COMPOSITION
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Mastering Camera Shots and Angles: A Guide for FilmmakersRead more: Mastering Camera Shots and Angles: A Guide for Filmmakershttps://website.ltx.studio/blog/mastering-camera-shots-and-angles 1. Extreme Wide Shot  2. Wide Shot  3. Medium Shot  4. Close Up  5. Extreme Close Up  
DESIGN
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Kristina Kashtanova – “This is how GPT-4 sees and hears itself”Read more: Kristina Kashtanova – “This is how GPT-4 sees and hears itself”“I used GPT-4 to describe itself. Then I used its description to generate an image, a video based on this image and a soundtrack. Tools I used: GPT-4, Midjourney, Kaiber AI, Mubert, RunwayML This is the description I used that GPT-4 had of itself as a prompt to text-to-image, image-to-video, and text-to-music. I put the video and sound together in RunwayML. GPT-4 described itself as: “Imagine a sleek, metallic sphere with a smooth surface, representing the vast knowledge contained within the model. The sphere emits a soft, pulsating glow that shifts between various colors, symbolizing the dynamic nature of the AI as it processes information and generates responses. The sphere appears to float in a digital environment, surrounded by streams of data and code, reflecting the complex algorithms and computing power behind the AI” 
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VQGAN + CLIP AI made Music Video for the song Canvas by ResonateRead more: VQGAN + CLIP AI made Music Video for the song Canvas by Resonate” In this video, I utilized artificial intelligence to generate an animated music video for the song Canvas by Resonate. This tool allows anyone to generate beautiful images using only text as the input. My question was, what if I used song lyrics as input to the AI, can I make perfect music synchronized videos automatically with the push of a button? Let me know how you think the AI did in this visual interpretation of the song. After getting caught up in the excitement around DALL·E2 (latest and greatest AI system, it’s INSANE), I searched for any way I could use similar image generation for music synchronization. Since DALL·E2 is not available to the public yet, my search led me to VQGAN + CLIP (Vector Quantized Generative Adversarial Network and Contrastive Language–Image Pre-training), before settling more specifically on Disco Diffusion V5.2 Turbo. If you don’t know what any of these words or acronyms mean, don’t worry, I was just as confused when I first started learning about this technology. I believe we’re reaching a turning point where entire industries are about to shift in reaction to this new process (which is essentially magic!). DoodleChaos” 
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Japanese Designer Tomoo Yamaji Offers 3D Printed Transformer Kit, Stingray, Through ShapewaysRead more: Japanese Designer Tomoo Yamaji Offers 3D Printed Transformer Kit, Stingray, Through Shapewayshttps://3dprint.com/55799/transformer-kit-shapeways/ http://www.shapeways.com/product/5YHJL6XSZ/t060101-stingray?li=shareProduct 
COLOR
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The 7 key elements of brand identity design + 10 corporate identity examplesRead more: The 7 key elements of brand identity design + 10 corporate identity exampleswww.lucidpress.com/blog/the-7-key-elements-of-brand-identity-design 1. Clear brand purpose and positioning 2. Thorough market research 3. Likable brand personality 4. Memorable logo 5. Attractive color palette 6. Professional typography 7. On-brand supporting graphics 
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THOMAS MANSENCAL – The Apparent Simplicity of RGB RenderingRead more: THOMAS MANSENCAL – The Apparent Simplicity of RGB Renderinghttps://thomasmansencal.substack.com/p/the-apparent-simplicity-of-rgb-rendering The primary goal of physically-based rendering (PBR) is to create a simulation that accurately reproduces the imaging process of electro-magnetic spectrum radiation incident to an observer. This simulation should be indistinguishable from reality for a similar observer. Because a camera is not sensitive to incident light the same way than a human observer, the images it captures are transformed to be colorimetric. A project might require infrared imaging simulation, a portion of the electro-magnetic spectrum that is invisible to us. Radically different observers might image the same scene but the act of observing does not change the intrinsic properties of the objects being imaged. Consequently, the physical modelling of the virtual scene should be independent of the observer. 
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FXGuide – ACES 2.0 with ILM’s Alex FryRead more: FXGuide – ACES 2.0 with ILM’s Alex Fryhttps://draftdocs.acescentral.com/background/whats-new/ ACES 2.0 is the second major release of the components that make up the ACES system. The most significant change is a new suite of rendering transforms whose design was informed by collected feedback and requests from users of ACES 1. The changes aim to improve the appearance of perceived artifacts and to complete previously unfinished components of the system, resulting in a more complete, robust, and consistent product. Highlights of the key changes in ACES 2.0 are as follows: - New output transforms, including:
- A less aggressive tone scale
- More intuitive controls to create custom outputs to non-standard displays
- Robust gamut mapping to improve perceptual uniformity
- Improved performance of the inverse transforms
 
- Enhanced AMF specification
- An updated specification for ACES Transform IDs
- OpenEXR compression recommendations
- Enhanced tools for generating Input Transforms and recommended procedures for characterizing prosumer cameras
- Look Transform Library
- Expanded documentation
 Rendering TransformThe most substantial change in ACES 2.0 is a complete redesign of the rendering transform. ACES 2.0 was built as a unified system, rather than through piecemeal additions. Different deliverable outputs “match” better and making outputs to display setups other than the provided presets is intended to be user-driven. The rendering transforms are less likely to produce undesirable artifacts “out of the box”, which means less time can be spent fixing problematic images and more time making pictures look the way you want. Key design goals- Improve consistency of tone scale and provide an easy to use parameter to allow for outputs between preset dynamic ranges
- Minimize hue skews across exposure range in a region of same hue
- Unify for structural consistency across transform type
- Easy to use parameters to create outputs other than the presets
- Robust gamut mapping to improve harsh clipping artifacts
- Fill extents of output code value cube (where appropriate and expected)
- Invertible – not necessarily reversible, but Output > ACES > Output round-trip should be possible
- Accomplish all of the above while maintaining an acceptable “out-of-the box” rendering
 
- New output transforms, including:
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Gamma correctionRead more: Gamma correction http://www.normankoren.com/makingfineprints1A.html#Gammabox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_correction http://www.photoscientia.co.uk/Gamma.htm https://www.w3.org/Graphics/Color/sRGB.html http://www.eizoglobal.com/library/basics/lcd_display_gamma/index.html https://forum.reallusion.com/PrintTopic308094.aspx Basically, gamma is the relationship between the brightness of a pixel as it appears on the screen, and the numerical value of that pixel. Generally Gamma is just about defining relationships. Three main types: 
 – Image Gamma encoded in images
 – Display Gammas encoded in hardware and/or viewing time
 – System or Viewing Gamma which is the net effect of all gammas when you look back at a final image. In theory this should flatten back to 1.0 gamma.
 (more…)
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Scene Referred vs Display Referred color workflowsRead more: Scene Referred vs Display Referred color workflowsDisplay Referred it is tied to the target hardware, as such it bakes color requirements into every type of media output request. Scene Referred uses a common unified wide gamut and targeting audience through CDL and DI libraries instead. 
 So that color information stays untouched and only “transformed” as/when needed.Sources: 
 – Victor Perez – Color Management Fundamentals & ACES Workflows in Nuke
 – https://z-fx.nl/ColorspACES.pdf
 – Wicus
 
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Willem Zwarthoed – Aces gamut in VFX production pdfRead more: Willem Zwarthoed – Aces gamut in VFX production pdfhttps://www.provideocoalition.com/color-management-part-12-introducing-aces/ Local copy: 
 https://www.slideshare.net/hpduiker/acescg-a-common-color-encoding-for-visual-effects-applications 
LIGHTING
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Outpost VFX lighting tipsRead more: Outpost VFX lighting tipswww.outpost-vfx.com/en/news/18-pro-tips-and-tricks-for-lighting Get as much information regarding your plate lighting as possible - Always use a reference
- Replicate what is happening in real life
- Invest into a solid HDRI
- Start Simple
- Observe real world lighting, photography and cinematography
- Don’t neglect the theory
- Learn the difference between realism and photo-realism.
- Keep your scenes organised
  
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How to Direct and Edit a Fight Scene for Rhythm and PacingRead more: How to Direct and Edit a Fight Scene for Rhythm and Pacingwww.premiumbeat.com/blog/directing-fight-scene-cinematography/ 1- Frame the action 2- Stage the action 3- Use camera movements 4- Set a rhythm 5- Control the speed of the action 
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Aputure AL-F7 – dimmable Led Video Light, CRI95+, 3200-9500KRead more: Aputure AL-F7 – dimmable Led Video Light, CRI95+, 3200-9500KHigh CRI of ≥95 256 LEDs with 45° beam angle 3200 to 9500K variable color temperature 1 to 100% Stepless Dimming, 1500 Lux Brightness at 3.3′ LCD Info Screen. Powered by an L-series battery, D-Tap, or USB-C Because the light has a variable color range of 3200 to 9500K, when the light is set to 5500K (daylight balanced) both sets of LEDs are on at full, providing the maximum brightness from this fixture when compared to using the light at 3200 or 9500K. The LCD screen provides information on the fixture’s output as well as the charge state of the battery. The screen also indicates whether the adjustment knob is controlling brightness or color temperature. To switch from brightness to CCT or CCT to brightness, just apply a short press to the adjustment knob. The included cold shoe ball joint adapter enables mounting the light to your camera’s accessory shoe via the 1/4″-20 threaded hole on the fixture. In addition, the bottom of the cold shoe foot features a 3/8″-16 threaded hole, and includes a 3/8″-16 to 1/4″-20 reducing bushing.  
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Tracing Spherical harmonics and how Weta used them in productionRead more: Tracing Spherical harmonics and how Weta used them in productionA way to approximate complex lighting in ultra realistic renders. All SH lighting techniques involve replacing parts of standard lighting equations with spherical functions that have been projected into frequency space using the spherical harmonics as a basis. http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~cs4162/slides/spherical-harmonic-lighting.pdf Spherical harmonics as used at Weta Digital 
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Insta360-Research-Team DiT360 – High-Fidelity Panoramic Image Generation via Hybrid TrainingRead more: Insta360-Research-Team DiT360 – High-Fidelity Panoramic Image Generation via Hybrid Traininghttps://github.com/Insta360-Research-Team/DiT360 DiT360 is a framework for high-quality panoramic image generation, leveraging both perspective and panoramic data in a hybrid training scheme. It adopts a two-level strategy—image-level cross-domain guidance and token-level hybrid supervision—to enhance perceptual realism and geometric fidelity.  
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