Procedural Compositing with Batch > Batch Processing >
Grouping Nodes

Group nodes to simplify cluttered schematics. A group is represented by a single dynamic node that displays the group’s contents, inputs, and outputs. You can use a group node as a parent to, or child of, other clips and nodes.

You can create several groups and work on each group separately. For example, group a Keying and Colour Correction branch separately from an Action and a filtering branch, and then work on each branch independently. If you need to edit the nodes in a group, you can expand the group and make the necessary modifications.

A clip with multiple outputs, (a stereo clip with left and right matte outputs, for example) can be displayed as a group node, allowing all output tabs to be displayed for connection.

A group is also created when you use the Append to Current Batch button from a Gateway Import node. This button is available to Gateway .clips files exported with their Batch setups. Clicking Append to Current Batch creates a group which contains the Batch setup that created the imported clip.

To group nodes:

1. Ctrl-drag to select the nodes you want to group.

   Selected nodes are outlined in white.

2. In the Process Tree controls, click Group.

   The selected nodes collapse into a Group node. The Group node lists the nodes contained in the group, as well as the non-hidden input tabs and output tabs.

   TipYou can create a group inside a group.

   (a) Input connection(b) Proxy window (c) Output connections(d) Group icon

3. To rename the group, enter a name in the Node Name field.

To set a context view for any output in a group node:

1. Press = and click the tab of the output whose context you want to set.

   (C1) or (C2) is added to the output name. As well, a green dotted line appears around the output name.

   (a) Context 1 is set for keyer5

2. To display the context in a viewport, select the context from the View box.

To set a context view for the current output in a group node:

1. Select an output in the node’s output list (press Shift+up or down arrow to navigate through the outputs).

   A yellow line appears around the selected output.

   (a) Selected output

2. Press = and click anywhere in the node.

   A context view is set on the selected output. As well, a green dotted line appears around the output name.

   (a) Context 1 is set for selected output

3. To display the context in a viewport, select the context from the View box.

Defining Group Display Settings

Customize the group node using the Group List menu. The Group List menu lists all the nodes and connections contained in a group. You can rename and hide the contents of the group, as well as define which input and output connection sockets are visible and available for connection in the schematic.

You can select a node in the Group List menu to display the group at the selected node's stage. The View box must be set to Result, Front, or Back to use this display option. You can also display a preview proxy of a node in the group.

To define a group's display settings:

1. Select a group in the schematic.

   The Group List menu appears.

   (a) Sort Order buttons(b) Enabled icon visibility(c) Disabled UI visibility(d) Enabled input visibility (e) Enabled output visibility

2. Change the group's interface by doing any of the following.

   Click: | To:
   --- | ---
   Sort Order buttons | Move the selected node one position up or down (click the single-arrow buttons). To move the selected node to the first or last position in a group, click the arrow-line buttons.
   Name | Change the node's name.
   Icon | Toggle the node's visibility in the group. Icons in the Group List are yellow when the node is visible and grey when hidden.
   UI | Toggle the node's availability in the Node List box. Icons in the Group List are yellow when the node is displayed in the box and grey when hidden.
   Proxy | Display a proxy of the corresponding node in the proxy window. Icons in the Proxy list are white when locked and grey when unlocked. Lock an icon when you do not want its proxy in the window to change as you navigate the Group List.
   Inputs | Hide or unhide the selected node's input sockets. Sockets are colour-coded with the same scheme as Batch nodes that are not part of a group. Icons in the Group List have a yellow border when the input socket is visible.
   Outputs | Hide or unhide the selected node's output sockets. Sockets are colour-coded with the same scheme as Batch nodes that are not part of a group. Icons in the Group List have a yellow border when the output socket is visible.
   Node Proxy | Display a preview proxy of a node in the group.
   Collapsed | Collapse the group icon so that only the preview proxy is visible. Note that you can still cycle through the Group List to display other proxies when the group icon is collapsed.

To display a proxy of an output in the proxy window:

1. Do any of the following:
   - Click the field in the Proxy list that corresponds to the node whose output you want to display.
   - Press the Shift+up or down arrow as you navigate through the node’s Group List.
   - If a node has multiple outputs, press Ctrl+Shift+up or down arrow as you navigate through the node’s Group List to display all the outputs of a node.

To change the size of the group icon:

1. Drag the lower-right corner of the icon to make it wider or narrower.

Editing a Group

Use the Edit Group controls to edit the contents of a group.

To edit a group:

1. Select the group you want to edit.
2. Click Edit.

   The nodes in the group appear in their own schematic.

   TipInstead of editing the group, you can access a single node's menu by selecting the node's name from the Node List box. Click the L (List) button to return to the Group List menu.

   (a) List button(b) Node List box

3. Modify the nodes as required.
   NoteSelecting All from the Selection Mode box while editing a group selects all nodes within the current group; any nodes outside the group in the current Batch pipeline remain unselected.
4. Click Exit Group to return to the previous schematic.
   NoteClick Ungroup to expand the group of nodes to their pre-grouped positions in the schematic.

Resolution Issues

A node's bit depth and resolution are not always compatible. It is not always possible to use clips of different resolution or bit depth. For example, it is not possible to have one custom Colour Corrector node with an 8-bit clip and another with a 12-bit clip. Garbage masks, on the other hand, work correctly with clips of different bit depth, but not of different resolutions.