Stereo Video Production : FilmingScott Lawrence (formerly with Vuzix Corp.)
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Introduction
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Hardware
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Filming
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Interlace
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Edit
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Export
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View
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3.0: Table Of Contents
- 3.1: Content Production and Filming
- 3.2: Camera Setup
- 3.3: IOD
- 3.4: Scene Composition
- 3.5: Post Production
3.1: Content Production and Filming
This section outlines knowledge learned from various examples, various demonstrations and many films shot with trial and error. It is not meant to be canonical, but rather a good starting point for your production.
3.2: Camera Setup
Do experiments to determine if you want your cameras parallel or .towed-in.. There are experts in the field of 3D stereo movie production who will argue either way. There is no standard way of doing it.
Try to keep the two cameras vertically aligned as perfectly as possible. The human eye can easily adjust each eye left-right independently. The human eye cannot adjust for up-down as easily, and will cause fatigue and headaches.
3.3: IOD
Standard human IOD (interocular distance . the distance from the center of one eye to the center of the other eye) is about 2.7 inches on average.
Wider IOD will result in a better depth effect to distant subjects.
Wider IOD will increase the depth effect, making things .pop. better. We film with a 4. IOD generally for a good depth effect.
Wider IOD means that the closest subject should also be far away. Our experiments have shown that for each inch of IOD, half that in feet should be the closest an item. For example, with a 4. IOD, don.t put things closer than 2 feet to the camera lenses. With an 18. IOD, don.t put things closer than 9 feet to the camera lenses. This is a rough heuristic, as these numbers obviously are affected by lens and sensor sizes.
Wider IOD will also make large things look smaller, since the viewer will perceive them as being closer.
3.4: Scene Composition
When you and your DP are setting up the shots, remember to keep in mind that you are setting up "Volumes" of 3D space, unlike traditional 2D films, where you are setting up a "Plane" of 2D space.
Try to keep non-subject content at a lower complexity. This will help guide the viewer's eyes to the main content. It will also insure that the export process later produces better results.
Flat objects with no details will not have any depth corrolation. A flat wall with no details on it at all will be ipossible to set at a specific observed distance from the viewer. Therefore, it is necessary to have some detail in the foreground and background to differentiate the two. Just remember to have more detail where you want the viewer to be looking.
Try to keep your subject at the zero crossing of the two cameras if you're using toe-in on the cameras. This will reduce eyestrain and improve compression. It will also prevent "ghosting" later as well.
Avoid panning and dissolve transitions. They will confuse the viewer and cause fatigue.
You might want to have well-known things in the shot to help pull the viewer in. For example, a well-lit, detailed fog can look quite convincing.
3.5: Post Production
Production time for 3D content is generally much longer than for 2D content. Remember to allow for extra processing time, and extra time to transcode the footage into its final products, as these processes may need it.
You may want to attempt to develop a production pipeline to produce 3D as well as 2D versions of your content for various promotional venues.
This page is a part of the Yorgle Notebook.