This is a weekly update for my Maya camera rig creation project. If you want to learn more about the rigs I have made you can see the whole project here. All rigs are available to download and are free to use.
During this week I completed the first two camera rigs for this project, the handheld rig, and the dolly rig. Then I used them in the previsualization that I am currently working on.
The handheld rig is one of the most common types of camera rigs. I made it so that you can move the rig from the top handle or from the bottom handles as if the rig was positioned on someone's shoulder.
I went through some trial and error with this rig and came back to it while I was working on the dolly rig. I realized that there were controls I wanted to add and change.
Originally I did not have the main blue control but decided to add it so that there would be a general control for moving the rig around the scene.
I also changed how the shoulder control worked. I originally had it so that the camera would just follow a control by the handles, but I realized that that's not how the rig would act if it were positioned on someone's shoulders. So, I added a control to where the rig would be positioned on a person's shoulders for basic movement when the rig was in that mode. Then, I took control of the bottom handles and made it rotate around the shoulder.
The dolly rig is great for smooth movements and the way the rig works is very straightforward. I originally wanted to only have one control to control all of the camera's movement, but eventually realized that I need to separate up and down movement from left and right because of how the rig works.
The rotation for going up and down vs left and right moves different parts of the model. The left and right control move the up and down control with it since its rotation is further down on the rig.
Unlike the handheld rig, the main control is the only control on the rig that gives the rig unlimited movement and rotation. While the dolly rig creates great smooth movements, the rig is a bit more restricting than the handheld rig and often is placed onto the track.
I am currently creating previsualization for a fight sequence and I am using both of these rigs for the cinematography. So far I have created the first two shots for the sequence.
I chose to use the handheld rig for the first shot where the character’s eyes open because I wanted the camera shake that comes with a handheld rig. It makes the few seconds of the shot more intense. For the second shot that zooms out, I used the dolly rig because I wanted smooth movement.
These are only the first versions of these shots and they will likely change to some degree as I continue this project.
During the next week, I will create three more rigs and document them. I will be making a crane/jib rig, pedestal rig, and snorricam rig.