Shooting a 3D Anaglyph Movie With 2 Cameras
By: Nick Limina
Preparation
•First you must acquire two camcorders of the same kind (meaning
the same brand, type, model, series—they must have the EXACT same
specs)
•Design some sort of device that allows the cameras to be mounted
next to each other so the lenses are approximately 3 inches apart
from each other. The ideal mount can be made from peg board (stack
two identical pieces on top of each other for extra sturdiness).
Use four screws and nuts to secure that the two pieces of peg board
will not shift at all.
•After the recording tapes have been loaded, place the cameras next
to each other on the peg board mount, facing out. Stick two thumb
screws underneath in the appropriate peg holes, and through the
screw openings on the underside of the cameras. Make sure that the
screws are tightly secured, so the cameras are unable to move on
their own, however so they can still move with some force of the
hand. Using a ruler, also make sure that the lenses are
approximately 3 inches apart from each other.
Shooting
•Although the lenses are 3 inches apart (simulating distance between
eyes), you will have to tow your cameras inward, depending on the
distance away of your subject. For example, if your subject is
viewed from afar, you will only need to tow the cameras inward only
slightly. However, if you are shooting something at a close
distance, the cameras will have to be towed in more accordingly. It
is difficult to dictate how much to tow in because it can be
different with varying distances. Unfortunately, this will require
A LOT of trial and error.
•Another important aspect of shooting 3D using two cameras is to
sync sounds between the cameras. This will be extremely helpful
during the editing process. Once you have your shot set up the way
you want, simultaneously press “record” on the two cameras. After
letting both cameras record for about 2-3 seconds, have someone on
the set either CLAP or make a distinct sound loud enough so that
both cameras can pick it up. Then your actors can begin the scene.
If this is not done, it is tremendously difficult to sync up the
tapes using just the video images.
•Just like with any production, 3D or not, make sure that you
document any problems or changes in your shots. If you omit a shot
in your shooting plan or if you decide to change an angle, make a
note of it. If you are a forgetful person, it is important to do
this so you are not left looking for a scene or a shot during post
production that ceases to exist.
•If you are shooting this freehand (i.e. without a tripod), it is
important to remember that the less movement, the better. Too much
movement can possibly affect the recording process by allowing one
of the cameras to shift slighting during the motion, just enough to
throw off the continuity. If you have to do some sort of freehand
panning shot, make sure that it is as slow and steady as possible.
Even for stationary shots, it is important that the mount is held
as stable as can be.
Post Production (using Final Cut Pro)
•Log and capture the footage from both cameras into a single project
in Final Cut Pro, making sure that you include the “sync” sounds at
the beginning of each clip.
•Drag your left video clip in Channel 1 and drag your right clip
into Channel 2. Before you start manipulating the clips for a 3D
effect, it is important that if you wish to alter the clips in
anyway, to do it first (i.e. if you wish to make it in Black and
White or Sepia). If for whatever reason, your initial footage was
shot in poorly lit areas, it is an option that you can change your
footage to Black and White.
•It is greatly important that you find where your “sync sound”
begins on both clips. Get it to a point where that when you play
both clips simultaneously, the sync sound only has a faint echo and
doesn’t sound like a delay. If this is done properly, the video on
the left and right clips should be exactly lined up.
•Once you have your clips the way you want them, you can start with
the 3D process. First you have to Composite your clips. This can be
done by highlighting the clip and then going into the Modify menu,
clicking Composite Mode and, then Add. Do this for both clips. In
your right viewing screen, both images should look like they are on
top of each other.
•After this, you should de-interlace both clips. This can be done by
going under the Video Filters tab. Click “Video” and you will see
the de-interlace option. Double click on de-interlace, and in the
window in the middle of the screen you will see the option to
manipulate either the even or odd channels. Make your left clip
even and your right clip odd.
•Next, you have to change the color of each clip (the left to red
and the right to cyan). This can be done by going under the Video
Filters tab, clicking Color Correction, and then clicking RGB
Balance Parameters. In the middle window, you can now alter the
color of the clips. To get to the red image make sure all the blue
and green sliders are slid all the way to the left. Drag the filter
onto the left clip. Reset the amounts and set the red slider all
the way to the left, then drag the filter onto the right image. In
your left window, you will now see a composite anaglyph of the two
images.
•You might not see 3D right away because the images are not lined up
properly. If your cameras were not set up exactly perfect (and
there is a good chance that they were not) you will have to offset
the images to get them to appear 3D. This can be done in two ways:
o You can go to the Channel Offset filter in the Video filters
section. Click on the filter and in the middle window; you can
alter both the horizontal and vertical values. Find a value
(start low and go high) and drag it onto a clip and see what
happens. Once again, depending on how vastly different your
images are from lined up this will take some trial and error.
Do this until you come up with a value that permits the clips
to lay on top of each other in a way that gives a clear 3D
image.
o The second way to go about lining up your clips is to do it
manually. While the composite anaglyph image is in the right
viewing window, manually drag your left and right images in a
way that allows them to line up, giving you a 3D image. Make
sure that you don’t just drag the left image or just the right
image. Drag them each so that they meet nicely in the middle
of the frame. The only problem with this method is that,
depending on how much you shift your clips, you will be left
with empty space on either side of the frame. You can fix this
by:
o First, cropping the frame (on both the left and right
image) so that black fills in the empty spaces where your
image was shifted from.
o Unfortunately, you are now left with awkward borders on
the side of your frame. To fix this, you will have to
adjust the size the two images (the left/red and
right/blue) by blowing them up slightly so that they cover
over the borders and fill the frame. This will fix the
problem; however, depending on how much you need to blow
the image up, it will take away from the quality of the
picture, by pixelating it.
•Your image should now appear to be in anaglyph 3D. Remember that
before you crop and expand your image, to make sure that the images
are lined up as good as they can be so that whatever is in the
foreground appears in 3D.