Using Overlays in Capture One for Tough Compositions

Posted by: on Apr 07, 2015

Using Overlays in Capture One for Tough Compositions

Photo compositions require blending or combining two or more images together to create a final image that may not have been able to be captured in one shot. For a polished natural looking composition, it is important to capture all the elements as close to how they will look in the final version as possible. One trick to make this happen is to use the Overlay Tool in Capture One Pro 8 while shooting tethered. Shooting tethered allows us to see the captured image on our screens moments after we click the shutter. While this may help get the individual photos close, the Overlay Tool will allow us to take it a step closer.

The Overlay Tool allows you to set an individual image as a slightly transparent overlay while shooting tethered. Taking your base image for your composition as setting it as an overlay, you can now position your other elements in that frame and make sure the perspective matches up well.

To setup an overlay image, go to the Window menu in Capture One Pro and mouse over Create Floating Tool. Go down to Overlay and click. You will see this box popup:

capture one overlay window

Now drag and drop an image to the box that reads Drop image here:

capture one overlay with image

Lastly, to use the overlay, click on the check box that reads Show. From here, using the sliders, you can adjust the opacity, size and position of the overlay. To see some amazing example shots and read more about this feature, visit the Phase One blog and read how photographer Colin Anderson created shots for the ancient Hawaii series. Colin’s shots are fantastic.

Photo by Colin Anderson via Capture One
Photo by Colin Anderson via Capture One