Tutorials: First Person Camera POV
So at the request of a few artists here (pinging my sensei @squarepeg3d) here is a short write up on how I set up the previously posted āMidweek Quickie: Wake Up Sleepy Headā. Weirdly enough its one of my more popular posts now (yal are weird :) ), which didnāt require much effort to put together once I understood the basics of a few key camera settings.Ā
This will be some camera jargon, and there isnāt really a TLDR, sorry!
Anyhoo, there are a few terms you need to understand when dealing with cameras in general. Iāve tried to give the quick definitions as well:
Depth of Focus: Usually represented by F/<number> this produces theĀ āhey the person is in focus but the rest of the photo is sorta blurryā effect. This effect isnāt used in the image, but its an important concept (in my opinon!) to master if youāre looking to keep your renders from looking soĀ āflatā. In depth breakdown is here: Depth of Field Controls
Focal Length: Defined as the ālength between the lens and the image sensorā. Usually denoted as a ā<Number>mm Lensā, this can influense theĀ āshapeā of the image and how much of the image shows up with the frame (aka Field of View). If you havenāt guessed, this is the main way to achieve the POV effect! More explanation later on this, but of a visual guide on focal lengths: Nikonās Guide on Focal LengthĀ and search for Anna Wu : āWhat Lens Should I Useā, which is really helpful.
Focal Distance: Related to Depth of Focus, but in Daz can be manipulated individually.
Next how to set this up. It probably very helpful to set up multiple viewports in Daz so you can see what happens when changing camera settings. The above image is usually how I have Daz3D set up when doing camera manipulation. My general work flow after setting up the scene and general lighting:
1. Have the Camera selected in the Scenes tab. You will not be able to see the dotted lines representing the cameras field of view OR the focal length/depth of focus if you are using DOF
2. Turn your headlamp off for the love of god. I still donāt understand why this isnāt defaulted. A number of renders I see could look 100% times better if they werenāt renedered with the camera headlamp on. It ruins your lighting (unless you are explicitly using it for some effect). To turn it off, select the camera, go to the Cameras tab, select headlamp and turn it from Auto to OFF. You will then need to go up to Window -> Preview Lights if you viewport goes dark. (CTRL-L also works)
3. Aim your camera at your subject in the scene you imaging you areĀ ālookingā at. I usually use Perspective view and get it to where I want my Camera to be, then create it from there.
4. With the camera selected in the scenes tab change your Focal Length FIRST before changing any other settings. It is useful if in one of your other view ports you have Perspective view on, and Camera view in another.
5. Adjust the Focal Length accordingly to frame your subject! Lower Focal Lengths produce a sort of fish eye effect that is close to how the human eye looks. Distortion is normal. Higher Focal Lengths make the image a bit flat (up to around 250mm). Imagine using a super big lens to spy on someone. This was actually the settings used inĀ āStrange Creatures (Patreon Freebie)ā
6. If you want to add Depth of Focus, click the button and then adjust your Focal DistanceĀ (how much you want in focus) and F/StopĀ (how much you want in focus). You can see when the camera is selectedĀ Ā in the second image, the lines representing what is in focus can be seen if DOF is enabled.
Thatās pretty much it! I would suggest doing this with a few primitives to get the basics down, as this is what I did. Once you get it, you can create all sorts of neat effects (including POV!)
Please like and reblog this to get the word out, and of course leave a comment/ask if something doesnāt make sense or I glossed over any steps. Hope itās helpful! Have fun rendering!
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