Orbit motion
Another type of movement that can be executed in the 3D studio when setting the camera shots, is an Orbit motion. Imagine that you are sitting on a rotating carousel looking all the time at the center of a circle, namely at an axis of rotation. A camera in the studio can make a similar movement – a circle around a selected item, all the while pointing at it.
Note: To better explain what the Orbit motion is, let’s assume the camera always looks straight ahead at an object, for example, a Talent. Orbit motion can, in fact, maintain any chosen angle direction of viewing. For example, if you move a camera by an angle to the side in Orbit motion, seeing the Talent on the side of the screen, as if ‘from a corner of your eye’, the moving camera will keep this angle the whole time. This means that during the subsequent shots you will see your Talent ‘from a corner of your eye’ all the time, namely on the side of the screen.
You can, for example, set several virtual camera V/C 2 positions around the Talent. See the image below.
Positioning a camera in Orbit motion starts with selecting an object in the studio, which will be the center of rotation for the virtual camera orbit (circular motion).
Click the left mouse button on a figure of a presenter. A whole rectangle with the Talent figure lights up in red – it represents a view from the real camera. A 3D Gizmo appears on the rectangle – it will facilitate setting X, Y, and Z axes in your studio.
Additionally, 3D Gizmo facilitates determining the center of, for example, a group of objects, if such a group has been created by a graphic designer. A group of objects, e.g. lights in the studio, can be highlighted all in red, but thanks to the 3D Gizmo, you will be able to specify where the center of the object is, that is where the camera will be pointing at. Picture below.
Then, with a right-click, you can change and select more virtual camera’s positions around the Talent in the studio.
Your camera will be able to move to a different position on a circle (orbiting), and also up and down, all the while facing the Talent. You can, for example, select a position in a circle, but under the studio’s ceiling – the camera is pointing at the center of the selected object all the time. See the picture below.
If you want to achieve Orbit motion solely along a circular track without changing the height of the camera, you should use Lock axis function and block X and Z axes.
The Orbit motion is possible also with axes Y and Z locked. You get the effect of a camera moving along a circular track, but vertically. Just like the Ferris Wheel: you can imagine that the cameraman is sitting in the wheel’s carriage and the camera is looking at its center, where the selected object is located. It means, at the starting position the camera can be, for example, at the floor level and then, with the circular motion, it can move to the studio ceiling – all the while facing the Talent.
If you lock only the Y axis, then, in addition to a vertical Orbit motion (‘Ferris Wheel carriage’) carried out with a left mouse button, you can move the camera from side to side – to the left and to the right using a right-click