Paint

Paint operates on an input image rather than generating a canvas by itself: Input defines the frame, resolution and source pixels, while Output returns that image with the active paint strokes applied. For an empty transparent canvas, feed Paint from a Background with zero alpha.

The essential distinction is that Stroke Type and Apply Mode are not the same control. Stroke Type is chosen with Paint tools in the Viewer and determines how a stroke is created and edited; Apply Mode in the Inspector determines what that stroke does to pixels.

For controlled retouching, Stroke is the core editable and animatable choice. Multistroke is efficient for many quick frame-specific touch-ups but individual dabs do not offer the same post-draw editing freedom. Clone Multistroke accelerates repeated clone cleanup, while Polyline Stroke builds a stroke along an editable spline/path.

Apply Mode defines the pixel operation. Long-standing Fusion documentation includes Color, Clone, Emboss, Erase, Merge, Smear, Stamp and Wire among the documented modes; exact labels and availability can vary by Resolve/Fusion build, so these operations should not be mistaken for physical ports or for Stroke Type.

Clone samples donor pixels from the current image or a selected Source Tool. In Blackmagic's documented workflow the clone source is picked with Alt/Option-click in the Viewer, then the destination is painted. Sampling near the defect usually gives a better texture, lighting and perspective match.

Paint is time-aware: Stroke Duration and the available stroke-animation modes determine whether a stroke exists on one frame, a bounded range or a longer interval, while Write On/Write Off can animate progress along the stroke. Cleanup therefore has to be inspected before and after the hero frame.

The blue Effect Mask only limits where the completed Paint operation may affect the image; it does not become the brush, clone donor or a painted matte stream. When the task is to draw a mask that drives another node's blue mask input, MaskPaint is the appropriate mask-output tool.

On moving subjects, avoid chasing motion manually across hundreds of frames when it can be tracked or stabilized first. A robust cleanup often follows track/stabilize → Paint in a calmer space → restore motion; simpler strokes can also be attached to verified tracking motion.