OptiTrack's Insight Virtual Camera System
July 12, 2010
Source: NaturalPoint
Optical Virtual
Camera System Enables Live-action Camera Work for CG Filmmaking
- Compatible with all Optical Motion Capture Systems
Filmmakers and game cinematographers are increasingly turning
to real-time virtual production technologies to blend real-world
tools with their virtual world. At the heart of this development
is the virtual camera
 .
James Cameron revolutionized digital cinematography with his
innovative control of the virtual camera using motion capture.
This "Virtual Vérité" technology is
now being offered for a fraction of the cost, with OptiTrack™'s
Insight VCS.
"Our goal has always been to offer
full-featured motion capture systems at a price that production
companies of every size can afford," said Jim Richardson,
NaturalPoint®® co-founder and lead engineer for the
OptiTrack motion capture line.
"With the Insight VCS, we're expanding this vision to
include the bleeding-edge virtual camera technology that Cameron
made famous with "Avatar" - as usual, at an exceptionally
low price. OptiTrack now delivers high-performance body, face
and virtual camera mocap for less than anyone else in the
world."
To ensure complete compatibility with a
variety of production pipelines, the Insight VCS has been
engineered for interoperability with any existing optical
motion capture system - including OptiTrack, Vicon and Motion
Analysis - that can track marker-based rigid bodies and stream
data to Autodesk MotionBuilder or Autodesk Maya.
Developed in close collaboration with Los
Angeles-based previsualization company Halon Entertainment,
the Insight VCS is the ideal virtual camera solution for a
broad range of applications ranging from film and commercial
previsualization to digital filmmaking. Throughout the development
process Halon tested design iterations in the field, utilizing
pre-production versions of the Insight VCS to create content
for high profile projects and directors.
"In working with OptiTrack to develop
the Insight VCS, Halon helped build a tool that puts film
directors and directors of photography in a virtual world
they more closely understand," said Justin Denton, technical
developer and previs supervisor at Halon Entertainment.
"The value of being able to walk out into a space and
explore a virtual world by physically controlling a camera,
finding the perfect angles and then shooting multiple takes
is truly remarkable. All of this is achieved in a fraction
of the time it takes to keyframe a single camera take, and
the results are more natural. The Insight VCS has proven invaluable
on multiple high-profile film and commercial projects for
us here at Halon."
The Insight VCS is a two-part system, consisting
of a hardware camera rig and software interface. As the hardware
rig is tracked throughout the motion capture volume, absolute
6 DOF position and orientation data is streamed live via the
software plug-in to either MotionBuilder or Maya to drive
the virtual camera within the 3D application. Real-time reference
video is streamed out of MotionBuilder or Maya back to the
VCS display, creating a low-latency visual feedback loop,
akin to the viewfinder in an actual digital camera.
Different versions of both the hardware
rig and software plug-in are available to fit a variety of
existing pipelines and production requirements. Components
include:
Virtual Camera Rigs: The Insight
VCS offers two different hardware rigs for controlling the
virtual camera:
VCS:Pro
Designed for professional production work, the VCS:Pro replicates
the organic cinematographer's experience with exceptional
fidelity. The professional model includes a 1280x768 HD LCD
display for real-time feedback, mappable buttons and joysticks
for extensive camera control, and a robust Redrock Micro shoulder
mount kit. Markers and posts are included for a variety of
marker configurations.
VCS:Mini
The VCS:Mini provides low cost, lightweight and highly flexible
access to the virtual camera pipeline. The kit includes an
anodized aluminum mount preinstalled on a wireless Xbox 360
game pad, as well as markers and posts.
Software Plug-ins: Comprehensive, customizable
plug-ins are available for camera work in MotionBuilder and
Maya for control over scripts, button mapping, scaling and
camera properties. Universal versions of each plug-in are
also available for use with non-OptiTrack motion capture systems.
Pricing and Availability
The Insight VCS will ship late summer 2010. Pricing for the
camera rig ranges from $199 USD to $5,000 USD. Software plug-ins
to MotionBuilder and Maya for OptiTrack systems are $1,000
USD. Universal plug-ins for other motion capture systems are
$2,000 USD.
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