Digital Art Zone

OK all you thinkers and tinkerers! How can we use dof. Have it lock on to a specific object in the scene and have DAZstudio automatically calculate the focal distance. In lightwave we can simply apply a measure tool, have it measure the distance between camera and object and then it plugs that number into the focal distance field on the fly. Can we do something similar in daz?

Not quite that simple, unless I have been missing a trick.  But first, be warned - DAZ cameras do not act like real cameras so far as f-stop, etc. go.

What I do is create (at least) two cameras - one to use for the render (I generally call this SceneCam, with DoF, etc.,) and the other(s) to assist in posing and positioning.

In the Camera/Lights tab (selecting Camera) I ensure that I have the SceneCam selected as active object and another camera active in view port.  I adjust scene so that I have a clear view from SceneCam to where I want the central focal point be.  I then turn on DoF for the SceneCam and turn the DoF planes/indicators under Scene View (sorry, can’t recall actual titles) to red so they stand out.  Focal length and f-stop are then adjusted to suit what I have planned.

yeah, i have been using the two camera method. Just seems like there might be someone out there who can figure this out.

There is a way… it has to do with the camera framing function, but durned if I can remember it right now.

Select your camera and go to its Display properties in the Parameter Pane (Tab).

In the image below shows one of the DOF planes turned on.. You can see the red plane in the viewport shown below. Works better when you have something in the scene to see how it works.

Thanks for all the replies! I have been using the planes, and the two camera method. I was thinking it might be possible by way of linking parameters to get it to be automatic.

Yeah, those are helpful, but there swear there is (was?) a quicker way to set the focal distance.  It was something like CTRL+ALT right-click on framing button, but that doesn’t seem to be it when I try it in DS4.5.

adamr001 - 10 July 2012 07:35 AM

Yeah, those are helpful, but there swear there is (was?) a quicker way to set the focal distance.  It was something like CTRL+ALT right-click on framing button, but that doesn’t seem to be it when I try it in DS4.5.

I am sure it’s in the documentation ...

Both aim (ctrl-shift-a) and frame (ctrl-f) reset the Focal Distance. If you don’t want to reorient the main camera, create a new one as a copy of the original, aim that, and copy the Focal Distance value across. It would probably be simple to write a script to do this. Of course it works only if the origin of the selected item is at the focal point.

Use a null as your focal point. You can get down to the tip of the nose, the left eye ect…Just saying…

Jaderail - 10 July 2012 01:11 PM

Use a null as your focal point. You can get down to the tip of the nose, the left eye ect…Just saying…

Great idea.

There used to be a “Depth of Field” script available for previous versions of Studio. It still works in DS4 and I’m using it for all my projects. You just select a prop/body part and start the script by double clicking it ( or by making it a Custom Action available in a menu like I did ).

You then just have to specify your f/stop and focal distance is automatically added by pressing a button. Really easy.

Shallower DOF? Lower your f/stop value. Deep focus can either be achieved by using a higher f/stop value or focusing on an element farther away ( for the same f/stop value:  the farther away the focused element, the wider the focused area ). Just like in real life photography