--- title: "How to replace signs and screens with Planar Tracker in DaVinci Resolve Fusion" author: "Cutsio Team" date: "2026-05-15" lastmod: "2026-05-15" category: "DaVinci Resolve Advanced Workflows" excerpt: "DaVinci Resolve Fusion Planar Tracker lets you replace signs, screens, and billboards in moving footage with automatic corner pinning and perspective tracking. This guide covers setup, tracking, and compositing." tags: ["DaVinci Resolve","Fusion","Planar Tracker","Screen Replacement","Sign Replacement","Corner Pin","Motion Tracking"] --- ## How do you replace a sign or screen with Planar Tracker in DaVinci Resolve Fusion? Connect your clip to a Planar Tracker node. Draw a shape around the area you want to track — a smartphone screen, a billboard, a sign on a moving vehicle. Click Track Forward in the inspector. The tracker analyzes the surface and generates a motion path with position, rotation, scale, and perspective data. The Planar Tracker includes built-in corner pinning — connect your replacement graphic to the green foreground input and position the four corners to match the tracked surface. ![Planar Tracker](https://images.blackmagicdesign.com/images/products/davinciresolve/fusion/replace/replace-xl@2x.jpg?_v=1602127285) The Planar Tracker is designed specifically for flat surfaces. It tracks the plane of the surface itself, not just a single point. This means it handles perspective changes as the surface moves in 3D space — a billboard seen from a moving car, a smartphone turning in an actor's hand, or a sign on the side of a rotating vehicle. ## How do you set up a planar track in Fusion? Add a Planar Tracker node from the effects library and connect your clip to its yellow input. In the viewer, draw a polygon around the surface you want to track. Include the entire surface area plus a small margin. In the inspector, select the tracking pattern — the default "auto" pattern works for most surfaces with sufficient detail and contrast. Click the Track Forward button. The tracker analyzes every frame and displays a tracking cloud showing the motion path. Review the track by scrubbing through the clip. If the track drifts, stop at the problematic frame, adjust the polygon position, and continue tracking. The tracker uses your correction to refine subsequent frames. Once tracking is complete, the Planar Tracker automatically generates corner pin data. Switch to the Operation tab and select "Corner Pin" as the output mode. The tracker node now functions as a corner position node. Connect your replacement graphic to the green foreground input. Position the four corner pins in the viewer to match the tracked surface. The graphic is warped to match the perspective and follows the surface through the entire clip. ## How do you blend the replacement with the original shot? To make the replacement look natural, add a Merge node after the Planar Tracker. Set the blend mode to "Normal" and reduce the blend slider to 80-90% so the original surface texture shows through slightly. Add a Soft Glow or Blur node between the replacement graphic and the Planar Tracker to match any defocus in the original footage. For screen replacements on smartphones or tablets, add a subtle Brightness/Contrast adjustment to the replacement graphic and keyframe it to flicker or change brightness, mimicking a real screen. Add a reflection or glare using the Light Rays tool for an extra layer of realism. ## FAQ ### Does the Planar Tracker work with curved surfaces? The Planar Tracker is optimized for flat surfaces. For curved surfaces like a coffee mug or vehicle body panel, use the 2D tracker with multiple tracking points and manual corner pinning. ### Can I use the Planar Tracker for rotoscoping? Yes. The Planar Tracker can output its tracking data to animate mask shapes. After tracking, change the Operation to "Mask" and connect the mask input of any tool. ### Is the Planar Tracker available in the free version of DaVinci Resolve? Yes. The Planar Tracker is available in both free and Studio versions of DaVinci Resolve. ### What resolution should my replacement graphic be? Use a graphic that matches or exceeds the resolution of the tracked surface in the frame. Higher-resolution graphics can be scaled down; lower-resolution graphics will appear soft. ### Can I track multiple surfaces in the same shot? Yes. Add multiple Planar Tracker nodes, each tracking a different surface, and connect different replacement graphics to each.

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