Refresher - Cameras, Lighting & Technical Elements
- Mikey Owen
- Mar 10, 2024
- 22 min read
With my project research now complete, I can confidently move onto the creation of my final assets and begin recording my animation. However, there is a few elements of my production pipeline where I feel my knowledge is lacking/could do with being refreshed: camera properties, how to effectively use lighting in Unreal Engine 5 and how to effectively use crowd simulation (for the zombie hordes of my final shots) as well as motion capture for my characters.
It's with the above points in mind, I wanted to create this blog post to research these elements a bit more and explain how I'll apply what I'll learn here to my final project. Following this, I should be able to finally complete my storyboard, construct a pre-visualization, and begin the creation of my animation's assets.
Camera Properties:
Camera properties are arguably one of the most important aspects of cinematography. The lens, shot & movement of the camera effects how exactly your audience is perceiving your narrative, and because of that, using the right one is crucial. There are many different types for these camera properties, and they all have their own purposes for use within cinema. It's because of this importance I decided to refresh myself on the multitude of options available to me, so that I can then select the right one for each shot of my final animation.
Lens Types:
The lens of the camera, to put it simply, is the glass bit at the end of the camera. It's incredibly important in cinematography, primarily, because it affects the focal length. The focal length will alter exactly how the audience sees the scene and how certain aspects are framed i.e. the characters or environment. There are many different lens types and focal lengths available to me in Unreal Engine, but I wanted to highlight some of the most commonly used ones in cinema, and their purposes, below:
1. Wide-angle lenses (24mm – 35mm focal length)
Wide-angle lenses have a relatively small focal length and generate wide images. Filmmakers often use these lenses to shoot gorgeous landscapes or to include as much background detail as possible. However, it’s worth noting that filming super close-up shots with a wide-angle lens is likely to produce visual distortions in your footage.
2. Standard lenses (35mm – 70mm focal length)
As mentioned above, standard lenses tend to produce images that emulate the view of the human eye. While 35mm are very popular among film directors, 50mm lenses represent a versatile option for all filmmakers. As well as minimising visual distortion, 500mm lenses are great for capturing naturalistic footage that flatters human subjects. If you’re unsure about what type of lens you’ll need for your project, you can’t really go wrong with a standard lens.
3. Telephoto lenses (70mm – 300m focal length)
Telephoto lenses compress and magnify even small details in an image. Also known as long lenses, telephoto lenses are less commonly used than standard and wide-angle lenses. Typically, these lenses are used on productions with large sets or to capture extensive location details.
4. Anamorphic lenses (40mm – 100mm focal length)
Anamorphic lenses offer super-wide aspect ratios for capturing a wide field of view. They work by altering the dimensions of an image on one axis, squeezing as much footage as possible onto a narrow sensor. Anamorphic lenses may produce slight distortion while providing warmth within the frame.
That really covers the most broadly used lens types and focal lengths, of course there are some outliers and more specific lengths that do crop up, but I feel my research here is more than sufficient to guide me in the right direction for my final shots. Should I need any further references; I was also able to locate this incredibly informative video which goes into more detail about the application of different lenses in cinema:
As I said above, I think I've obtained all I require to refresh myself on the options available to me for lenses and focal lengths. I'm excited to apply what I've learned to my cinematic, but still have a few points to go through first!
Shot Size, Framing, Focus, Angles & Movement:
It may seem like I've lumped a lot of different categories together by the above heading, but this is only because I was able to find an absolutely brilliant website to reference which details all of them: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/ultimate-guide-to-camera-shots/
It would be great to transfer all of the information on the site to this post, but that's simply impracticable given just how much there is. I've decided to instead summarize some of the key points below, along with copying over some of the useful reference images/videos they kindly included.
Shot Size:
Shot size is exactly what it sounds like, how 'big' the shot is, i.e. how much of the subject does it include. It's better shown than explained, which is why I've included the reference image below:
I feel the above image is fairly self explanatory, but there are of course other shot sizes which are more specific to an environment or set rather than an actor (e.g. an establishing shot or long shot) so some additional breakdown is required. I've therefore included a brief list of the names and uses of different shot types below:
Extreme Long Shot (or Extreme Wide Shot) - makes your subject appear small against their location. You can use an extreme long shot to make your subject feel distant or unfamiliar. It can also make your subject feel overwhelmed by its location. Of all the various camera shots out there, consider using the extreme long shot when you need to emphasize the location or isolation.
Long Shot (or Wide Shot) - The long shot is the same idea as the extreme variant, but a bit closer. If your subject is a person, then his or her whole body will be in view, but not filling the shot. In other words, there should be a good deal of space above and below your subject. Use a long shot (or wide shot) to keep your subject in plain view amidst grander surroundings. The wide shot also lets us see the beautiful background imagery, as well as the onlookers which will make any big moment more cinematic. Of the many camera shots, a long shot gives us a better idea of the scene setting, and gives us a better idea of how the character fits into the area.
Full Shot - a camera shot that lets your subject fill the frame, while keeping emphasis on scenery. Of all the different types of camera shots in film, full shots can be used to feature multiple characters in a single shot.
Medium Wide Shot - A medium wide shot (aka medium long shot) frames the subject from roughly the knees up. It splits the difference between a full shot and a medium shot. Medium shots can also be framed from any angle as well, for example, when behind a character.
Cowboy Shot - A variation on this is the Cowboy Shot, which frames the subject from roughly mid-thighs up. It’s called a “cowboy shot” because it is used in Westerns to frame a gunslinger’s gun or holster on his hip.
Medium Shot - The medium shot is one of the most common camera shots. It's similar to the cowboy shot above, but frames from roughly the waist up and through the torso. So it emphasizes more of your subject while keeping their surroundings visible. Medium shots may seem like the most standard camera shot around, but every shot size you choose will have an effect on the viewer. A medium shot can often be used as a buffer shot for dialogue scenes that have an important moment later that will be shown in a close-up shot.
Medium Close Up Shot - The medium close-up frames your subject from roughly the chest up. So it typically favors the face, but still keeps the subject somewhat distant. The medium close-up camera shot size keeps the characters eerily distant even during their face-to-face conversation.
Close Up - You know it’s time for a close-up shot when you want to reveal a subject’s emotions and reactions. The close-up camera shot fills your frame with a part of your subject. If your subject is a person, it is often their face. Of all the different types of camera shot sizes in film, a close-up is perfect for important moments. The close-up shot size is near enough to register tiny emotions, but not so close that we lose visibility.
Extreme Close Up - An extreme close-up is the most you can fill a frame with your subject. It often shows eyes, mouth and gun triggers. In extreme close-up shots, smaller objects get great detail and are the focal point.
Establishing Shot - An establishing shot is a shot at the head of a scene that clearly shows us the location of the action. This shot often follows an aerial shot and is used to show where everything will happen.
That brings me to the end of the shot sizes summary, although the website did also include this incredibly useful video which goes into more detail and includes some examples:
Shot Framing:
This next section has more to do with how many subjects are being framed within the above shot types. There's only a few examples here, so as with the above, I'll break these down into their names (along with a brief description of each) below:
Single Shot - Single shots can be set and framed in any shot size you like, just as long as there is only one character featured within the frame. Now, why did I say featured rather than simply in the frame? The reason is because you can have an over-the-shoulder single, also known as a "dirty single" that technically has more than one person in the frame, but the character in the foreground isn't featured.
Two Shot - A two-shot is a camera shot with two characters featured in the frame. Two shots are often really useful for allowing performances to play out in a single take, which can be especially useful for comedy.
Three Shot - A three-shot features three characters in the frame. Three shots are really important in adventure films, or really any film that has a group of characters, because it is an enormous time drain to shoot 3 singles just to show every character, not to mention jarring.
Over the Shoulder Shot - Another element of camera shots to consider is the perspective of the shot. An over-the-shoulder shot shows your subject from behind the shoulder of another character. Because it emulates perspective, it’s common in conversation scenes. Over-the-shoulder shots can help to provide orientation, and connect the characters on an emotional level.
Over the Hip Shot - An over-the-hip shot is similar to over-the-shoulder in that the camera is placed with a character's hip in the foreground, and the focus subject in the plane of acceptable focus. You'll gain a similar effect from an over-the-hip shot as you would an OTS, but if you have one character standing, and the other sitting, kneeling, or any other configuration that places the subjects on "uneven terrain" it will often suggest a power imbalance. This is the benefit of blocking and staging your actors and camera.
Point of View Shot - A 'POV' shot is a camera shot that shows the viewer exactly what that character sees. This transports the audience into that character. A point of view shot (POV) is generally sandwiched between two other shots, a technique called shot-reverse shot.
Once again, the website included a great video which provides a breakdown and examples of each of the above framing shots:
Camera Focus (Depth of Field):
This section focuses more on the directors ability to shift the audience's attention within the shot/s by manipulating the camera's focus. You can shift and change points of view as people learn new information, move locations, or switch perspectives. There are various types of camera focus to choose from, each with their own unique storytelling properties, and I've included them below along with a brief description:
Rack Focus & Focus Pull - Pulling focus is exactly how it sounds, keeping a subject in focus throughout a shot as they move through different plains (i.e. further and further away from the camera). A rack focus is an emphasized focus pull, where the acceptable focus range is intentionally shifted from one subject to another. This is an aggressive use of focus as a story telling device.
Shallow Focus (Shallow Depth of Field) - In shallow focus shots, your subject is in crisp focus while the foreground and background scenery is out of focus. This limits your depth of field to create emphasis on your subject.
Deep Focus Shot - In a deep focus shot, everything in your frame is in focus. This is when you need your audience to feel the scenery or particular scene elements.
Tilt-Shift - A tilt-shift lens rotates perspective within the lens and emulates selective focus. It can make parts of your image appear in sharp focus while others are out of focus.
Soft Focus - Whereas deep focus keeps everything in focus, and shallow focus keeps something in focus, soft focus shots keep nothing in 100% sharp focus. This is caused by either a flaw in the lens itself or through special filters. Soft focus is perfect when filming a dream or memory; the glow around everything is both wistful and slightly unreal.
Split Diopter - A split diopter is an additional lens element that allows for two simultaneous focal lengths. In other words, you can achieve shallow focus in the foreground and in the background, while the middle ground remains out of focus. This is a highly stylized shot and tends to draw attention to itself because it is "unnatural." The human eye can see in deep or shallow focus but not both at the same time, which is why this type of camera shot should used with caution.
I would consider the manipulation of focus within a shot to be the next advanced step of my journey with cinematography. I've used certain shifts like shallow and deep focus before, but have never really been able to name the technique, nor knew about these other options available to me! I'm quite excited to apply some of these to my animation, and to assist with that; the website once again includes a great video with deeper explanations of the different focus shifts, and examples of each:
Camera Angles:
Camera angles are the manipulation of, surprisingly, the angle of the camera during the recording of a scene. Camera angles, and degree of those angles, can totally change the meaning of a film shot. There are many camera angles at a filmmaker's disposal and can even be combined for additional effect. Here's a rundown of every camera angle, how they work, and why each of them might work best for my animation:
Eye Level Shot - When your subject is at eye-level they’re in a neutral perspective (not superior or inferior). This mimics how we see people in real life; our eye line connecting with theirs.
Low Angle Shot - A low angle shot frames the subject from a low camera height looking up at them. These camera shots most often emphasize power dynamics between characters. A superior character with the upper hand is often framed from down low. This makes an inferior feel like they are looking up to them.
High Angle Shot - In a high angle shot, the camera points down at your subject. It usually creates a feeling of inferiority, or “looking down” on your subject.
Hip Level Shot - A hip level shot is when your camera is roughly waist-high. A simple explanation, but that's exactly what it is.
Knee Level Shot - This is when your camera height is about as low as your subject’s knees. They can emphasize a character’s superiority, if paired with a low angle.
Ground Level Shot - A ground level shot is when your camera’s height is on ground level with your subject. Needless to say, this shot captures what’s going on the ground your subject stands on.
Shoulder Level Shot - This is when your camera is roughly as high as your subject’s shoulders. Shoulder level shots are actually much more standard than an eye level shot, which can make your actor seem shorter than reality. A shoulder level shot can maximize the feeling of superiority when paired with a low angle.
Dutch Angle (or Dutch Tilt) - For a dutch angle (dutch tilt), the camera is slanted to one side. With the horizon lines tilted in this way, you can create a sense of disorientation.
Overhead Shot (or Bird's Eye View Shot) - An overhead shot is from way up high, looking down on your subject and a good amount of the scenery surrounding him or her. This can create a great sense of scale and movement.
Aerial Shot - Whether taken from a helicopter or drone, this is a shot from way up high. It establishes a large expanse of scenery.
As you can see from the above list, there's a lot of different angle types and purposes for each. There's a lot here I was unaware of before beginning this animation, and my decision to wait before finalizing my shots on my storyboard has been easily justified by this section. For example; a dutch angle would work brilliantly for the introduction of my zombies, an aerial shot for the opening of the docks, a ground level shot for the body in the alley etc. But I digress, as with the previous sections the website also included a video which breaks down the angle types in further detail, and provides examples of each:
Camera Movement:
If you were surprised to learn that the definition of a camera angle was the angle the camera was held at, then you'll never guess what camera movement is! Camera movement is a powerful filmmaking tool employed to modify the relationship between the subject and the camera frame, with the goal of altering viewer's perspective of space and time for a more impactful and visceral visual storytelling. There are many different movements employed in today's cinematography, so I've compiled them into a list below along with brief definitions:
Static Shot (or Fixed Shot) - When there’s no movement (i.e. locked camera aim) it’s called a static shot. These camera shots emphasize the appearance and movement of your subject against its environment, and are predominantly captured by being placed on a tripod or a dolly that remains static during the shot. Static shots work well in every genre, but they're nice for comedy because the actor’s performance and dialogue is often the focus.
Camera Dolly Shot - A dolly shot is where the camera is affixed to a mechanism called a dolly, which is a specialized push-cart built to handle heavy cinema cameras. A dolly most commonly will be placed on tracks so it can move smoothly along a route, and the vast majority of professional dollies have either a hydraulic or even a pneumatic head that can jib up and down during operation.
Zoom Lens Shot - Zoom shots are camera shots that change the focal length of the lens during the shot. This action can be a zoom out, or a zoom in, but they are different from a push in (or dolly in) because the camera is rarely changing positions, but simply altering the focal length of the zoom lens. A good way to remember this is that the camera does not zoom, but rather the lens zooms.
Dolly/Zoom Shot (or Vertigo Shot) - A dolly/zoom shot is where the camera position and focal length of the lens are simultaneously altered to create a warping effect.
Camera Pan Shot - Camera pans rotates the camera side to side on a horizontal axis. This can reveal something to your viewer or allow them to follow an action.
Camera Tilt Shot - A camera tilt is when you move your camera up and down on a vertical axis. So, it’s exactly like a pan, only vertical.
Whip Pan Shot (or Swish Pan Shot) - A whip pan happens when you pan the camera from one shot to another, creating a motion blur.
Whip Tilt Shot (or Swish Tilt Shot) - The swish tilt is the same idea as a swish pan, only vertical.
Tracking Shot - A tracking shot moves with your subject. Sometimes it follows behind or beside them on a dolly, Steadicam or a gimbal.
Crab Shot - The crab shot is basically a dolly shot that moves horizontally like a crab.
Arc Shot - Arc shots are camera shots where the camera moves around the subject in an arc pattern so as to show more of the surroundings.
This section on camera movement is equally as important as the others above, but this is really the one which prompted me to complete this refresher post. I've used camera movement in the past of course, but never to the level with which it should be used in a modern day animation. Establishing the conventions above have given me a lot to think about when it comes to the cinematography of my final animation, and I'm really excited to apply what I've learned when it comes to finalizing my storyboard and constructing my pre-visualization! As with the previous sections of course, the website once again included a video which further breaks down the different types of camera movements available, as well as demonstrating some examples of each:
With that, my refresher research on camera properties is complete. As I stated above, I feel I'm in a much better position now to create a compelling animation, and I'm really excited to apply what I've learned here. For now though, it's time to move onto my next point of research.
Lighting in Unreal Engine 5
This next section should be fairly simple, but this entirely depends on just how deeply I dive into it. Lighting in Unreal Engine seems to be something which you can always tinker with and always improve upon, and it's for that reason I wanted to refresh myself on the basics of how to use it effectively.
Of course the simplest place to start would be the standard lighting objects within Unreal; a sun (directional light) or various bulbs, but I'd really like to examine how to affect the lighting with things like volumetrics (fog for example). I believe I have enough basic knowledge on the application of standard lighting, but I have included this helpful tutorial video I located online just to refresh myself:
After watching through the above video, it's reminded me of some incredibly useful techniques, as well as taught me a variety of new ones which I believe could be a huge help for my animation. I made some notes while watching through it and have compiled them into bullet points below for your reference:
4 spheres can be placed within your scene which serve as a guideline to ensure the lighting is neither over or under exposed. A black one with an albedo of 0.04 & roughness of 0.3, white one with an albedo of 0.85 & roughness of 0.3, grey one with an albedo of 0.18 & roughness of 0.3, and lastly a metallic one with an albedo of 0.9, metallic of 1 and roughness of 0.05. If all the spheres are visible in your scene, and the metallic one shows clear reflection, your exposure levels are good.
Overcast lighting is something I'll be primarily using in my project (it is set in England after all), and the creator of this video pointed out just how much softer shadows are when the sky is overcast. This is because the light from the sun is essentially darkened, but spread across the whole sky due to reflection and absorption from the clouds. The size of the light source will directly affect this as well.
When lighting interiors using an outside light source (shining through doorways or windows for example), remember to change the indirect lighting value of the light source. Additionally, the actual albedo of the materials will greatly effect how much light is reflected off it.
Don't forget the usefulness of HDRI maps for lighting. They can do 90% of the work for you, especially when there are so many free presets available online.
Remember to enable nanite on static meshes for your scene when using lumen as the primary lighting method. To do this, simply select in the content browser, right click, enable nanite.
Utilize the 'Environment Light Mixer' tab for easier access to various lighting facilities and modifiers. Simple option that can be selected from the menus, docks onto content browser and features 'drag and drop' availability of direction lights, point lights, height fog etc.
To disable auto exposure (when the camera adjusts exposure by itself as it moves around the scene), place a post process volume, locate auto exposure and disable. You can also change the infinite extent unbound setting to ensure it affects the whole scene, rather than just the confines of the volume.
Exposure compensation is a setting that can be adjusted in the post process volume to enhance interior lighting if being lit from an outside source.
To remove the 'blue tint' that can sometimes be caused by directional lighting, use volumetric fog. This can also add 'god rays' to your scene, adjust the scatter intensity value on the directional light to enhance these.
This can be enhanced further by using the scattering distribution of the fog. This setting will alter the visibility of the god rays depending on the angle of the camera, just like in real life. Though obviously this is more down to artistic decision.
Should there be some flickering lights in your scene (typically, just as a I had during my data capture cave assignment), these can be lessened (there's sadly no way to completely remove them) using the post process volume. Go to the lumen sub menu, select lumen scene lighting quality and change it to a value of '2', change the final gather quality value to '2' also, and lastly the final gather update speed to '0.5'. This should improve this issue dramatically.
Remember that altering the 'volumetric scattering intensity' setting will add some localized fog. I've noted this because I can see this being incredibly useful during my final animation, and should be a quick easy way to add some mist to my scenes.
This one video surprisingly has answered all the questions I had regarding lighting at this stage. I'm sure there will be much more I need to know, but what that entails will not become apparent until I begin the creation of my final scenes. There is however one more area I wish to cover, even if at present it may not end up being used, and that is how to create accurate night-time lighting for a scene. I've located another video by the same creator which should hopefully answer my questions just as effectively as the previous one:
Some of this video was a retread of the previous one, however there were still many revealing insights into how to improve night-time lighting for an Unreal scene. I'm still undecided on just how much of my final animation will take place at night; but I know there will at least be one scene (the dockyard) which will be. As I did with the previous video; I took some shorthand notes while watching it which I've compiled into the below bullet points:
Moonlight on it's own will never be sufficient to properly expose a shot. It's always necessary to add additional light sources to your scene, and from there try to 'blend' them with the moonlight so it appears that there's still only a single source.
Moonlight in media usually has a blue-tint to it, but this is actually only due to convention as it's what we are used to seeing. Actual moonlight is closer to red in colour due to it's temperature. I believe I will stick to the blue light convention, but this is an interesting fact nonetheless.
A useful practice for achieving 'night lighting' would be to day-to-night grade your sequence. This is essentially creating your shots during daylight, but then editing attributes in post (such as exposure, colour grading, highlights etc) to make it appear that it's actually night time instead.
The 'in engine' sky blueprint for Unreal actually has a star map texture built in already to save you some work. Simply add it to your scene, adjust the sun position to it's lowest state and voila. The star map itself is also stored as a texture in the blueprint editor and can be easily altered to any texture of your choosing. There are plenty of realistic star maps available online which can be easily imported.
The best practice for 'night lighting' is to use the moonlight (directional light) to highlight the hero asset, not necessary make it fully exposed and visible. This is done so by highlighting the silhouette and shape of the asset.
To add additional depth to the scene, use height fog (check the 'support sky atmosphere affecting height fog; in project settings for optimal effect) and set the inscattering colour options to black. From there, check the volumetric fog option, and increase the scattering intensity option on the directional light.
Geometry can be used to create 'windows' in the environment to control the rays of light. Shadow blockers are also useful in this regard. It's also worth noting that the 'scattering distribution' value on the height fog will change the direction of the rays.
Add a skylight to the scene to add some needed depth to the shadows. Though don't forget to adjust the intensity value of it and remove the lower hemisphere's solid colour property.
Adding point lights to the scene is a great way to add some contrast to the moonlight (so it doesn't appear unnaturally bright). Things like candles, TV screens or car headlights work perfectly.
Add as many additional fill and rim lights to the scene as necessary to give depth to the shadows, as well as highlights to the silhouettes of any actors you wish the audience to focus on. Though don't forget to adjust the intensity and colour of them to match the ambient lighting.
There we have it, I feel fully refreshed on how to produce ambient lighting for my Unreal engine scenes, and if anything I actually feel a bit more prepared than I was for previous projects. Lighting is obvious integral to the creation process and I feel I've never been able to utilize it fully in the past, choosing to focus more on the quality of my meshes and scenes. Hopefully with this new knowledge under my belt my final project can be a real cinematic powerhouse! I know that additional research may be necessary later in the production stage (on things such as weather effects) but for now, I can move onto the final section of this refresher post, my technical element/s.
Technical Element/s
The reason this section is listed as a potential plural is because I do technically have 2 distinct technical elements at work in my final animation: motion capture for the actor's animations, and a crowd simulation for the zombie horde present in the final shots. However, I wont actually be discussing motion capture here as I have an assignment based solely on motion capture (from the actual capture through to mapping onto characters in Unreal and performing keyframe cleanup) so will be completing all research and highlighting my workflow regarding this element during posts on my Performance & Technical Animation assignment. I will then follow the same workflow I develop during that for my final animation's motion capture.
The second element however is something I very much can, and should, begin researching as soon as possible: crowd simulation. I'll be employing a crowd simulation in my project for the zombie horde, and therefore am fully aware I'll need a suite of zombie animations ready for this (which may even be obtained by motion capture, in which case see the blue paragraph above), but once I have those to hand; I'll need to map them to a variety of zombie meshes that all run through them randomly at different intervals. Of course I could do this manually with key frames, but there's a much more convenient way to achieve this effect; crowd simulation. I've therefore scoured YouTube in attempts to find tutorials for this, and have found a few videos which I believe will help me achieve the desired effect. They all seemed to focus on the use of a new AnimToTexture Plugin which Epic released as part of the Unreal Engine 5 City Sample (you may have seen this used to advertise the latest Matrix movie). I've included the most in-depth of these videos below for your reference:
As with the videos in the previous section of research; I watched this through this and made some notes on the most important parts so that I can refer back to them later. I've included them all in a bullet point format below:
This plugin works via 'Vertex Animation'. This was the best way to achieve a good result for crowd simulation up until the release of the AnimToTexture plugin, which still works on the same principles, albeit much more streamlined through the use of material layers.
The general workflow appears to be the following (once you have imported a mesh you'd like to use and it's materials): check the 'use material attributes' box on the material editor, add a material attributes maker node to the material blueprint, assign the textures to this node, copy over the other nodes from the default AnimToTexture example material blueprint and connect them to the material attributes node. Repeat this for all materials for each mesh you plan to use and then create material instances for each material as well.
The creator of this video also kindly created their own opensource widget to enhance the ease of use for this plugin which they've linked on the video. The next step of the workflow is to use this widget (which according to the video is only use-able for engine version 5.1 - worth noting in case I have to transfer my levels between engine versions for this section) to generate new static meshes which you apply the material instances to, along with generating some empty textures and assets. From there add all the animation variations I want to apply to my crowd into the widget and generate the data parameters. Lastly, bake these to populate the once empty textures with the animations.
Following the above step; I need to toggle the 'use layers', 'animate', 'UV 1' and 'use fool influences' boxes for each material. The mesh will then be able to animate.
Add the crowd blueprint included with the plugin & widget to your scene and drag the data parameters generated by the widget into it. From there I can use the parameters of the blueprint to alter the amount of meshes, direction they're facing, position of the meshes etc.
NOTE: the animations will appear jittery until you toggle the "enforce power of two" on the data assets. This is not noted in the video itself, but the creator mentions in it a comment below to fix this issue.
There we have it. I've completed a refresher on all the technical aspects of my project that I wanted to remind myself on before proceeding to the final stages of preproduction. With this completed, I can now confidently finalize my storyboard, create a previsulisation from it, and move onto the production phase!
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