Matching 2D background plate to camera rotation

[Tudor “ted” jelescu]

So, if I understand correctly, you have a car rendered in Maya and an environment (bg plate) rendered using the same camera like the car and they do not match? Either the car or the bg plate may have different frame rates- did you check to see in Interpret footage if the fps is the same?

Tudor “Ted” Jelescu
Senior VFX Artist

[John Titor]

I’m 99% sure that the frame rates are the same though I will double check. The bg plate is just a still image of a road surrounded by fields, the road takes up the majority of the scene. When rendered out using the same camera, the white markings don’t match with the tires, the markings will start off under the tire, as the camera rotates they’re no longer under the tire. It just looks like a mismatch between a 2d still and the 3d movement of the camera with a 3d object in the scene. If I use a simple plane as a substitute for the road then there isn’t any mismatch between it and the car as the camera rotates around the car. However I’d like to see if there is any way I can achieve the same effect just using a 2d still with minimum fuss.

[Walter Soyka]

[john titor] “If I use a simple plane as a substitute for the road then there isn’t any mismatch between it and the car as the camera rotates around the car. However I’d like to see if there is any way I can achieve the same effect just using a 2d still with minimum fuss.”

The 2D still is just a flat plane, so it won’t show the perspective shift you want as you rotate around it — it will only appear correct from one single point of view.

You could use camera projection to project that photo onto simplified 3D geometry, but there are still limitations to how far you can push the camera movement.

Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
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[Ben G unguren]

+1 to Walter’s idea: you’ll need to use Maya to create some relatively basic geometry and then use camera projection. This method works much better for dolly-in/out or track-right/left shots rather than for 360-degree spins, however. (Things get much tricker for 360-degree stuff — you may need to shoot stills for a new location and project an environment from that….)

Don’t despair! Camera projection is a lot of fun! (And, the first time especially, a lot of work!)
For starters:
https://cg.tutsplus.com/tutorials/autodesk-maya/camera-projection-mapping-in-maya/
https://www.qvolabs.com/maya_camera_projection_basic.html

Ben Unguren
Motion Graphics & Editing
http://www.mostlydocumentary.com

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[John Titor]

Thanks for the help guys, I’ll check out those tutorials

[Tudor “ted” jelescu]

One other idea is to export the camera data from Maya and import in AE. Then use a 3d layer for the ground and Trapcode Horizon for the sky to create a 3d environment that will match the car. Here’s a link to a project where I used the exact same technique for the first shot (the only difference is that the 3d hummers where in AE as well using Zaxwerks Invigorator Pro):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H_tG5_DV5Q

Tudor “Ted” Jelescu
Senior VFX Artist

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