7. Arranging Camera Views in the Timeline
7.1 Add Camera Views
In Virtual Studio 1, you can set precise camera views and movements with the virtual motion camera. For this purpose, you can arrange so-called "View Markers" in the timeline. Each View Marker has settings for the camera position and animation.
To insert a View Marker, proceed as follows:
1
Move the time slider (the yellow triangle in the time scale) to the time position where you want to set a new camera view.
2
In the menu bar, select Edit > Add View Marker. Now, a marker is inserted in the "Motion" track at the chosen time position. The new marker is also simultaneously selected, and the settings are displayed in the Inspector.
3
Use the marker settings in the Inspector to customize the camera view according to your preferences.
7.2 Adjusting the Camera View
View Marker Parameters in the Inspector
7.2.1 View Setting
Center Of Interest: With this parameter, you set the focal point to direct the viewer's interest to a specific point. The virtual motion camera automatically aligns itself with the chosen camera view.
There are four fundamental focal points available for the camera view:
1
Studio: Use this focal point when you want to showcase your studio as a whole, for example, at the beginning of your video to provide the viewer with an overview and overall impression that can help with orientation. This view is also well-suited for overlaying titles or similar graphics.
2
Actor: Use this option to direct the viewer's interest to the person in the studio. This view is perfect for sections of your video where the actor's facial expressions and gestures are particularly important.
3
Display: With this setting, the camera view is centered on the display. This view is excellent when you want to draw special attention to the media content on the display.
4
Actor & Display: Choose this view when the actor has direct relevance to the media content on the display, for example, when pointing directly to an element on the display content with their hands.
View Size: This parameter allows you to determine the size of the selected focal point in the frame. There are six size settings to choose from.
Wide-Angle View: Wide-angle perspective
Large View: Large perspective
Full View: Full perspective
Medium View: Medium perspective
Medium Close-Up: Medium close-up perspective
Close-Up: Close-up perspective
The size settings are always optimized for the selected focal point.
View Alignment: With this setting, you can determine whether the subject is centered or aligned using the rule of thirds (Golden Ratio).
View Direction: Use this parameter to set the direction from which the camera is looking at the focal point.
7.2.2 Adjust Frame
With these settings, you can fine-tune the selected camera view in detail.
Horizontal: Move the camera left or right.
Height: Move the camera down or up.
Distance: Bring the camera closer or farther away from the subject.
Direction: Adjust the camera's viewing direction.
Line Of Sight: Adjust the camera's line of sight up or down.
If you made changes to the frame adjustment and later change the view size, you may need to reset the frame adjustment to obtain the correct setting for the chosen view size.
7.2.3 Camera Shake
With these parameters, you can adjust whether the camera is fixed or if it slightly moves or shakes in its position. This allows you to introduce a certain liveliness into your camera movement.
Speed: Adjust how fast the camera should shake.
Intensity: Adjust how strong the camera's shake should be.
7.2.4 Camera Transition
You can move the virtual motion camera from the current camera view to the next set camera view. There are five movement options to choose from:
The five movement options
1
None: With this setting, no movement is executed, and there is a hard cut to the next camera view. This is also the default standard value.
2
Smooth In and Out: In this setting, the camera accelerates smoothly at the beginning of the motion and decelerates smoothly at the end. This setting is perfect for a smooth transition between two camera views.
3
Smooth In: In this setting, the camera accelerates smoothly at the beginning of the motion but is not decelerated at the end. Use this setting to cut from this motion directly into the next motion.
4
Smooth Out: In this setting, the motion starts directly at full speed but is decelerated at the end. Use this setting if you want to cut directly from the previous motion into this motion.
5
Linear: In this setting, the camera moves uniformly from start to finish without acceleration or deceleration. Use this setting when multiple motions need to be cut abruptly.
If you choose a motion variant other than "None", this View Marker in the timeline will be connected to the next View Marker in the timeline, represented by a yellow-orange stripe. The yellow triangle at the beginning of the stripe is the start marker for the motion, indicating the time when the camera movement towards the connected next camera view begins.
You can use the mouse to move the start marker, thus delaying the start of the camera movement to any later point in time and adjusting the duration of the movement. In the space between the View Marker and the start marker, the camera waits in the set camera view, represented by a dashed line.
By shortening the camera movement, it automatically becomes faster.
When you move a View Marker in the timeline, the set connections are automatically adjusted.
Marker M1 without transition, M2 with complete transition, M3 with delayed transition