Removing Unwanted Elements Using ResolveFX Revival Plugins

Day 17: 24 Insights In 24 Days – 2020 New Year Marathon!

Inside DaVinci Resolve 16: Object Removal with ResolveFX Revival Plugins

Blackmagic’s Revival was a software-based film restoration tool. It was end-of-life’ed a few years ago and some of its magic has made its way into Resolve as a set of ResolveFX plugins.

In this Insight, we’re focusing on the Revival plugins dealing with object removal. These objects can be as tiny as a spec of dust or as large as a person. Of course, with all these tools if you try to remove too large an object you’ll get very unpredictable and undesirable results. The general rule of thumb: Smaller is better.

Another rule of thumb: The less motion the better. Almost all these tools rely on surrounding frames to inform the current frame on how best to remove the unwanted object. If the surrounding frames are rapidly changing then this can dramatically complicate things.

Warnings aside, when these tools work – it’s like magic! They work quite frequently, often when you least expect it. What plugins are we dealing with in this Insight?

• Dust Buster: This is a frame-by-frame utility to easily remove bits of dust or other tiny artifacts that only last one or two frames on the image.
• Automatic Dirt Removal: It tries to do the same thing as the dust buster but automagically without the frame-by-frame tedium.
• Dead Pixel Fixer: Got a spot on the image that just sticks to the same place on the screen – like it’s glued to the lens? Then this plugin is your best friend.
• Patch Replacer: The tried and true method of object removal is to grab a piece of the image that doesn’t have your unwanted object and cover it! This is an easier-to-execute method of that approach.
• Object Removal: Similar to the Patch Replacer but it uses a context-aware fill method of replacing an object, using the pixels surrounding the unwanted feature to fill it in and hide it.

The last three plugins in this list can all be used to tackle the same problem. But they each have strengths and weaknesses, so it’s good to know how each works since you may need to try all three to find the right solution to any particular problem. Also – all these plug-ins are Studio-only, requiring a paid license to bypass the watermark. If you’re looking for a reason to upgrade to the paid version, one of the tools in this Insight may provide that justification.

Enjoy!

-pi

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• January 17, 2020 at 11:53 pm #32422
  
  Patrick Inhofer

  Keymaster

  This is the discussion thread for the Insight: Removing Unwanted Elements Using ResolveFX Revival Plugins

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• 
  andi winter

  Guest

  January 19, 2020 at 12:14 pm

  i usually do object removing with the built in node resizing tool, but good to see an update of those ofx plugins. in some situations they may work better. but if shots get more complicated, and your time allows it, fusion is the way to go anyway…
• 
  Scott Portingale

  Member

  January 13, 2023 at 6:10 pm

  Just diving into Dead pixel/object removal. I’m on V18 of DR and the parameters look updated. Any updates or recommend videos you can suggest to understand this tool in depth? I’m working on macro footage I shot with moving specs of dust in it. Would love to attach a screen shot but Not sure if that function is activated. Thanks.
• 
  Patrick Inhofer

  Administrator

  January 13, 2023 at 6:39 pm

  Dead Pixel has added a range of ‘Patch Options’ to help you dial in your selection. But the basic functionality is the same. The Object Removal plugin is, as far as I can tell, unchanged.

  Dust Buster has added a few more Patch Type options and moved them out of a pull-down so that you can see all your options at once. Like Dead Pixel they’ve also added the Patch Options as a post-selection refinement.

  Finally, the Patch Replacer looks unchanged to me as well.

  In the Revival tools with the added ‘Patch Options’, you want to adjust those only after defining your selection. Then tweak the Patch Options to help really sell the final fix.

  Did I answer your question?
  • 
    Scott Portingale

    Member

    January 16, 2023 at 11:23 am

    Thanks. I’ll experiment with it, and seek vids on YT that may cover the updated options in depth. I’ll check out the manual as well. Mostly I’m hoping to understand the tools enough that I know which option to choose for difficult problems. For example this blue orb moves across the spec of dust. The dust begins as a shite spec the the orb makes a silhouette out of it. I will likely need to do a combination of animated masks, but hoping to get most of the way there with some of these tools.

    

    • This reply was modified 4 months, 2 weeks ago by  Scott Portingale.
    • 
      Patrick Inhofer

      Administrator

      January 17, 2023 at 10:45 am

      It’s hard to evaluate if I think a Revival tool will clean this up. It depends on the speed of the motion and the sharpness of the object’s edges as it moves through the clean-up tool. Fast motion torches these cleanup tools.

      I find I can quickly discern if it’s worth putting the trouble into a specific Revival plug-in in about a minute. Rather than adjusting every parameter to refine a plugin that isn’t working, I’ll quickly cycle through 2-4 of those plugins since one may be unexpectedly much better than the others at solving a problem.

      Don’t forget that the tracker can also be applied to OpenFX tools: https://mixinglight.com/color-grading-tutorials/mastering-davinci-resolves-cloud-and-point-trackers/

      Mastering DaVinci Resolve’s Cloud and Point Trackers for Power Windows and OpenFX
      • 
        Scott Portingale

        Member

        January 17, 2023 at 12:17 pm

        Thanks! Definitely a challenge. The orb moves slowly but the dust is static. It is 12 shots in the edit I’m working on so I will work my way there on some easier shots. I imagine I will be clone stamping/rotoscoping (new to me in resolve) this one out as the orb has a gradient to it. I’ll definitely be using these tools for some of the more manageable shots. Thanks again. Enjoying the tutorials on this site.
        • 
          Patrick Inhofer

          Administrator

          January 17, 2023 at 8:22 pm

          Dead Pixel is the place to start with static dust. I’ve been amazed at what I’ve been able to remove from the frame with elements that don’t move with the camera (sensor dust/lens watermarks), even if the camera is moving quite a bit. I’ve even removed background people (who were standing still) with that tool.

          Glad you’re enjoying the site! Lots of TLC has gone into it over the past decade by a wide range of professionals (with more to come). Spread the word! We’re 100% member supported.
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