Received: from e55.webcom.com (e55.webcom.com [206.2.192.66]) by keeper.albany.net (8.7.5/8.7.5-MZ) with ESMTP id OAA19503 for <DWARNER@ALBANY.NET>; Tue, 26 Mar 1996 14:10:48 -0500 (EST)
Received: from localhost by e55.webcom.com with SMTP
(1.37.109.15/16.2) id AA079517134; Tue, 26 Mar 1996 11:05:34 -0800
Date: Tue, 26 Mar 1996 11:05:34 -0800
Errors-To: dwarner@ALBANY.NET
Message-Id: <199603261833.AA29862@xs1.xs4all.nl>
Errors-To: dwarner@ALBANY.NET
Reply-To: lightwave@garcia.com
Originator: lightwave@garcia.com
Sender: lightwave@garcia.com
Precedence: bulk
From: Daniel Dugour <anitime@xs4all.nl>
To: lightwave@e55.webcom.com
Subject: Re: Video and animation matching up
X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas
Status: RO
X-Status:
> Just wondering if there is an inexpensive way to match
>live video and animation if I want to use pans and camera
>dollies.
>
>Any help would be great.
>
I don't know if anybody has some really great idea about this, but I have
done a little bit of that. Here's what works for me:
a) The least expensive, but a lot of work on the computer, is to first shoot
the video. Measure the height of the camera, the distance of the lens-center
to the turning axis of the camera stand (what's the right word in English?),
the exact amount you move the camera and all important "key-frame"
positions, a couple of objects that come in view during the shot, preferably
one that stays in view all the time, and its exact position.
When modelling use a realworld scale, and make a dummy of the object(s) you
measured for reference, and put it/them in the right place(s).
Digitize the frames of your shot and number them as an animation so LW can
recognise it as a sequence, and put in the background of your Layout module.
Position your camera according to your notes, and also the dummies of the
reference objects, to see if they overlap with the ones in the digitised
frame. Make your animation of the camera movement, and check if the
positions of the reference objects stay the same. If you've done everything
correct, they don't slide over their counterparts in the digitised frames.
Save the animation, and remove the reference objects. Combine with the
animation you want (that's already modelled and positioned according to
realworld measurements), and render.
b) More expensive, but sometimes preferable, is to make the animations
first, planning the combination with live video carefully, and render it
all, or if that takes to much time render a quickshade version. Put it on
video, take it to the set (lots of bluescreen of course) where you composite
it live with the camerapicture. Try to match everything by hand. This is the
way it was done in the DEC infomercial 'The 2 PM Session'.
Maybe someone else has a better idea, then I would be glad to hear that, too.