If you’re an aspiring VFX artist looking to refine your compositing skills in Foundry Nuke, you’ve come to the right place! Today, I’ll take you behind the scenes of a high-quality compositing project, demonstrating how to seamlessly integrate CG elements with live-action footage while maintaining photorealistic consistency.
Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced compositor, this guide will provide you with actionable techniques and free CGI resources to elevate your compositing workflow.
To help you follow along and practice your compositing skills, I’ve included free downloadable resources:
✅ High-Quality Footage – Prepped and ready for compositing.
✅ Porsche & Audi Car Renders (with AOVs) – Includes diffuse, specular, reflections, shadows, and more.
✅ Shadow Maps – Hard shadows & ambient occlusion maps for realistic depth.
✅ Car Geometries – Detailed 3D models of the vehicles.
✅ Camera & Lens Distortions – Simulate real-world lens effects for enhanced realism.
✅ Latlong HDRi Environment – High-dynamic-range image for realistic lighting & reflections.
In this project, I worked with live-action footage of my friend Nacho, integrating two CG cars (Audi & Porsche) into the scene. The main challenge? Achieving a seamless blend between the digital and real-world elements.
To help you recreate this shot, I’ve structured the process into a step-by-step breakdown, covering everything from shadow integration to color grading and optical effects.
To achieve a realistic VFX shot, I divided the process into three key stages:
Ground Preparation – Laying the foundation with realistic shadows.
Integration of CG Cars – Refining reflections, lighting, and color matching.
Final Enhancements – Rotoscoping, color correction, and optical effects.
A strong foundation is essential for a believable composite. Here’s how I ensured that the CG cars blended seamlessly into the real environment:
Pro Tip: When working with CG shadows, always blur and blend edges to match the footage’s natural lighting conditions.
The last stage was fine-tuning the colors, lighting, and optical effects to make the CG elements feel truly integrated.
Pro Tip: Always check your color balance across multiple shots to maintain consistency.
Best Practice: When using optical effects, keep them subtle and natural—overdoing them can make your composite look fake.
With this free breakdown and resources, you now have everything needed to practice your compositing skills in Foundry Nuke.
🚀 Want to challenge yourself?
Download the assets, recreate this shot, and tag me on social media—I’d love to see your work!
Foundry Nuke is a powerhouse for professional VFX compositing, offering:
✅ Advanced node-based workflow for flexible compositing.
✅ Full control over render passes (AOVs) for photorealistic CG integration.
✅ Powerful tracking, rotoscoping, and grading tools for Hollywood-level effects.
Whether you’re just starting out or looking to refine your skills, mastering Nuke compositing techniques is essential for high-end VFX production.
Are you ready to dive into professional VFX compositing? With these free CGI assets and workflow insights, you’re now equipped to create stunning, photorealistic shots.
🎬 Stay tuned for more tutorials & insights—subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow my blog for the latest VFX tips!
The assets are available for free download—just check the link in the post!
No! Foundry Nuke is optimized for efficient compositing, and you can use proxy settings for lighter workflows.
Yes! Feel free to use them for practice, showreels, and learning—just remember to credit the original sources.