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Smart Backdrops

Posted: Sat May 11, 2013 7:28 am
by Simon
I like to sculpt from reference photos and drawings, however up till now these had to be strictly Orthographic - In line with the axes and with no perspective distortion.

I've been trying out a new photo-fit backdrop that allows for any angle backdrops, with perspective distortion. You just tag reference points in 3D and on your image and it lines them up. It works well with multiple angles of the same object.

Below I took a bunch of photos of Jason Statham from Google - all from varied angles and perspectives, and unified them with the new backdrop fitter. Having a group of reference images ready lined up is very handy. (Notice in the bottom left a list of my 8 backdrops)

You could use the same idea to fit a 3D object into an existing 2D picture by matching the angle and perspective using the same tools.

Image

Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 4:00 am
by pior
That sounds really promising !! Cannot wait to see it in action. Again this feels like another area where Curvy can break the mold and do things better than any other 3d app out there. Awesome.

Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 3:35 pm
by Mr.Nemo
Wow. I am very impressed with the additions you've made to Curvy. I will try the new build today. I'll let ya know what I find. By the way Simon. Thanks for listening to my viewport navigation issues. I absolutely love how you navigate now. Much faster and smoother!

Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 4:40 am
by pior
Would it be possible to have a quick explanation of how to use this feature in 3.0.9b ?

Thanks :)

Posted: Wed May 15, 2013 7:06 am
by Simon
Apparently I did switch this off in 3.0.9b - shouldn't have been in the updates. I'll put it in 3.1.0

...so for later, here are the instructions (Won't work in 3.0.9b!)

I think it needs a video... but here are the basics

BASICS
- Manual Setup

1) Line up the perspective view roughly where you want the backdrop

2) Choose "View/Load Persp Backdrop" & pick a file

3) Click on the "Locate Tool" to edit the Backdrop - find this near the top of the tools panel, it uses the "Orbit Tool" icon at the moment.

4) This should give you access to move/scale and rotate the backdrop with manipulators.

5) The backdrop is normally only visible from it's own special Backdrop View. Switch to Four-View mode, then Hold the Left Button over the top right of a view (eg: Top View) where it says "3D Views". Pick "Backdrop"

6) I find it helpful to model in 2-View mode with "Overlay Backdrops" turned on, one view being Persp and the other Backdrop.

ADVANCED
- Lining up Multiple Views

1) Select "Locate" tool, and choose a Backdrop in the panel in the bottom left.

2) It is best to start with as close you can get to "Front" and "Left" oriented backdrops, although it will work with any angle.

3) The general idea is to place Targets in 3D and on the 2D images. Then you can manually or automatically align the images.

4) There are 4 kinds of targets accessed with the buttons near the top of the Targets Panel.

- Free: No Constraints

- Centre: Constrained to the Centre of the Front View

- Left: Mirrored to the Right when it moves (3D Left Target is copied to Right 3D Target)

- Right: Mirrored to the Leftwhen it moves (3D Right Target is copied to Left 3D Target)

5) To place a 3D target, choose the type from the Backdrops Panel then press F1 to F9 in a 3D view, then do the same in another view (several presses might be needed in multiple views to locate a point in 3D)

6) To place a 2D target, press 1-9 over the correct position on the Backdrop Image in a 3D view - only one press is needed to set a 2D Target.

7) If it goes wrong, and you lose sight of the image, press "Reset" to centre the current Backdrop back on the origin.

8) Press "Triang" to Triangulate the 2D Targets to the 3D Targets. Press several times till the backdrop stops moving.

9) Ctrl+NumberKey or Ctrl+FunctionKey = Remove a Target

10) Shift+FunctionKey = Refine 3D Target by position of 2D Target in multiple images.

11) Repeat from (5) to improve the position of your 3D targets to match the images.

Sounds pretty cool

Posted: Sun Jun 16, 2013 8:48 pm
by The.Great.ESCape
I would like to see this feature fully implemented. I like to sculpt from reference too. So this matches angles and points correct?, or does it try to shape the model as well... either way it's cool.

I'm playing with beta 3.13 now, so I will see if I can figure it out.

Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 5:20 pm
by Elnyp
Can see the manipulators but no image.....does it have to be a specific graphic format?

Posted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 3:21 pm
by Simon
I use JPG/BMP but other formats work too.

Did you see the "Backdrop View" view type?
5) The backdrop is normally only visible from it's own special Backdrop View. Switch to Four-View mode, then Hold the Left Button over the top right of a view (eg: Top View) where it says "3D Views". Pick "Backdrop"