DIY LiteRing Chroma Key POC

W

wheatgrinder

Hey all,
the other day I got intrigued by the idea of crafting my own version of the light ring based chroma key systems.. I did some digging..

If you dont know what Im talking about, check out the high end reflectmedia

http://www.reflecmedia.com/education/media/video-gallery/litering-camera-action.htm

$2500 for a setup..

A better priced knock of can be had at

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...0_KIT_CKL_200_Dual_Color_Chromakey_Light.html

The trick here was figuring out what the backdrop was made out of... retroreflective material.. once I got that far, I found a 3M supplier that sent me a 12" x 9' sample.. pretty cool, until today I wasnt sure I had the right stuff.... so I spent a few minutes, with what ever leds I had lying about, I set this up in about 15 mins..


(sorry about the strangeness in the first few seconds.. )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86XH2cypiNA

Here is a quick keying attempt.. Iv never done keying before..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxlB_E-m6o0

Now, that fabric is very expensive, about $35 a yard, so its still too rich for my blood. But you can save a LOT of money doing it your self if you want to try this. I am looking for a knock of supplier out of china....


EDIT: So the shadow was made WORSE by being balanced for sunlight, and not florescent... in further tests, the shadows are just another shade of green (not brown like this example) and caused only small issues in keying.
 
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So i was planning on making a DIY light ring from PCB and LED's and the i found these premade rings for only $7.95.
AE60_mm.jpg


http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2Fspecs%2FAE.htm#photos
 
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crud thats perfect.. thanks goob.. now Ill have to order one to test. One difficulty is that many LEDs' have a "pattern" when you point them at a wall. I tested a bunch of different ones to arrive at my current choice, but not this model of SMT's
 
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Regrettably I can't add anything to this thread but joined the forum just so I could congratulate everyone for their efforts to find a more affordable way to use this technology. Kudos especially to wheatgrinder for taking the initiative.

I will need to do some chroma key filming in the next few months and was hoping to improve on my previous attempts. The Reflecmedia process seemed perfect until I read the price of buying their setup. I hoped there would be a DIY solution and am glad I continued my search and learned about these experiments. I'm very excited about the outcome of the tests and possibly joining in on buying one of the kits to use for my own films.

Looking forward to the next update.
 
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I was talking with a lighting rep and this technology was used on "House" several seasons back when they would go up on the roof (missed the first 2 seasons, so I've never seen those shots).
 
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knightly said:
I was talking with a lighting rep and this technology was used on "House" several seasons back when they would go up on the roof (missed the first 2 seasons, so I've never seen those shots).
Click to expand...

Thats amazing because you would never know. I looks like they are really on the roof. thanks for that bit of info. It really show how great technology has become.
 
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goob, your light ring suggestion should be arriving to my laboratory\basement\studio\music\laundry\workshop\green screen studio by this weekend. I look forward to testing it out.

I did some "practicality" testing last night.. the Chinese material will take an IRON ok, I wrinkled up a sample,.. and ironed it out with a hot iron.. no problem, wrinkles are out and it still works.. . I tried a few "fabric gluing" techniques too.. letting them setup overnight to see how strong the seam is.. (got advice from the fabric store ladies)

Next is how it holds up to the washing machine..

Im still struggling on how to practically fabricate a LARGE sheet of this stuff in the indoor spaces I have available. ....
 
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Awesome... you should do a video showing off the light ring. Im excited to see how it fits around the camera lens. I was thinking maybe I could attach a step up ring to it for fitting on my camera. I plan on ordering mine on payday.
 
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the initial test of goobs light ring are freaking fantastic!

As good, in indoor light anyway, as my home soldered rig using piranhas (leds costing $0.90 each!) a wiz to mount on a step up ring.. The unit I put together last night looked like something just out of store.. I get very good build quality with little effort. (having a good workshop helps though!)

Big negative is that the inside diameter is too small for pro gear. Its 60mm or so. The inside edge of the ring can oclude the 72mm opening.

72mm thread is common on pro and Prosumer hd cams.

I tested it on all my canon lenses and I cant see the ring even with the 28mm wide lens (55mm filter thread) so for my purposes its a done a deal!

I can find 102mm light rings like goobs, but only in white so far. I a have a few emails out.. nobodys got back yet. Just knowing that such things exists though proves its just a matter of time.

This weekend I got a date with the sewing machine, glue just aint looking good enough..

Whats your opinion.. horizontal or vertical seems? Im thinking horizontal would be better.. comments?

First back drop targeted for 4M wide by 3M tall. (12x9)

Thanks
 
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Just read through this finally. Awesome stuff, man! Great finds on the material and the ring lite (go Goob!).

I did a short bit of searching, but couldn't find the 102mm rings you mentioned. Were those from a phone call? I'm probably going to get one of them (the smaller ones) to test/use as a ring-lite for stills with my ae-1. The ring size there is a non-issue, but it would be great to be able to build one I could use on other people's cameras. :D
 
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update on keying setup and results

Hi wheatgrinder,

I have been checking the thread almost every day for updates but it's been nearly three weeks since we last heard from you and I'm concerned the thread has died. I was hoping to start planning to use this technique for an upcoming video that requires keying. Can you give more specific details about the setup and where to buy fabric and lights if you aren't going to do the kit you had mentioned. This would be a lot simpler than the traditional green screen approach and I'm eager to get started. Thanks again for taking on this project.

wheatgrinder said:
This weekend I got a date with the sewing machine, glue just aint looking good enough..

Whats your opinion.. horizontal or vertical seems? Im thinking horizontal would be better.. comments?

First back drop targeted for 4M wide by 3M tall. (12x9)
Click to expand...
 
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