> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://davinciresolveclub.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How to Outline a Subject in DaVinci Resolve (Person, Logo or PNG) - URL: https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-outline-subject/ - Published: 2026-11-04T07:12:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T07:12:00.000Z - Description: Resolve has no outline setting for clips, so the outline is built on the Fusion page from the alpha channel. Here are the node trees for a logo and a person, the Erode Dilate width in pixels, edge cleanup and a reusable Edit page effect. - Author: Jason Miller - Tags: Fusion, Tutorials, #learn, #fusion-cluster DaVinci Resolve 21.1 has no Outline or Stroke setting for video clips or images; only titles and subtitles get one. To outline a subject, open the clip on the Fusion page, grow its alpha channel with an Erode Dilate node, use that bigger shape as the mask of a Background node in your outline color, and merge the original back on top. A PNG or logo already carries the alpha this needs. A person in ordinary footage has to be cut out first: with Magic Mask in DaVinci Resolve Studio, or with a keyer or a rotoscoped shape in the free version. The whole effect is four added nodes for a logo and six for a person cut out with Magic Mask. Below are both node trees with the exact Merge order, a pixel table for the Erode Dilate width, three ways to get the cutout, edge cleanup, ring, neon and sticker variants, a reusable Edit page effect and fixes for the usual problems. [Download](https://streamly.surf/c/2ebmf2MxAg6s?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) ## Pick the right outline tool - **Text or a title:** skip Fusion. The Text title has a Stroke group with Color and Size, and Text+ draws an outline through its Shading elements. The [guide to adding text in Resolve](https://davinciresolveclub.com/how-to-add-text-in-davinci-resolve/) covers both. - **A rectangular clip or a picture-in-picture box:** the Picture in Picture effect has a Border checkbox with Border Width, Border Color and Border Opacity, plus a Rounding control for the corners. It frames the clip's rectangle, so it won't follow a person's shape. The [picture-in-picture guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-picture-in-picture/) walks through it. - **A soft halo around a PNG on the Edit page:** ResolveFX Drop Shadow builds its shadow from the clip's alpha channel, so with Drop Distance at 0 and some Blur it spreads evenly around the shape. It reads as a soft glow, never as a crisp line. - **A crisp outline around a PNG, logo, keyed clip or person:** build it on the Fusion page with the node trees below. Every node in them is in the free version; only the Magic Mask node needs Studio. ## Outline a PNG or logo in Fusion Start with a file that has real transparency, such as a PNG exported with an alpha channel. If the image shows a white or black box around the logo in the Timeline Viewer, it has no alpha, and the outline will run around that box. 1. **Place the image on V2.** Drop the PNG on V2 above your footage and trim it to length. The [logo and watermark guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/add-logo-watermark-davinci-resolve/) covers placement and opacity if you need them. 2. **Open it on the Fusion page.** Park the playhead over the PNG, select it and click the Fusion page button. The Node Editor shows MediaIn1 connected to MediaOut1. 3. **Add Erode Dilate after MediaIn1.** Select MediaIn1, press Shift-Spacebar to open the [Select Tool dialog](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=1307), type "erode" and press Return. In the Inspector, uncheck Red, Green and Blue and leave Alpha checked, then drag Amount to a positive value such as 0.005\. The [Erode Dilate controls](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2337) skip deselected channels, which also speeds up rendering, and positive Amount values grow the shape. 4. **Add a Bitmap mask after Erode Dilate.** Leave its Channel set to Alpha. The node is optional, but I'd add it anyway: its Threshold and Soft Edge controls are the place to fix a jagged or blurry outline later. 5. **Add a Background node for the color.** Add a Background node, connect the Bitmap's output to the Background's blue effect mask input, then pick the outline color in its Inspector. The [Background node](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2357) now fills only the masked pixels, so you get a solid silhouette in your color, slightly bigger than the logo. 6. **Merge the logo on top.** Add a Merge node. Connect Background1 to its orange Background input first, then MediaIn1 to the green Foreground input, and connect Merge1 to MediaOut1\. The logo now sits on the colored silhouette, and only the grown edge shows around it. 7. **Check it on the Edit page.** Go back to the Edit page and judge the width in the Timeline Viewer over the real footage. The Merge order is the part people get backward. The [Merge node section of the manual](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2211) puts the Foreground over the Background and says to connect the Background input first. If the colored shape covers your logo, the two inputs are swapped. ![DaVinci Resolve Fusion page with MediaIn1 feeding Erode Dilate, Bitmap and the blue mask input of a Background node, Background1 and MediaIn1 joined in Merge1, and the Erode Dilate Inspector showing only Alpha checked and a positive Amount, with a fox emblem outlined in cream in the viewer](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a9/29/a929429b-cfab-4467-b902-a0cd9c90feac/content/images/2026/10/outline-pngtree.webp) The grown alpha masks Background1; Merge1 then puts the original logo back over the colored shape. One trap belongs to PNGs only. The Fusion composition takes the size of the image you open, so if the logo touches the edge of the PNG canvas, the outline gets cut off flat at that edge. Re-export the PNG with some transparent space around the artwork. ## Set the outline width in pixels Erode Dilate measures Amount as a fraction of the input image's width. The [manual's Erode Dilate notes](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2338) put it plainly: a value of 1 equals the image width, so 1 pixel on an HD image is 1/1920, or 0.00052083\. Divide the outline width you want by the width of the clip or image you opened in Fusion. | Outline | HD clip, 1920 wide | UHD clip, 3840 wide | PNG, 1000 wide | | ------- | ------------------ | ------------------- | -------------- | | 3 px | 0.0016 | 0.0008 | 0.003 | | 5 px | 0.0026 | 0.0013 | 0.005 | | 10 px | 0.0052 | 0.0026 | 0.010 | | 20 px | 0.0104 | 0.0052 | 0.020 | The column depends on the source, not on your timeline. The [manual's section on Fusion resolution](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=1643) says a composition starts at the source resolution of its input, so a UHD clip on an HD timeline opens as a UHD composition, and 0.0026 gives it a 10-pixel outline at UHD that ends up about 5 pixels wide on the HD timeline. For full-frame footage the same Amount always covers the same share of the frame, which keeps the look consistent across mixed sources. What changes the width afterward is the Edit page. Fusion is processed before the Inspector's Transform controls, so a Zoom of 2.0 on the clip doubles the outline along with the subject. Set the clip's size first and judge the width last. For a logo I'd start around 5 pixels and go thicker only if the edge gets lost in busy footage, because the manual warns that dilation eradicates fine detail: thin strokes, serifs and the gaps inside letters fill in as the outline grows. For a sense of scale, Tom Jobbins built a particle outline in a [2020 Blackmagic forum thread on stroking particles](https://forum.blackmagicdesign.com/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=122244&ref=davinciresolveclub.com) with an Erode Dilate Amount of about 0.007\. That's roughly 13 pixels on a 1920-wide composition and 27 on a 3840-wide one. ## Outline a person or moving subject Live footage has a full-frame alpha channel, so Erode Dilate has nothing to grow until the person is separated from the background. Pick the cutout that fits your shot and your version of Resolve. - **Magic Mask node (Studio):** add it after MediaIn1, click on the person in the viewer to place blue positive points, Option-click (Alt-click on Windows) to place red negative points on anything you don't want, then track through the shot with the buttons in the Inspector. The [Fusion Magic Mask section of the manual](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2535) covers the point modes; Post-Multiply Image is on by default, so the node outputs the person on a transparent background. The [Magic Mask guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-magic-mask/) explains the mask itself in detail. - **Matte Control with a rotoscoped shape (free):** connect MediaIn1 to the orange input of a Matte Control node, draw a Polygon or B-Spline around the person and connect it to the gray Garbage Matte input. A garbage matte makes everything inside it transparent, so enable Invert in the Matte Control's garbage matte controls to keep the person and drop the rest, as the [Matte Control section](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2539) describes. The [Polygon mask auto-animates](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2480), so moving to a new frame and adjusting the points sets a new keyframe. The [rotoscoping guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/rotoscoping-davinci-resolve-fusion/) has the full routine. - **Delta Keyer for green or blue screen (free):** the keyed result already has the alpha you need. Use the PNG tree from the previous section with DeltaKeyer1 in place of the raw MediaIn1, and put the clip on V2 above its new background. The [Delta Keyer guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-delta-keyer/) covers pulling the key. For a person who stays on their own background, use two Merge nodes so the original picture stays in the composition: 1. **Grow the cutout.** Connect the cutout node (MagicMask1 or MatteControl1) to Erode Dilate, with only Alpha checked and a positive Amount. 2. **Color it.** Erode Dilate goes into a Bitmap node, and the Bitmap into the blue mask input of a Background node set to your outline color. 3. **Put the outline over the shot.** In Merge1, connect MediaIn1 to the orange Background input and Background1 to the green Foreground input. The colored silhouette now covers the person. 4. **Put the person back on top.** In Merge2, connect Merge1 to the Background input and the cutout node to the Foreground input, then connect Merge2 to MediaOut1\. Only the grown edge stays visible around the person. ![DaVinci Resolve Fusion node tree for a person: MediaIn1 into MagicMask1, then Erode Dilate, Bitmap and the mask input of Background1, Merge1 placing the outline over MediaIn1 and Merge2 placing the cutout on top, with a runner outlined in yellow in the viewer](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a9/29/a929429b-cfab-4467-b902-a0cd9c90feac/content/images/2026/10/outline-person.webp) Merge1 lays the colored silhouette over the shot and Merge2 puts the cutout person back on top, so only the grown edge shows. For someone who walks, turns or gestures, Magic Mask is my pick in Studio, because a hand-drawn shape has to be corrected on every frame where the outline drifts off the body. For a short shot where the person barely moves, the free Polygon route costs only a few keyframes. ## Clean up the edges and plan for tracking time An outline makes every flaw in the matte visible, because it repeats the matte's edge in a contrasting color. If the line wobbles from frame to frame, fix the matte before touching the outline. - **Raise the mask quality.** In the Magic Mask node, switch Mode from Faster to Better. - **Soften the matte.** The Magic Mask node's Matte tab has Blur and Erode/Dilate controls of its own, and the Delta Keyer's Matte tab has similar ones. - **Soften the outline itself.** Raise Soft Edge on the Bitmap node, which offers [Box, Bartlett, Multi-box and Gaussian filters](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2465). - **Give a small subject more pixels.** Chadwick Shoults of Creative Video Tips describes a [Magic Mask edge trick for small subjects](https://creativevideotips.com/tutorials/magic-mask-2-hack-for-better-edges?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) for Resolve 20: crop around the subject, scale the crop up, run Magic Mask in Better mode, then scale and crop back to the original frame size. The mask is calculated on more pixels, and the edges chatter less. Tracking is the slow step, because every change to the Magic Mask points means tracking the shot again. Published tracking results come from the Color page Magic Mask, which offers the same Faster and Better modes, so they size the wait for the Fusion node without predicting it to the second. The [PugetBench public results database](https://www.pugetsystems.com/pugetbench/results/compare/Puget%20Bench%20for%20DaVinci%20Resolve/33/GPU/NVIDIA%20GeForce%20RTX%205090/NVIDIA%20GeForce%20RTX%205080/?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) averages user uploads for nine GPUs: Faster mode tracks at a median 24.4 fps, from 3.8 fps on an Apple M4 Pro with a 20-core GPU to 32.2 fps on an RTX 5090, and Better mode costs a median 9.7% of that speed. postPerspective timed three HP workstations: the [Z4 G6i desktop with an RTX PRO 6000](https://postperspective.com/review-hp-z4-g6i-workstation-an-editors-view/?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) tracked ARRI and Sony clips at 28 fps and RED at 7, while the [ZBook Fury G1i](https://postperspective.com/review-hp-zbook-fury-g1i-18-inch-mobile-workstation/?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) and [ZBook X G1i](https://postperspective.com/review-hp-zbook-x-g1i-16-inch-mobile-workstation/?ref=davinciresolveclub.com) laptops ran 7 to 21 fps. A 5-second shot at 24 fps is 120 frames, so the median works out to about 5 seconds per pass and the M4 Pro to about 32. My verdict: on a current NVIDIA desktop card, I'd go straight to Better and retrack as often as the edge needs it, because a pass costs seconds. On a Mac with a smaller GPU or a laptop, I'd place every point on one frame, track once and render the result in place. The [render in place guide](https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-render-in-place/) explains how, and the [GPU guide for DaVinci Resolve](https://davinciresolveclub.com/best-gpu-davinci-resolve/) compares the cards. ## Make a ring, neon or sticker outline The basic tree gives a solid outline that sits behind the subject. These changes cover the other looks people ask for. - **Hollow ring:** connect the original image (MediaIn1, or the cutout node for a person) to a second Bitmap, so it reads the ungrown alpha. Connect the first Bitmap (the grown one) into the blue input of this second Bitmap and set its Paint Mode to Subtract. In the [Bitmap Paint Mode list](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=2465), Subtract removes the new mask from the input mask, which leaves only the band between the two shapes. Connect the second Bitmap to the Background's mask input. Tom Jobbins's forum tree reaches the same ring with Matte Control set to subtract the original from the enlarged shape. - **Soft glow or neon:** raise Soft Edge on the Bitmap, or add a Blur node after Background1 and raise its Blur Size. In the person tree, setting Merge1's Apply Mode to Screen makes the glow brighten the footage instead of covering it. - **Gradient outline:** change the Background node's Type from Solid Color to Horizontal, Vertical, Four Corner or Gradient. - **Sticker look:** use a white outline of 10 to 20 pixels on a PNG or keyed clip, then go back to the Edit page and add ResolveFX Drop Shadow to the clip. Fusion runs before Edit page effects, so the [Drop Shadow effect](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=3664) builds its shadow from the outlined shape. - **Animated outline:** keyframe the Erode Dilate Amount from 0 up to your width so the outline grows in. For a line that draws itself on along a path, the [guide to animating a line stroke](https://davinciresolveclub.com/animate-line-stroke-davinci-resolve-fusion/) is the better fit. ![DaVinci Resolve Fusion Inspector for Bitmap2 with Paint Mode set to Subtract, Bitmap1 feeding its blue mask input, and the hollow magenta neon outline of a basketball player on black in the viewer](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a9/29/a929429b-cfab-4467-b902-a0cd9c90feac/content/images/2026/10/outline-ring.webp) With Paint Mode set to Subtract, the second Bitmap removes the original shape from the grown one and leaves a hollow ring. The ring pays off when nothing goes back on top of it, for an outline-only look where the subject itself disappears. When the subject is merged over the outline anyway, the solid version looks the same on an opaque subject and needs one node less. ## Save the outline as an Edit page effect For logos and keyed clips the tree never changes, so it's worth saving once as a Fusion macro. I'd save only the alpha version, because Magic Mask points and roto shapes belong to one shot and wouldn't fit the next clip. The steps follow the [manual's Fusion Effect template routine](https://documents.blackmagicdesign.com/UserManuals/DaVinci%5FResolve%5F21.1%5FReference%5FManual.pdf?ref=davinciresolveclub.com#page=1445): 1. **Select the tree.** Click Erode Dilate in the Node Editor, then press Command-A (Ctrl-A on Windows) to select the remaining nodes. 2. **Create the macro.** Right-click any selected node and choose Macro > Create Macro. 3. **Pick the controls.** In the Macro Editor, enable the checkboxes for the Erode Dilate Amount and the Background color controls. Enabled controls appear in the Edit page Inspector. 4. **Name and save it.** Type a name such as "Outline" at the top, click Close, then click Yes to save the changes. 5. **Save it in the Effects folder.** On macOS, start in your home folder and open Library › Application Support › Blackmagic Design › DaVinci Resolve › Fusion › Templates › Edit › Effects. On Windows, start in C:\\Users\\username and open AppData › Roaming › Blackmagic Design › DaVinci Resolve › Support › Fusion › Templates › Edit › Effects. On Linux, start in your home folder and open .local › share › DaVinciResolve › Fusion › Templates › Edit › Effects. 6. **Relaunch Resolve.** Quit and reopen Resolve. The effect appears in the Edit page Effects Library under Fusion Effects in the Toolbox, ready to drag onto any clip with an alpha channel. ![DaVinci Resolve Edit page with the Effects Library open on Fusion Effects listing an Outline effect, the effect applied to a PNG on V2, and the Inspector showing its Amount slider and outline color, with a mountain emblem outlined in lime over road footage](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a9/29/a929429b-cfab-4467-b902-a0cd9c90feac/content/images/2026/10/outline-macro.webp) Once saved as a macro, the outline sits in Fusion Effects and its Amount and color controls appear in the Edit page Inspector. Subfolders inside that Effects folder show up as their own sections in the Effects Library. The [guide to Fusion macros and templates](https://davinciresolveclub.com/davinci-resolve-fusion-macros-templates/) covers the .setting files behind these effects and choosing which controls reach the Inspector. ## Fix common outline problems - **The outline covers the subject:** the Merge inputs are swapped. The subject belongs in the green Foreground input of the last Merge. - **The outline runs around the whole frame, or doesn't appear:** the clip has no transparency. JPGs, most MP4s and ordinary camera footage are opaque everywhere, so use a PNG with alpha or cut the subject out first. - **The outline is cut off flat on one side:** the artwork touches the edge of the PNG canvas, and the composition ends there. Re-export the PNG with transparent padding. - **The width changed after you resized the clip:** Inspector Zoom and timeline scaling happen after Fusion, so they scale the outline too. Size the clip first, then set Amount. - **The same Amount looks thinner on another clip:** Amount is relative to the source width, and a UHD clip needs half the HD value for the same pixel width. Use the table above. - **Two people share one outline where they touch:** a single matte has one edge. Jobbins notes the same for overlapping particles. Mask each person separately and build a tree for each if they need separate lines. - **The outline swallows thin details:** lower Amount, or switch to the ring variant so the subject's edge stays visible. - **The edge chatters during playback:** fix the matte first with Better mode, the Matte tab Blur or the crop trick above, then add a little Bitmap Soft Edge. - **Playback stutters:** Magic Mask and a long node tree are heavy to play back. Render the clip in place, or let the render cache build before judging motion. ## Outline in DaVinci Resolve FAQ ### Can you outline a video clip without Fusion? Only partly. Picture in Picture adds a border around the clip's rectangle, and ResolveFX Drop Shadow at a distance of 0 adds a soft halo around a clip that already has transparency. A crisp outline that follows the shape of a subject needs the Fusion tree. ### Is the outline effect free in DaVinci Resolve? Yes, for anything that already has an alpha channel. Erode Dilate, Bitmap, Background, Merge, Matte Control, Polygon and Delta Keyer are all in the free version. Magic Mask, which cuts out a person automatically, is a DaVinci Resolve Studio feature. ### How do you outline text in DaVinci Resolve? Use the title's own settings. The Text title has a Stroke group in the Inspector with Color and Size, and Text+ draws outlines through its Shading elements. No Fusion tree is needed. ### Why does the outline show up around the edge of the frame? The clip is opaque everywhere, so its alpha channel is the whole frame and Erode Dilate grows that rectangle. Use a PNG with transparency, or cut the subject out with Magic Mask, a key or a rotoscoped shape first. ### How thick should an outline be? On an HD timeline, 5 to 10 pixels is a good starting range for a logo, and 10 to 20 pixels suits a bold sticker look. Divide the pixel width by the source width to get the Erode Dilate Amount, for example 10 / 1920 = 0.0052. ### Can the outline follow a moving person automatically? In DaVinci Resolve Studio, yes: the Magic Mask node tracks the person through the shot, and the outline follows the mask on every frame. In the free version, a Polygon or B-Spline shape has to be keyframed by hand wherever the person moves, unless the shot was filmed on a green or blue screen.