Resources
Long form videos for those interested in the subject.
Previsualization before production:
Previs for Thor:
https://youtu.be/vK3_9sV5GqM?t=31s
Good example to show the extremes of planning for a shoot.
Production:
Hugo’s desk, Tips and tricks for on set supervision:
https://youtu.be/XJ9NwxAwUQ4?t=14s
This is a pro’s look at what it means to do VFX supervision.
Eric Alba’s kit and resources including lens distortion grids:
https://24liespersecond.com/VFX-Kit
Added Resources:
Jurassic Park:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rlr3Lzvqog
After Effects to Cinema 4d lite:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2CQSzDzl4M
Also attached is the look book for the sequence we’ll be taking into after effects to begin VFX work. Good reference for those trying to organize a shoot and getting their crew up to speed.
Matchmoving:
3d camera tracking is how you find the position and movement of a 3d camera.
To be clear the 3d camera is the camera we use in after effects, maya etc. It is a digital representation of the practica/live action camera we used on set to shoot the footage. Its a red, alexa, iPhone.
If we can find out where our practical camera was on the day of shooting we can then place objects in 3d space and have them sit in the scene in a believable way.
I'm going to show you examples of visual effects where this technique is applied.
Examples:
https://vimeo.com/166807261
How it works:
The computer doesn’t read an image as 3d
We can see in 3 dimensions because we have 2 eyes to perceive depth. The differences in perspective our eyes see helps us measure depth.
Matchmoving uses a principal called photogrammetry that works the same way. If you have 2 photographs of the same thing from different angles and select the same features from each angle. There is mathematically only one way they can lock together. From there we can calculate the 3d coordinates of the points, but also the coordinates of the cameras.
When we solve for a 3d camera the software is basically putting up hundreds of 2 d trackers to analyze a scene. It then calculates the differences in position of all the trackers.
Important how you shoot it right
-There has to be something to track (do you need tracking markers?)
-We need to see things at different depths (parallax)
-Do not track anything that is moving.