CompuServe Thread

#Field Phenomenon

5 messages in this thread
#122064From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Sep 4, 1994 6:30 PM
I am experiencing a strange problem that I have never seen before. Maybe somebody is aware of it. I am creating a simple client logo that uses some compositing in video post. The compositing is as follows. 1. Backdrop.TGA (A dusk sky with stars) 2. [Keyframer] (Two search lights waving about) 3. Wall.TGA (A 32 bit image of a wall with the logo on it, with alpha queued so that the prior entries show through above the wall) 4. Black.TGA (A targa file that is all black and fades out over the first second so that the finished animation appears to fade-in.) My problem is this. The finished frames, sent directly to the PAR, strobes terribly. Thanks to the PAR, I can play back one field or the other (with the slow motion settings). The first field is brighter, while the second is darker. It is almost as if each field has different gamma, but that is only speculation. Thanks for any insight you can offer. — James — MAP —
#122121From: Don LandisSep 5, 1994 4:34 AM
Is it possible you are viewing frames rendered on different machines? One light, one dark. If so check your settings in the 3DS.set files of each slave to see that they are identical. Gary helped me with a similar problem like this awhile back. I had the New subtractive transparency set differently among my slaves.
#122178From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Sep 5, 1994 1:21 PM
Thanks for your input, Don. I found the problem late last night. The last image composited onto the scene (WALL.TGA) had the light/dark field problem built in. Apparently, when I rendered that still, I chose field mode, and also chose a portion of the animation where the light intensity was changing rapidly. That is why one field was dark and the other light. Now I have a new problem. This time it's hardware. I just replaced my PAR's 2217A HD and the new one worked fine for about a week. Just minutes ago I viewed a still on it that was fine since I replaced the drive, but it is now corrupted. I have completely eliminated the possibility of overheating because the 2217A has lots of room. I even mounted a thermometer nearby the 2217A to monitor the temperature (which never exceeded 82F). Someone mentioned that noisy power sources can cause trouble like this. I guess that could be it. I grow weary of chasing ghosts and dumping money into problems that never go away (like my car). — James — MAP —
#122194From: Jamie Clay [DPh]Sep 5, 1994 2:43 PM
Have you looked at these images with something other than the PAR? I doubt the PAR could be mucking with the image but if you can verify the rendered image is at fault by looking at it in PhotoShop or Composer, that might help to determine where the fault lies. Try turning GAMMA and Fields off and see what happens. J-me J-me
#122273From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Sep 5, 1994 11:48 PM
Thanks, Jamie. The problem was operator error!! One of the composited images was field rendered at a frame where light was changing. Thanks for your thoughts! — James — MAP —