I am trying to make a cinematic vid, but many things don't work for me with the AH film viewer. Some documentation would have been nice, but since there isn't any that I know of, perhaps some advice instead.
1. How do I capture new head movements? In particular, I want in-cockpit padlock view on the opponent. I've seen the clickie on the top right that open a menu with capturing options, but nothing new is captured.
You can't.
2. What codec to use? I've seen the list of codecs NOT to use in the sticky message of this subforum and theses are the exact codecs that I get to choose from. I guess I need to install some others? edit: I see the Cinepak is among those that are supposed to work. It does work better than the others, but the image is blurred.
I would use uncompressed, for the best quality. Be sure to check the multi-file option. You can then bring those clips in to a real editor and generate the movie.
3. Can someone explain the 4 available modes in the "camera shots" (world relative, chase plane...)? I am looking for the ability to define a camera path, but to keep it pointed at a plane during the movement along the path. The only mode I could make work the way I want is the one where I give start and end absolute world coordinates and the camera move between them during the times I specify. Also, is there a way to define more than one leg to the camera movement path?
World Relative: The camera X,Y,X position coordinates are based on a fixed point in the world. If you want a camera in a fixed location, then use this option. You can specify a different end point and it will cause the camera to move over the timeline.
Plane Relative: The camera X,Y,Z position coordinates are based on the selected plane. The camera moves with the plane.
Chase Plane: This is an odd one. It sort puts the camera in a "follow the plane" mode. Tricky to work with.
World Pointing: All the coordinates are based on a fixed place in the arena.
The best way to know what to use to to take s short clip and use each mode. Try different "grab angles" (this is where where the camera is looking) at the start and end. Watch how they impact what you are seeing.
4. To set up a camera shot, can I enable CM eye and move freely to position the camera exactly where I want it? Currently I use F3 or F5 views to get to position and grab its coords, but that is limiting.
Moving the camera is simple. Use the arrow keys to move around (not the arrow keys on the keypad). Use the zoom keys to set the distance. Use the page up and page down keys to move the camera up and down.
Be sure to select the film window before moving the camera. Once you get it close, you can manually adjust the numbers in the "grab position" and "grab angle" input boxes to fine tune it, after you hit the "grab all" button.