneath it is still opaque.
Filter
This control selects the filtering algorithm used when applying Soft Edge to the mask.
 Box: This is the fastest method but at reduced quality. Box is best suited for minimal
amounts of blur.
 Bartlett: Otherwise known as a Pyramid filter, Bartlett makes a good compromise
between speed and quality.
 Multi-box: When selecting this filter, the Num Passes slider appears and lets you
control the quality. At 1 and 2 passes, results are identical to Box and Bartlett,
respectively. At 4 passes and above, results are usually as good as Gaussian, in less
time and with no edge “ringing.”
 Gaussian: The Gaussian filter uses a true Gaussian approximation and gives excellent
results, but it is a little slower than the other filters. In some cases, it can produce an
extremely slight edge “ringing” on floating-point pixels.
Chapter – 97 Mask Nodes 2132