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Point eyes at camera?

sandmanmaxsandmanmax Posts: 992
in Technical Help (nuts n bolts)

Is  there any way to point a characters eyes at the camera and have them follow the camera as you move it around?

Comments

  • algovincianalgovincian Posts: 2,605
    edited September 2016
    sandman_max said:

    Is  there any way to point a characters eyes at the camera and have them follow the camera as you move it around?

    In the Scene tab, navigate down to an eye and select it in the heirarchy. Then, in the Parameters tab, under Misc, there is a parameter called Point At - select the node to follow in the dialog that pops up. 

    - Greg

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    Post edited by algovincian on
  • MythmakerMythmaker Posts: 606
    edited September 2016

    You can make your own eye control rig with the 'point at' as mentioned, or alternatively get MCasual's free Stare At Cam script

    https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts4/mcjstareatthecam

    Post edited by Mythmaker on
  • ToborTobor Posts: 2,300

    As Greg says, you can choose Point At. But be aware that the eyes may) look unrealistic if the camera is too close. The eyes will unnaturally set their gaze, making your character look cross-eyed. 

    It's usually better to set a null object well behind the camera. Parent that object to the camera, and have your character look at the the object, rather than the camera. This method also makes it easier to make fine-tuning adjustments to the gaze -- looking over the shoulder of the camera, for example, instead of right at it. (Depending on what you're doing, in many kinds of portraits the subject does not look directly at the camera; still, it's handy to be able to control the gaze without manually adjusting the eyes.)

  • skyitskyit Posts: 25
    Tobor said:

    As Greg says, you can choose Point At. But be aware that the eyes may) look unrealistic if the camera is too close. The eyes will unnaturally set their gaze, making your character look cross-eyed. 

    It's usually better to set a null object well behind the camera. Parent that object to the camera, and have your character look at the the object, rather than the camera. This method also makes it easier to make fine-tuning adjustments to the gaze -- looking over the shoulder of the camera, for example, instead of right at it. (Depending on what you're doing, in many kinds of portraits the subject does not look directly at the camera; still, it's handy to be able to control the gaze without manually adjusting the eyes.)

    thanks that solved my case

  • FabeFabe Posts: 225
    Tobor said:

    As Greg says, you can choose Point At. But be aware that the eyes may) look unrealistic if the camera is too close. The eyes will unnaturally set their gaze, making your character look cross-eyed. 

    It's usually better to set a null object well behind the camera. Parent that object to the camera, and have your character look at the the object, rather than the camera. This method also makes it easier to make fine-tuning adjustments to the gaze -- looking over the shoulder of the camera, for example, instead of right at it. (Depending on what you're doing, in many kinds of portraits the subject does not look directly at the camera; still, it's handy to be able to control the gaze without manually adjusting the eyes.)

     

    Cool,how far back should I set the null object?

     

  • CrissieBCrissieB Posts: 195
    edited May 2018

    When I create a character, I add an Eyeline Camera. It's very easy to do:

    Place your character in the Null Pose and at the Origin (x=0, y=0, z=0, and no rotation).

     

    Create an Eyeline Cam (I name mine with the character's name followed by Eyeline) using the Default camera settings:

     

    Zero the Eyeline Cam's X, Y, and Z rotations so the camera points directly backward into the scene, Scale the camera to 2%, and Translate X and Y so the blue aim line goes directly through the character's right pupil.

     

    Set Y-Rotate to 180 degrees, so the camera points directly forward, and Z-Translate until the camera lens is at the outer edge of the character's pupil.

     

    Parent the Eyeline camera to the character's Right Eye.

     

    Select the Eyeline Cam for your Auxiliary Viewport, turn the Show Thirds Guide on (click those parallel lines in the upper right to get it), then pose your character ... rotating her Lower Neck, Upper Neck, Head, and finally Eyes so your primary Camera is directly centered in her Eyeline Cam's view. I switched the Parameters Pane to Edit Mode so you can see that I used the Eyes Side-to-Side and Eyes Up-Down controllers, to be sure I adjust both eyes together.

     

    Switch to Perspective View and select the Eyeline Cam. Its blue aim line should pass directly through your primary Camera.

     

    Now select your primary Camera and render. (I added a plane for her to stand on, and my basic Build Scene lighting.)

     

    Now she's looking directly at your camera! smiley

    ​​IMPORTANT NOTE: "She gazed into his eyes"

    In reality we almost never "gaze into" someone's eyes​. Instead, we look at someone's entire face​. If you pose a character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the Eyeline Cam is centered on or between another character's eyes, the render will look as if the eyeline is too high. Instead, pose your character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the other character's face​ is centered in the view. The Eyeline Cam's aim line will pass through the other character's nose, just at the base of the cheekbones.

     

    And the render will look as if "she gazed into his eyes."

     

    Eyeline Cams are also excellent if your character is aiming a weapon, reading a book or sign, or to be sure he/she really can see over that box or around that tree....

    I hope this helps. smiley

    Crissie

    Post edited by Chohole on
  • tring01tring01 Posts: 305
    edited May 2018
    cris_brown said:

    When I create a character, I add an Eyeline Camera. It's very easy to do:

    Place your character in the Null Pose and at the Origin (x=0, y=0, z=0, and no rotation).

     

    Create an Eyeline Cam (I name mine with the character's name followed by Eyeline) using the Default camera settings:

     

    Zero the Eyeline Cam's X, Y, and Z rotations so the camera points directly backward into the scene, Scale the camera to 2%, and Translate X and Y so the blue aim line goes directly through the character's right pupil.

     

    Set Y-Rotate to 180 degrees, so the camera points directly forward, and Z-Translate until the camera lens is at the outer edge of the character's pupil.

     

    Parent the Eyeline camera to the character's Right Eye.

     

    Select the Eyeline Cam for your Auxiliary Viewport, turn the Show Thirds Guide on (click those parallel lines in the upper right to get it), then pose your character ... rotating her Lower Neck, Upper Neck, Head, and finally Eyes so your primary Camera is directly centered in her Eyeline Cam's view. I switched the Parameters Pane to Edit Mode so you can see that I used the Eyes Side-to-Side and Eyes Up-Down controllers, to be sure I adjust both eyes together.

     

    Switch to Perspective View and select the Eyeline Cam. Its blue aim line should pass directly through your primary Camera.

     

    Now select your primary Camera and render. (I added a plane for her to stand on, and my basic Build Scene lighting.)

     

    Now she's looking directly at your camera! smiley

    ​​IMPORTANT NOTE: "She gazed into his eyes"

    In reality we almost never "gaze into" someone's eyes​. Instead, we look at someone's entire face​. If you pose a character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the Eyeline Cam is centered on or between another character's eyes, the render will look as if the eyeline is too high. Instead, pose your character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the other character's face​ is centered in the view. The Eyeline Cam's aim line will pass through the other character's nose, just at the base of the cheekbones.

     

    And the render will look as if "she gazed into his eyes."

     

    Eyeline Cams are also excellent if your character is aiming a weapon, reading a book or sign, or to be sure he/she really can see over that box or around that tree....

    I hope this helps. smiley

    Crissie

    Absolute, Total PRO TIP!!  It took me a year to figure this one out on my own - and I didn't even know how to do it to this level of detail.  This is EXCELLENT information.

    By the by, using this method makes it much, much easier to pose two figures interacting in a normal looking way.  It makes the entire posing process much easier and more natural.

    Post edited by Chohole on
  • CrissieBCrissieB Posts: 195
    edited May 2018

    Hi tring01,

    tring01 said:

    Absolute, Total PRO TIP!!  It took me a year to figure this one out on my own - and I didn't even know how to do it to this level of detail.  This is EXCELLENT information.

    By the by, using this method makes it much, much easier to pose two figures interacting in a normal looking way.  It makes the entire posing process much easier and more natural.

    Thank you for the kind words! smiley

    Eyeline Cams are almost essential for OVER SHOULDER LOOK R/L setups, where A and B are looking at each other, with one camera behind A's right shoulder focused on B's face and a second camera behind B's left shoulder focused on A's face. The OS LOOK R/L is a very common film/TV camera setup to show characters in conversation, and I use it often in renders. Getting the characters' eyelines right is extremely important with the close focus you usually want in an OS LOOK R/L scene, and the Point At function will not always get the eyelines right. Setting up both characters with Eyeline Cams makes it easy.

    They're also incredibly helpful for what I call "eye-guide" shots, where you want the characters' eyelines to guide the viewer's focus. When we see two or more people looking at Something, we naturally look at (or for) that Something too ... and that impulse is almost irresistable if we can tell they're both focused on it:

     

    We can't see what G3M has in his right hand ... an engagement ring? the antidote to the paralytic that has her locked in the Null Pose?

    But because I added Eyeline Cams for both G3M and G3F, it was easy to get their eyelines focused precisely on his hand. And because they're both focused on his hand ... we have to look there too....

    Thanks again for the kind words, tring01! smiley

    Crissie

    Post edited by Chohole on
  • CajunBeautyCajunBeauty Posts: 93
    edited May 2018
    CrissieB said:

    When I create a character, I add an Eyeline Camera. It's very easy to do:

    Place your character in the Null Pose and at the Origin (x=0, y=0, z=0, and no rotation).

     

    Create an Eyeline Cam (I name mine with the character's name followed by Eyeline) using the Default camera settings:

     

    Zero the Eyeline Cam's X, Y, and Z rotations so the camera points directly backward into the scene, Scale the camera to 2%, and Translate X and Y so the blue aim line goes directly through the character's right pupil.

     

    Set Y-Rotate to 180 degrees, so the camera points directly forward, and Z-Translate until the camera lens is at the outer edge of the character's pupil.

     

    Parent the Eyeline camera to the character's Right Eye.

     

    Select the Eyeline Cam for your Auxiliary Viewport, turn the Show Thirds Guide on (click those parallel lines in the upper right to get it), then pose your character ... rotating her Lower Neck, Upper Neck, Head, and finally Eyes so your primary Camera is directly centered in her Eyeline Cam's view. I switched the Parameters Pane to Edit Mode so you can see that I used the Eyes Side-to-Side and Eyes Up-Down controllers, to be sure I adjust both eyes together.

     

    Switch to Perspective View and select the Eyeline Cam. Its blue aim line should pass directly through your primary Camera.

     

    Now select your primary Camera and render. (I added a plane for her to stand on, and my basic Build Scene lighting.)

     

    Now she's looking directly at your camera! smiley

    ​​IMPORTANT NOTE: "She gazed into his eyes"

    In reality we almost never "gaze into" someone's eyes​. Instead, we look at someone's entire face​. If you pose a character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the Eyeline Cam is centered on or between another character's eyes, the render will look as if the eyeline is too high. Instead, pose your character's Neck, Head, and Eyes so the other character's face​ is centered in the view. The Eyeline Cam's aim line will pass through the other character's nose, just at the base of the cheekbones.

     

    And the render will look as if "she gazed into his eyes."

     

    Eyeline Cams are also excellent if your character is aiming a weapon, reading a book or sign, or to be sure he/she really can see over that box or around that tree....

    I hope this helps. smiley

    Crissie

    I can't see the images. Can ypu please reup the images so I can see what I need to do? I am a visual learner. 

    Post edited by Chohole on
  • ChoholeChohole Posts: 33,604

    Please note that this is an old thread.

  • kaotkblisskaotkbliss Posts: 2,914

    Even though this is an old thread, it just raised a question for me. Can a camera be used as a wearable preset? if so, how?

  • Richard HaseltineRichard Haseltine Posts: 100,247

    Does it not save if it's parented? It's not something I've tried.

  • kaotkblisskaotkbliss Posts: 2,914

    I bet it would, but first I would have to go and redo my poses. If I could just start a new scene with just the figure at default and set the camera up and save it as a preset, then I could go back into my previous scenes, load the preset and adjust the eyes.

  • CajunBeautyCajunBeauty Posts: 93
    kaotkbliss said:

    I bet it would, but first I would have to go and redo my poses. If I could just start a new scene with just the figure at default and set the camera up and save it as a preset, then I could go back into my previous scenes, load the preset and adjust the eyes.

    I would be interested to know if that can be done too. I would also love to have the example imags for the eye line camera tutorial mentioned here too. 

     

  • kaotkblisskaotkbliss Posts: 2,914

    The images are pretty easy to imagine but perhaps when I get some free time, I'll grab some screenies when I go to make the preset (if it's possible)

  • kaotkblisskaotkbliss Posts: 2,914
    edited May 2018

    Actually, once my render is finished, I have an idea that might be tons simpler.

    It wouldn't matter if you already had a scene or not. Just create a new camera, parent it to the figure's right eye, then zero the x,y,z and scale it down to 2%. It should be right exactly on the right eye and facing the right direction.

    Then you need to just up the z translation a little at a time until you get a view of the scene and not the inside of the eyeball

     

    *edit*

    Nope, didn't work :( I tried it and the camera just went to the character's feet.

    Post edited by kaotkbliss on
  • CajunBeautyCajunBeauty Posts: 93
    kaotkbliss said:

    Actually, once my render is finished, I have an idea that might be tons simpler.

    It wouldn't matter if you already had a scene or not. Just create a new camera, parent it to the figure's right eye, then zero the x,y,z and scale it down to 2%. It should be right exactly on the right eye and facing the right direction.

    Then you need to just up the z translation a little at a time until you get a view of the scene and not the inside of the eyeball

     

    *edit*

    Nope, didn't work :( I tried it and the camera just went to the character's feet.

    Yeah moving things around in Daz is a pain in the ass lol.

     

  • fastbike1fastbike1 Posts: 4,077

    This isn't hard.

    1. Create a null.

    2. Point the eyes at the null. Note the null is placed at 0,0,0 if no other choices are made at creation. It doesn't matter.

    3. Parent the Null to the camera.

    You can still move the null where ever you want (by itself). Once parented to the camera, the null will keep the same spacial relationship tp ther camera as you move the camers.

  • CajunBeautyCajunBeauty Posts: 93
    fastbike1 said:

    This isn't hard.

    1. Create a null.

    2. Point the eyes at the null. Note the null is placed at 0,0,0 if no other choices are made at creation. It doesn't matter.

    3. Parent the Null to the camera.

    You can still move the null where ever you want (by itself). Once parented to the camera, the null will keep the same spacial relationship tp ther camera as you move the camers.

    Will that give me natural eye movement?

     

  • algovincianalgovincian Posts: 2,605
    CajunBeauty said:
    fastbike1 said:

    This isn't hard.

    1. Create a null.

    2. Point the eyes at the null. Note the null is placed at 0,0,0 if no other choices are made at creation. It doesn't matter.

    3. Parent the Null to the camera.

    You can still move the null where ever you want (by itself). Once parented to the camera, the null will keep the same spacial relationship tp ther camera as you move the camers.

    Will that give me natural eye movement?

    I think you need to involve the neck, head, eyelids, eyebrows, etc.

    - Greg

  • fastbike1fastbike1 Posts: 4,077
    edited May 2018

    @CajunBeauty "Will that give me natural eye movement?"

    If both eyes are parented to the null, I believe so. If the camera is fairly far away from the subject, the null can be a ways from the camera and still look like the eyes look at the camera. It is also an easy way to have both eyes point at something away from the camera without having to adjust each eye separately.

    Try this: select the null, then set the viewport view to the camera. Use the parameters tab to move the null and watch the subject's eyes. You can quickly get the look you want. Again you can also move the camera and the subject's eyes will follow the initial view relative to the camera.

    It only takes a couple of minutes to set this up and try it out.

    Post edited by fastbike1 on
  • nemesis10nemesis10 Posts: 3,403

    Personally, I can't live without https://www.daz3d.com/look-at-me-ii-pose-control which includes these modules:




    and


    it works with everone from V4 and M4 to Genesis 9
     

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