Questions to help make our purchasing decision

[mingra2005]

Hi Guys,

We're a small studios wanting to get involved with your Arena system. I have a few questions I need answers to and didn't find them on the FAQ page.

1) What is the main difference between r1 and r2 cameras?
2) We have a 22'x 22' (15' ceiling) stage setup for our capture room. Is this ample space for a 2 person capture? Can we do more people in this size space.
3) Is an 8 camera system adequate for a 2 person capture?
4) If we decide to buy a used r1 camera system, can we add 1-2 r2 cameras to get the filtering greyscale technology?
5) Our pipeline is to get clean data into Maya. Where can we find the best tutorials, dvds or info on the entire pipeline process from capture to cleanup to retargeting into Maya?

I appreciate your help and understanding that we're new to this technology and just want to get the best results with your product.

[bsteagal]

Mingra

1.- R1 cameras are no longer available to purchase from Naturalpoint. (you can only get one from someone selling their old system) Main differences are: lenses (better on r2) Now, with the r2-fs, you get the capability of capturing greyscale video at the same time.
2.- You have enough space, 20x20 is the recommended capture space, however, remember, this will only give you roughly a 10x10 capture volume... Depends on what you are capturing, this is adequate for 2 people
3.- You need at least 12 cameras to capture 2 people effectively. 8 cameras are not sufficient.

4.- Yes, but you have to use the optihubs instead of the regular USB hubs used with r1 systems and you have to buy r2-FS cameras (which are more expensive than normal r2 cameras). I'd really recommend buying new equipment, you are under warranty and up to date with the licensing.

5.- There are several ways to do this, motionbuilder is probably the best way. (via fbx) but that all depends on your budget, experience, etc.

Hope this helps!

[Seth Steiling]

Hi Mingra,

Bryan pretty much nailed all of your questions, but I'll add a bit more on #1. In addition to much better (and easier to swap) lenses, the R2 cameras offer:

- syncing over the USB cable (OptiSync) for reduced cabling*
- on-board MJPEG compression for lower bandwidth on scene video (10% of uncompressed video)
- High Power Mode for brighter IR strobe illumination*

I'd say that the enhanced lens option and the High Power Mode are most significant, as between the two, you can create larger capture volumes with better coverage throughout the volume. The V100:R2 offers a very nice improvement over the R1 technology--there's a reason we came out with a second rev!

*requires OptiHub