Virtual production of lighting articles
LED screen
Subverting tradition illuminates the set
Step into a virtual studio
Uxbridge
01
In the last issue, Xiao Di shared the "tracking" of the virtual production series of short films launched by DNGE and the veteran motion capture team Dimession, and learned how to use motion capture technology to track cameras, actors and props in virtual production. Today let's walk into Uxbridge Studios, the location of the series of short films, to see how LED screens are used for interactive lighting in virtual productions, and what effect the light reflections of the LED screens have on the sense of realism.
Illuminate your set
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"We used LED screens to illuminate the environment while also illuminating the actors, which produced a more convincing and realistic effect than when we were shooting only in a standard background." Paul Franklin, two-time Oscar winner and creative director of DNEG (Interstellar, Inception), said Paul Franklin, creative director of DNEG, "As filmmakers, virtual production innovation projects help us realize more possibilities. By using state-of-the-art LED screens, we were able to explore different scenes in the same venue, from urban architecture to natural landscapes to the sci-fi world of deep space, and the realism that this way of shooting was amazing. ”
Effectively used as a scene light
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Paul Franklin also said: "Unlike rear-projection or front-projection peripheral lights, the LED screen itself is bright enough to be effectively used as a scene light source. In some cases, the light from the LED screen is sufficient for most or even all of the light needed to shoot the scene, such as when shooting a dusk or dawn scene. However, if hard directional light is required (called hard directional light when the beam is parallel to and vertically illuminated on the subject from the light source), for example, when shooting bright daylight environments, additional light is required. It's important to remember that the LED screen is actually a giant TV screen in the venue, so it produces soft diffuse reflections that never produce clear, thick, and well-defined shadows. That being said, the possibility of an LED screen acting as a light source on a shooting location is surprising enough. Because the lighting and lights in the scene change accordingly as the image on the screen changes. ”
Virtually crafted lights to use
Tips and experience
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When asked about his tips and experience with lighting in virtual productions, Paul Franklin suggested:
"You should first think about the effect you want to create, and the world you want to put on the screen, and then figure out what other lights you need to add to the LED screen and on the set of the shooting, so that you can create the effect you want to present in the shot."
The real key to doing this is making sure you have enough preparation time to prepare everything you want. Because once you officially start shooting, there is not enough time to do it.
You can also troubleshoot possible problems and glitches during the testing period before shooting, and through the test, it may also expose situations that you did not expect or that you need to use for formal shooting.
As a director, I think it's also important for the director of photography to familiarize himself as much as possible with how the LED screen works and the lighting effects it provides for the shooting environment, as he coordinates and utilizes all of this on set. ”
Light reflects on the sense of realism
effect
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What is the effect of light reflection on the realism of the LED screen?
Ed Thomas, head of real-time and virtual production on the Dimension team, has a say on the issue, saying:
"Within the coverage of the LED screen, the LED panel is very satisfactory for the shooting effect of the mirror and transparent material scenes. At the same time, each LED screen on the set has a certain degree of radians and reflectivity, and each panel will respond to the scene lighting in a physically correct way under the premise of minimizing the influence of polarization and reflection, so that the set of the set looks like it was built around them. These bring a very realistic visual experience to LED screen shooting, and it is difficult to replicate this effect with traditional lighting settings alone. ”
Compared to traditional lighting configurations
More flexibility
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Is it easier to create real lighting for different scenes in virtual production than in traditional production?
According to Ed Thomas:
"It's not that it's easier to create real lighting for different scenes in virtual production, although in some ways it does.
But virtual production does give you more flexibility to change lighting settings in a responsive or interactive way. Traditional physical lighting scenes rely on a lot of pre-production to identify the appearance of the scene for the desired lighting, and then determine the physical representation of these lights and their configuration on set. In virtual production, because the light is generated by the LED screen, it can be driven in real time, so as to best respond to the dynamic nature of the scene production, and even achieve the "effect of the shooting is obtained".
Elements such as color, intensity, and orientation can all be adjusted shot-by-shot, with little physical dependence on the set, which makes the combination of virtual production and LED screen very popular, as it greatly enhances the flexibility and creativity of the actual shooting scene. ”
epilogue
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The combination of LED screen and virtual production technology subverts the traditional production process, and has the advantages of high immersion, seconds to change scenes, and "what is filmed is obtained" compared with the previous shooting technology. Dickson will continue to explore virtual production technology, so that creators have a more flexible creative space and expression. Follow Dickson to learn more about virtual production updates and services.