Making of a 3 point moving composite. MiniDV

SR3 on Encoded Worral head. Mini DV

MAB Paints Commercial "Eclipse Paints". 16mm

Motion control Crane Commercial "Pour"

Linear Motion Control Dolly Move "Firefighter PSA" 35mm

Innovision Lenses at work "Tempted"

Pastries on a turntable

Motion Control Dolly with Arri 435. Firefighter PSA

Motion Control
Is the use of electronic or mechanical systems to control the movement of a camera, light, prop, lens function (zoom , focus) or anything else in a manner by which the motion or function can be repeated and controlled. This is typically done utilizing motors and a computer with special software that controls them.

Alpha channel
An Alpha Channel is the part of a Quicktime file that describes the Matte of the video clip

Amplifier
This takes a control voltage signal from the computer and translates it into the appropriate voltage for the motor to turn. Different size motors require different size amplifiers

Axis/axes
An axis describes a complete channel of motion control. This includes an amplifier, a motor, and an encoder. An axis can be pan, tilt, zoom, a model mover, etc

Blue (or Green) Screen
A system which replaces a specified color with images from another source. This can either be done optically (eg. using film) or electronically
(eg. in video, also known as Chroma-Key in video). Some computer systems look at pixel in the scene and determine whether to replace that pixel with the other video source. Better computer systems allow 'some' of the colour of the pixel from 1 image and 'some' from another image. The better systems could be take transparent objects (eg. bottles) or smoke and combine these with the images from another source.

Chroma-Key
Keying out parts of an image which contain a particular color (or colors). Eg. replacing a blue or green background with images from another source.

C.G.I.
Computer Generated Imagery. The effects created by computer, eg. the 3D rendered graphics, etc.

Comp/ Composite
This is a group of plates that have been rotoscoped, keyed, or modified to yield the final image. Also known as the final comp.
Digital Matte Painting
A painting created on a computer where parts of the painting will contain the live-action footage. Used in replace of traditional matte paintings (which were normally done on large sheets of glass).

Freezing Time
An effect where time appears "frozen" (eg. for a few seconds or more). This is done by utilizing a multi camera array. If the camera appears to be moving, this will generally be done by using multiple cameras (see TimeTrack). If the camera isn't moving, then the same frame is simply being repeated for the length of the shot.

Encoder/ Optical Encoder
An encoder is a device which feeds back the postion information to the motion control computer. It can be used to report the position of the dolly, the pan axis, the focus motor, etc
It can also be used to input position data into the system and to jog axes.
Detailed description:
An incremental encoder is made up of 2 major parts: the disk and the sensor. The disk of an incremental encoder is patterned with a single track of repeating identical lines near the outside edge of the disk. The number of line pairs on the disk determines the encoder resolution (CPR). Virtually all incremental encoders produce quadrature outputs which indicate the speed, angle and direction of the shaft. Incremental encoders are commonly used as feedback devices for motor controllers. They also serve as operator interfaces and are sometimes called rotary pulse generators. An operator can turn the knob of a front panel encoder to control a parameter or motor. These are also referred to as "soft" controls, since they have no stops, and the limits and controlled parameter can be set by software rather than hardware.

Garbage Matte
This is a rough matte to crop out unwanted parts of the scene, or any overshoot off of the green screen.

Luma-Key
Keying out parts of an image which are a specified brightness level.

Motion Capture
The process of recording the data from human movement so that it can be used for 3D characters created on a computer.
This can be used for 3D animations for film, TV and games, and also for special effects work.
There are wireless, magnetic motion capture systems, and also optical systems, which track markers attached to the animator.

Matte
A matte is a black and white image that describes which part of the image is opaque, and what part is transparent.

Plate(s)
A plate is the raw shot that will be used later on as an element within the Composite

Registration
This is how closely plates line up in the composite. Also known as Registration error

Roto or RotoScope
Rotoscoping is the process by which the rotoscope artists traces around the element to be used in the composite so as to elimante any of the picture that will not be used. Things like people, cars, and backgrounds are rotoscoped so they can be used as an individual element.
Rotoscoping was first used by the Fleischers for making cartoons. The Fleischers invented the Rotoscope, which is a device for projecting live-action film on to paper frame by frame, so that the outline could be traced and used as a guide for the animation.
The Rotoscope consists of an animation camera and a light source (usually using a prism behind the movement and the lamp house attached to the camera's open door) that projects a print through the camera's lense and the projected image is then traced to create a matte. The lamp house is then removed and the raw stock placed in the camera and the drawings are filmed through the same lense that projected the image. The resulting image will then fit the original image if the two strips of film are run bi-packed in the same projector movment (using an optical printer).
In digital film effects work, rotoscoping refers to any drawn matte, as both images can be seen composited while the matte is being drawn, so good results can be achieved.

Track /tracking
Tracking is a process by which a "target" is identified within the image and the computer follows that point so as to derive the frame by frame x/y position of that point. Logos can be tracked, mattes, and other graphic elements can be "tracked" so as to look like their "sticking" to what they are on.

Virtual Sets
Sets which are generated (at least partially) from data within a computer. Mostly used for TV work, these systems replace the real set (eg. an empty studio) with a computer generated set, allowing the actor/presenter to move in the foreground. eg. the background is 'keyed out' and replaced with the set which has been created in a 3D package (eg. Softimage or 3D Studio Max), and any camera movements will be duplicated by the 'virtual camera'. This will require a powerful computer, especially if it is to be done in real-time, for example a Silicon Graphics machine.
The method of keeping track of the camera movement (so that it can be duplicated in the 3D computer set) is different for the various sytems. Some systems use a blue grid painted on the back wall of a studio of a known size. A red LED is projected onto the cameras and the actor/presenter so that they too can be tracked throughout the set.

Wire Removal
Removal of unwanted wires, rods, etc. from a piece of film by replacing them with what would have been seen if they weren't there (eg. the background). This can be done by replacing them with the same area from another frame in which the wires/rods were not visible, or by averaging the colours on either side of the wire and replacing it with the average.