Oct 18, 2019 First important point: have fun, because you can create virtual tours with almost any camera with changeable lenses. The ideal is to be able to mount a fisheye lens because the shooting of a complete sphere will be noticeably quicker. Then, it's better to have 20 Megapixels because then, with eight photos only, you can realize a quality virtual. Want to create a virtual tour but not sure how? This video will take you through every step of creating a virtual tour. WHAT YOU'LL NEED: 360 Camera Ricoh T.
- Create Virtual Camera Mac
- Create Virtual Camera Free
- Virtual Camera Windows 10
- Create Virtual Camera System
Notice: (10/15/2017)
WE NEED YOUR HELP to keep this project live!
Once donation reaches $500, VLC2VCam for VLC 2.x will be released.
WE NEED YOUR HELP to keep this project live!
Once donation reaches $500, VLC2VCam for VLC 2.x will be released.
What Is VLC and VLC Plugin?
VLC is the most famous free, open source and cross-platform multimedia player on the planet. VLC Player has a framework that plays most multimedia video as DVD, Audio CD, VCD, RTSP, MMS and other various streaming protocols.
To let 3rd partners extend the features of VLC player, VLC Player is based on modules and plugins. Public API system of VLC is opened so that we can develop a VLC Plugin(actually, a dynamic link module) that seamlessly works with VLC Player to add new features to the standard VLC Player.
What Is VCam?
VCam(aka.virtual webcam) is a software generated webcam. You can add it to your computer and use it as a real camera. The content of VCam is completely customizable, you can set video files, screen, real webcam, IP Cam, TV cards, and even VLC Player as its output. Another benefit of VCam is it can edit and add video effects in real-time.
All Internet streaming/broadcasting software support reading data from webcam and VCam.
Now, What Is VLC2VCam?
VLC2VCam is a VLC Plugin to turn VLC player to a VCam(virtual webcam). VLC2VCam is a software bridge to redirect VLC video to VCam broadcasting. VLC2VCam can automatically sync video/audios between VLC and VCam. With VLC2VCam, you can use VLC as a webcam:
1) Play all kinds of local/streaming videos with VLC;
2) VLC2VCam automatically sends video pictures to VCam;
3) In VCam, you can edit VLC video, add video effects, add texts and screens and then broadcast the results on web lively.
How to use VLC2VCam?
There are several VCam(virtual webcam) software on Internet. Below is a list for them:
WebcamMax, MagicCamera virtual webcam, Manycam, e2esoft VCam.
They are similar software, however, after thoroughly testing, we choose Magic Camera as our supported VCam at this time. The reasons are MagicCamera is more popular(20K downloads/week, according to CNet) and also, MagicCamera is the feature winner in our VCam software testings.
What you need to do to use VLC2VCam:
Step1.Download and install VLC Player from its official site.
Or, you can also download the VLC Player that we have tested.
Step2.Download and install our customized MagicCamera VLC version.
The above version of MagicCamera is 8.5.
Alternatively, you can also download the latest version of MagicCamera from their official website and copy this dll to MagicCamera installation directory. Then run the following command with Administrator account:
regsvr32 vlccam.dll
Step3.Download VLC2VCam plugin and copy it to VLC video out plugin directory:
C:Program Files (x86)VideoLANVLCpluginsvideo_output
Step4.Then set MagicCamera video output as the default video output in VLC plugin system:
Step5.Now launch MagicCamera software, switch to webcam page, and then set VLC Capture as its input VCam(virtual webcam).
Step6.Play anything you want in VLC player, for example, play a film video(either from local file or from mms/rtsp/streaming) in VLC if you want to broadcast this video. Then you will find MagicCamera also play that video simultaneously.
Step7.Now in your webcam broadcasting application/website(e.g., justin.tv)), choose 'MagicCamera Capture' as your input camera to broadcast VLC video content.
NOTE1.To include sounds as well, try Virtual Audio Cable or Virtual Sound Card software. For example, you can stream 'Rec.play/What you hear/VirtualAudioStreaming' as your virtual microphone for broadcasting.
NOTE2.To broadcast several channels and files at the same time, launch several VLC Player and MagicCamera virtual webcam.
Play, edit and broadcast videos with VLC+VLC2VCam+VCam(virtual webcam)
Already familiar with VLC2VCam? For an all-in-one and quick package, download below:
Package Name: VLC Player, VCam(MagicCamera), VLC2VCam
Price: Free!
Support OS: Run on all platforms: Windows XP/2003/2008/Windows 7/8, 32bits & 64bits
Price: Free!
Support OS: Run on all platforms: Windows XP/2003/2008/Windows 7/8, 32bits & 64bits
See demo video on YouTube
Further Reading
Want to download free music? see this Free MP3 Songs Download Site.
The Virtual Camera Plugin enables a user to drive a Cine Camera in Unreal Engine 4 (UE4) using an iPad Pro in a virtual production environment. With ARKit or an optical motion capture system such as Vicon or Optitrack, the position and rotation of the iPad is broadcast wirelessly to the PC, with the PC sending video back to the iPad.
Camera settings such as Focal Length, Aperture, Focus Distance, and Stabilization can be adjusted using touch input. Additionally, the Virtual Camera can be used for taking high-res screenshots , setting waypoints, recording camera motion and other tasks related to virtual production.
Below is a video that outlines the features of the Virtual Camera Plugin that mirrors most of the documentation on this page:
This document focuses on setup for an ARKit enabled iPad Pro. See also the section on connecting to Maya with Live Link .
Dependencies
The Virtual Camera relies on a separate UE4 Plugin called Remote Session and the associated Unreal Remote 2 app (which you can find for free on the App Store ).
Remote Session Plugin
This Plugin transmits video from a Play in Editor (PIE) or Standalone Game window on a PC to a mobile device over IP, receiving touch input and ARKit tracking data back. This can be used for mobile preview without the need to deploy to the device and is also used by the Virtual Camera Plugin.
Create Virtual Camera Mac
Unreal Remote 2 App
This App is used in conjunction with the Remote Session Plugin to transmit and receive data over IP between the device and PC. The only user input required in the app is the IP address of the PC.
You will also need to have an iOS device that meets the ARKit prerequisites in order to track the device's movement and enable the Apple ARKit Plugin inside of UE4.
Communication Port
The Unreal Remote 2 app needs to establish a connection with the instance of Unreal Engine running on your computer. You provide the IP address of the computer that you want it to connect to when you start the app (see iOS Device Setup below). However, the app always uses port 2049 to communicate with Unreal Engine. You must ensure that the computer running Unreal Engine has this port open for communications from your local network. This may involve configuring your computer's firewall and security settings.
Enabling the Required Plugins
To get started, enable the following Plugins:
- From the Main Editor under Edit, select Plugins.
- From the Virtual Production tab, enable the VirtualCamera Plugin.
- Restart the Editor for the Plugins to be applied.
After restarting the Editor, the Virtual Camera Plugin will be enabled. When enabling the Plugin, two additional Plugins will be automatically enabled: Remote Session and Apple ARKit which are needed to fully maximize the potential and features of the Virtual Camera.
iOS Device Setup
Download the Unreal Remote 2 app from the App Store to your ARKit enabled iOS device and launch the app, you will see a similar screen to below.
You will need to enter the IP address of the remote server and press the Connect button to try and establish a connection. The IP address may vary, however, you can open a CMD prompt and type IPCONFIG on Windows machines to retrieve your IPv4 address.
A connection will only occur while a Play Session has been initiated by UE4. The Unreal Remote 2 app will appear in the 'connecting' state until either the cancel button is pressed or a Play Session has been launched by UE4.
UE4 Project Setup
The first thing you will need to do is assign the VirtualCameraGameMode inside your UE4 project:
- Inside your project, go to the World Settings menu:
- From the World Settings menu under Game Mode, assign the VirtualCameraGameMode.
This will assign the correct Game Mode and Pawn to use for the Virtual Camera and virtual production.
To set up your ARKit enabled iPad, for the Unreal Remote 2 app to use ARKit, it needs to have the AR and XR channels exposed in your project. This can be done by adding the following to your project's DefaultEngine.ini file (make sure you clear the Read-Only flag on the project by right-clicking on the project file and selecting Properties):
In addition to movement tracking through ARKit, another option for movement is using Virtual Joysticks. However, since we are not deploying the project to the device, we need to expose the Virtual Joysticks in the project which can be done from the Edit > Project Settings > Input section and enabling Always Show Touch Interface under the Mobile section.
Click image for full view.
To prevent stretching or skewing of the Virtual Camera UI, you may want to also change the Game Viewport Settings to match your device's resolution. This can be done from the Edit > Editor Preferences > Play menu under Game Viewport Settings with the Common Window Sizes option (the button directly next to this option also enables you to set the view to Landscape or Portrait orientation).
Click image for full view.
If the playback seems too slow with a native window size, you can adjust the resolution of the window here, keeping the aspect ratio the same. For example, 1280x960 works well for the iPad Pro, which has a 4:3 aspect ratio.
Create Virtual Camera Free
Click the Play Options drop-down menu next to the Play button and select New Editor Window (PIE).
The project will launch and the Virtual Camera UI will be seen overlaid on top of your project:
Make sure that you do not expand the Play in Editor (PIE) window. Depending on the resolution of your monitor, this may cause undesired stretching.
The iOS device running the Unreal Remote 2 app will also automatically connect to the Play Session.
You can now control the session through the iOS device with the Unreal Remote 2 app.
Virtual Camera UI
This section outlines the Virtual Camera UI and its settings.
1 - Visibility
Tapping the Eye icon in the upper-left corner will hide/show the Virtual Camera UI. You can define which elements to hide from the Settings menu.
2 - Slate and FPS
In the top center portion of the UI is an informational section showing the Slate Name and FPS of the recording. This can be customized using Sequence Recorder, otherwise, it will default to basic camera and scene/take naming conventions. The naming convention will be used when recording Takes as well as during playback.
Virtual Camera Windows 10
3 - Focus Mode
The three buttons in the top-right corner of the UI (M, T, A) are used to set the Focus Mode for the Virtual Camera.
- Manual (M) - The default setting which will set the focus distance to a constant value each time you tap the screen to focus.
- Tracking (T) - This setting will continually update the focus distance to keep the selected 3D point in focus.
- Auto (A) - This setting will display a reticle that can be moved around the screen by tapping. The focus distance will continually update to keep whatever is under the reticle in focus.
4 - Settings
Create Virtual Camera System
Tapping on the Gear icon in the upper-right corner will bring up the Settings menu.
4.1 General Settings
The General Settings tab contains the ability to set input camera tracking source (ARKit, Custom, LiveLink), display playback in seconds or frames and change global boom to local boom (not recommended) across the feature set.
4.2 Film Format / Aspect Ratio
The Film Format / Aspect Ratio tab enables a user to choose from a list of predetermined Film Formats and Mattes (customizable in arrays on the CineCamera Component of the Virtual Camera Pawn) and set the Matte Opacity.
4.3 Focus
The Focus tab gives the user access to the Focus Method (these options are identical to the M/T/A buttons in the main UI), the display format of the Focus Distance, whether or not to show the Focus Plane when using touch input to focus, and what the Color of the plane will be.
4.4 Stabilization
The Stabilization tab is used to dampen the motion of the tracking input, giving the user a smoother camera move. In addition to different stabilization values for position and rotation, the user also has the ability to adjust stabilization per channel.
Dampening the motion of the tracking input will introduce some lag.
4.5 Axis Locking
Axis Locking will stop the input source from affecting that specific axis. It is based on the direction the camera is facing when the axis is locked. For example, locking the Truck and the Boom will force the camera to only move side-to-side. This is a great way to quickly create a linear dolly track.
By default, locking Dutch will zero out the roll on the camera, keeping the horizon level. When an axis is unlocked, the camera will again inherit the position/rotation from the input source for that axis. This will cause the camera to move/rotate which is the expected behavior.
4.6 Motion Scale
Motion Scale is used to amplify the motion of the input source. This enables a user to exaggerate (or minimize) their movement as they walk around a scene. The scale on all three movement axes can be adjusted independently.
Additionally, the Truck and Dolly can be linked so that movement in the x-y plane is uniform. Hitting the double arrows next to the scroll wheels adds 10x to the scale value. The button at the bottom of the window can be used for resetting scale back to 1.
4.7 View Freeze
Pressing the Freeze the View button will temporarily disable the input source so the view on the tablet freezes, enabling the user to move the tablet somewhere else in the real world. Pressing Unfreeze the View then re-enables the input source but keeps the view offset.
This is particularly helpful if a user wants to re-orient the scene in relation to the real-world or simply to more comfortably hold the tablet while scouting or shooting. You can also define which axes to freeze in the lower portion of the View Freeze window.
4.8 Visibility
The Visibility tab enables a user to choose which UI elements remain visible when the visibility (eye icon) button is tapped on the main UI.
4.9 Presets
Presets enable a user to save specific settings and load those back during another session. By default, the Plugin will save the current camera settings when the user closes the PIE/game window.
5 - Focal Length
The Focal Length is displayed in the top-left region of the UI. Tapping on that region expands a wheel with a customizable lens kit.
Scrolling through the wheel will cycle through the lenses one at a time. Additionally, clicking on any Focal Length will immediately change to that lens. The lens kit can be customized by altering the Focal Length Options array on the CineCamera component in the VirtualCameraPawn.
6 - Focus Distance and Aperture
The Focus Distance and Aperture are displayed in the top-right region of the UI. Together, these are used to set focus. Tapping in that region expands two wheels, one for Focus Distance and the other for Aperture.
There are multiple ways to change Focus Distance (left wheel): scrolling with the wheel, tapping the double arrows to increment by 3 meters (~10ft), or tapping anywhere in the Viewport to focus on that point in 3D space. Double-clicking on the wheel will collapse/expand it.
It is important to note that touch focus is only active with the Focus menu open (when the wheels are visible). When the Focus menu is closed, touch input will not affect focus.
Scrolling through the Aperture (right wheel) will increment the value across a customizable Aperture list (by default, the list is based on full stops). Additionally, tapping on any value directly will change the Aperture to that value.
The Aperture value affects Depth-of-Field (DoF), a lower value creates a shallower DoF. Double-clicking on the wheel will collapse/expand it. The Aperture kit can be customized by altering the Aperture Options array on the CineCamera component in the VirtualCameraPawn.
7 - Record and Record Sub-Menu
Clicking the Record button initiates a new recording while clicking again stops the recording. Next to the Record button is an arrow used to access the Record sub-menu.
Currently, this contains a button for taking high-res screenshots (single camera icon) as well as a button for loading a previous screenshot (multiple cameras icon). The act of loading a screenshot moves the camera to the location of where the screenshot was taken (position only, not rotation) and adjusts Focal Length and Aperture to match.
If you tap and hold on the sub-menu Screenshot button, it swaps out the Record button for a Screenshot button. This is helpful when you're scouting locations and have no need to record camera motion. Tap and hold on the sub-menu Screenshot button again to swap back to a Record button.
8 - Analog Sticks
The Analog Sticks are docked on the bottom of the frame and can be accessed by tapping on either docked grip to reveal them.
The Left Analog Stick moves the camera forward/back/left/right based on the direction the camera is facing while the Right Analog Stick booms the camera up/down globally.
9 - Performances
To load a previously recorded camera move or any Level Sequence with animation, tap on the Performances button to open a window containing any recorded performances.
If Sequences have been recorded they will be displayed here. Clicking on a Sequence will initiate playback and present you with the Playback Controls.
If the Level Sequence contains a Camera Cut Track, Sequencer will take over the camera view so the Virtual Camera will no longer be tracking. In this case, you cannot record either.
Once a performance is loaded, timeline and playback controls appear. The Timeline enables you to scrub through the Sequence. The Playback Controls allow you to play forward, play backward, jump to the first frame and jump to the last frame. In addition, touch swiping in the main view will finely scrub the animation timeline.
10 - Waypoint and Waypoint Sub-Menu
Tapping the blue button in the bottom-right corner will create a Waypoint, which is a saved location in space. These are useful for teleporting around a map. Next to the Waypoint button is an arrow used to access the Waypoint sub-menu.
From the Waypoints roll out menu, there is a Home button that removes all offsets and teleports the camera to a designated home Waypoint. If no Waypoint has been designated as home, the Camera will teleport back to the Player Start (in the case of ARKit) or will reset the camera to 1:1 with the mocap volume (in the case of LiveLink tracking).
The second button in the Waypoint sub-menu is for loading Waypoints. This is also where a user can specify a unique Home Waypoint.
Live Link Setup
The Live Link setup enables the user to control the Virtual Camera from a running instance of Maya. To test with the Maya with Live Link, you will need to make sure the following Plugins are enabled in your project (along with the Virtual Camera Plugin and Remote Session Plugin).
Under Edit > Plugins, enable the following Plugins:
- Under Animation, enable the Live Link Plugin then restart the Editor.
You will also need to follow the steps on the Connecting Unreal Engine 4 to Maya with Live Link documentation page to get Live Link setup and establish a connection between Maya and the Unreal Editor.
You only need to complete the Enabling the Live Link Plugin and Enabling Maya Live Link steps in the documentation as the remaining steps are not needed for Virtual Production and using the Virtual Camera.
Once Live Link is set up and Maya is connected to UE4:
- For testing purposes, import the following Virtual Camera Anim FBX asset into Maya.
- Expose the Outliner (1), select the Root (2), then inside the Maya Live Link UI window, click the Add Subject button.
- Inside UE4 go to Window > Live Link to open the Live Link Connection window.
- Click the Add button, then under Message Bus Source, select the Source associated with your PC's name and click Ok.
You will also need to set the Input Source to Live Link inside VirtualCameraPlayerController Blueprint, as well as assign the Live Link Target Name, which points to the Subject streaming from Maya
To do this:
- Inside your Project in the Content Browser under View Options, enable Show Engine Content and Show Plugin Content.
- Inside the VirtualCameraContent folder, open the VirtualCameraPlayerController Blueprint.
- In the Class Defaults under Camera Settings, set the Input Source to Live Link and the Live Link Target Name to Maya (which is the name of our Subject in Maya).
When initiating a Play session, the Virtual Camera will take data being streamed in from the Live Link and any movement of the Root bone will be applied to the Virtual Camera.
Virtual Camera Sample Project
On the Learn tab of the Epic Games Launcher under the Engine Feature Samples section, there is a Virtual Camera project which includes a sample scene and project set up for use with the Virtual Camera Plugin.
The required Plugins are enabled by default and the Virtual Camera Game Mode is already assigned and ready to use. With your ARKit enabled iPad or optical motion capture system, you can track your movement as you move through the virtual environment while shooting the scene.
Below is a quick example of recording a shot from an iPad with the Virtual Camera Plugin.
The Processing Recording message appears when we stop recording our shot.
Celestron handheld digital microscope driver. The Virtual Camera Project is only intended to be used in the Unreal Editor. You won't be able to package it for use at runtime in the Unreal Engine.