Render and record FX Rack

BeamTracer FX Rack can render an uploaded video or image with your effects to MP4 or WebM. Choose RENDER, check the sound and frame settings, then save the finished video. For a live camera, use RECORD. Render a short test first when tracking, masks, or several effects need checking.

Can I render a video with my effects?

Yes, in a desktop browser. Load your video with VISUAL SOURCE → VIDEO · IMAGE, choose your look, then click RENDER. The uploaded clip is processed from beginning to end with the FX Rack, including TRACK, HAND FRAME and hand-shaped masks. Choose the output size, frame rate and format, click RENDER VIDEO, then SAVE VIDEO.

The render uses the uploaded clip's full duration at its fixed SPEED, independently of preview playback. Trigger a video scene first to start with that scene’s saved IN and OUT range; open TEST RANGE to inspect or change the selection. Attached Studio compositions appear in the finished video with the selected sound. QUICK PREVIEW makes a watermarked 640 px, 24 FPS MP4 without using an export allowance. Keep SPEED at 1 when using VIDEO SOUND; a playing audio track takes priority as it does in preview. Remove any modulation from SPEED before rendering. Camera feeds, screen sharing, live HIT presses and the shader layer still need RECORD. The render follows the same plans as every other render: on the free plan it uses one of the month's free exports and carries the watermark, paid plans render without either, and 4K needs Bundle or Studio. Render to video

How do I render a short test before the full video?

Open RENDER → TEST RANGE, enable RENDER A SHORT RANGE, and enter START (SECONDS) and LENGTH (SECONDS). The source summary shows the selected interval. For example, start 4 and length 3 exports seconds 4–7 with the matching sound and your selected output settings.

Earlier frames prepare time-based effects before the selected interval is encoded, so a late test can still take time to prepare. A length extending beyond the clip stops at its end. Turn off RENDER A SHORT RANGE to export the full clip. Test renders use the same export allowance as full renders.

How do I check which sound will be rendered?

The RENDER AUDIO summary shows SOURCE VIDEO, MUSIC OVERRIDE, or SILENT. Uploaded video sound is the default; a playing music track overrides it. A loaded, paused track does not replace source sound. Turn off INCLUDE AUDIO for a silent export.

Use PREVIEW SOUND to listen before rendering. Preview pauses the live players without changing the dialog's selected sound. Close the dialog and resume playback afterward. A clip without decodable audio renders silently unless you choose a music override.

How do I save a render setup for later?

Open RENDER → RENDER SETUPS, enter a SETUP NAME, and click SAVE SETUP. The saved setup includes the uploaded video, FX look, visualizer settings, audio choice, selected trim, output settings, and any Studio composition attached to the scene. Select a SAVED SETUP and click RESTORE SETUP to reopen it. DELETE SETUP removes the saved copy.

Setups stay in the browser where you saved them. Clearing site data removes the saved media. Saving requires an uploaded video and browser storage access; camera, screen, and live audio inputs cannot be saved as replayable files.

How do I export a green window or a mask for compositing?

Open MASK → ADVANCED to prepare a tracked window for another editor. SOLID FILL replaces the selected area with FILL COLOR, which starts as pure green; MATTE produces white in the selected area and black outside. Basic MASK effects stay unchanged until you choose an advanced output.

1. Add MASK and choose SHAPE: HANDS for the window between your fingers.
2. Open ADVANCED and set OUTPUT to SOLID FILL or MATTE.
3. Set FILL OPACITY to 1 for a solid key color, and adjust SOFT EDGE and GROW for the edge you need.
4. Keep SURFACE GUIDES: OFF for a clean compositing pass.
5. Choose RENDER → RENDER VIDEO, then SAVE VIDEO to download MP4 or WebM.

Solid and matte outputs omit the artistic outline and glow. AREA: OUTSIDE reverses the selection. For a live camera, use RECORD instead. These videos contain a color or grayscale mask; they do not contain an alpha channel.

How do I export matching effect, matte, and guide videos?

In BeamTracer Performer, load a video and enable MASK → SHAPE: HANDS. Open RENDER → COMPOSITING PASSES · ADVANCED and select FINISHED + MATTE + GUIDES. One render produces three videos with matching frame rates, framing, and timing; only the finished video includes your selected sound.

1. Load the video through VISUAL SOURCE → VIDEO · IMAGE.
2. Add MASK, select SHAPE: HANDS, and set the effects and mask edges you want.
3. Open RENDER → COMPOSITING PASSES · ADVANCED and select FINISHED + MATTE + GUIDES.
4. Choose the frame, frame rate, and optional TEST RANGE; the three videos use the same selection.
5. Press RENDER VIDEO, then download the MP4 or WebM files with SAVE VIDEO, SAVE MATTE, and SAVE GUIDES.

The matte is white in the selected area and black outside, including the selected soft edge, outside selection, and tracking-loss hold. The guide video shows the original picture with full-opacity guides. Guides use your selected SURFACE GUIDES style, or GRID when guides are off. A crossed or collapsed window hides the perspective grid until the surface becomes valid. Source sound or an explicit music override belongs only to SAVE VIDEO; the matte and guide videos are silent. These videos do not carry an alpha channel.

The option starts off and stays inside Advanced. Images, live cameras, and other mask shapes show an explanation instead of offering a pass set they cannot render. Enable CORNER DATA: SAVE WITH RENDER when you also need corner positions. For a selected test range, corner times refer to the original clip; the recorded range start maps those times to the exported videos, which begin at zero.

How do I use corner squares and a grid for a tracked insert?

Choose SHAPE: HANDS, then open ADVANCED → SURFACE GUIDES. CORNER SQUARES marks the four fingertip corners with distinct black-and-white squares and a center crosshair; GRID or CHECKERBOARD attaches a perspective surface to the window. GRID CELLS, GUIDE OPACITY, and MARKER SIZE control the guide pass. OUTPUT: GUIDES ONLY shows the original picture with guides, without the effects below MASK. Use COMPOSITING PASSES · ADVANCED in RENDER for matching finished, matte, and guide videos, or render one selected output at a time.

CORNER DATA: SAVE WITH RENDER adds SAVE CORNER DATA after rendering. The JSON file records each rendered frame’s time, four normalized corner positions, tracking availability, visibility, and whether the window has a valid planar shape. Corner order is left index, right index, right thumb, left thumb; coordinates start at the frame’s upper-left corner. This is tracked surface data for an insert, not a 3D camera solve or a directly importable editor preset. A crossed or collapsed window hides the perspective grid until the surface is valid again.

TRACKING LOSS HOLD holds the last window briefly before fading when a hand disappears. FOREGROUND PERSON: ON keeps the detected person in front of the fill or effects; this includes their body and face, rather than isolating fingers alone. Turn it off when the insert should cover the person. These optional controls start off and stay inside ADVANCED.

Where do I go next?

Return to the FX Rack overview, or check the video export guide for format and quality settings.