[HELP] Generic Building Help Topic

[Divitis]

37 minutes ago, Aurorasaurus said:

I really like filming just with a phone, its not as expensive or complicated as a fancy camera, but to my eyes its easily "good enough" 

It's a very nice video, the model presentation is really clear and with really good detail. Which phone are you using? I have a Pixel7 and wasn't satisfied with the quality, easily gets too grainy (and doesn't have a zoom lenses).

39 minutes ago, Aurorasaurus said:

I'm enjoying this conversation and I'd love to see what video you get at the end (or right now!)

This is the best I got so far, the depth is still too shallow for my taste, and the model needs to be more separated from the background. I'm also very annoyed about how the white reflections immediately burn out and look flat white. It may be nice for the turntable, but in static shots is ugly and hard to control. 

In your video you don't have any, I'm very jealous.

 

[Aurorasaurus]

15 minutes ago, Divitis said:

It's a very nice video, the model presentation is really clear and with really good detail. Which phone are you using? I have a Pixel7 and wasn't satisfied with the quality, easily gets too grainy (and doesn't have a zoom lenses).

This is the best I got so far, the depth is still too shallow for my taste, and the model needs to be more separated from the background. I'm also very annoyed about how the white reflections immediately burn out and look flat white. It may be nice for the turntable, but in static shots is ugly and hard to control. 

In your video you don't have any, I'm very jealous.

Thank you!!

For recording I'm using a Samsung S25. My daily phone, an s23fe, seems to produce a good quality too.

Maybe for avoiding the reflections, point the lights lower or higher? For me both work, because I have a shelf above to bounce some light back and diffuse nicely. I noticed your background is very dark, much more black than gray. Black is unforgiving, a lighter one would probably look better. Maybe you can make one from stuff you have laying around to try it out.

[Divitis]

30 minutes ago, Aurorasaurus said:

Black is unforgiving, a lighter one would probably look better.

I also got a white background, but black just feels sexier - and hides the turntable.

 

30 minutes ago, Aurorasaurus said:

Maybe for avoiding the reflections, point the lights lower or higher?

The point isn't avoiding the reflections, rather tuning them down so they don't burn out the whites and retain some details. I have a soft panel and a spot which I bounce off the ceiling, but than get very little out of it because of how far it is.

Like they do here: 

Edited April 3 by Divitis
image added

[mdemerchant]

17 hours ago, Divitis said:

What I have the most problems with is keeping everything in focus when filming a large model (1:8 car) without creating an excessively flat and boring image.

I learned recently when we had a photographer in doing a product shoot that they way the pros achieve this is by shooting a bunch of images with narrow depth of field at different focal depths and combining them in photoshop or whatever editor of choice.  It's called focus stacking.  You need a proper camera, which you have, a tripod, which I assume you have, and it's more work but it will give you crystal clear depth of field as deep as you like with any lens and aperture.

[Divitis]

5 hours ago, mdemerchant said:

I learned recently when we had a photographer in doing a product shoot that they way the pros achieve this is by shooting a bunch of images with narrow depth of field at different focal depths and combining them in photoshop or whatever editor of choice.  It's called focus stacking.  You need a proper camera, which you have, a tripod, which I assume you have, and it's more work but it will give you crystal clear depth of field as deep as you like with any lens and aperture.

Thanks for the tip. I heard of it but never tried myself. I don't think it works with video though.

I tinkered a bit more with the lights yesterday and managed to solve the burnt highlights. The side light is a little flat but that should not be hard to solve.

I also got a recommendation from a friend to run the footage through an AI enhancement tool (Topaz AI) and I must say it does a good job, although it's easy to get too cocky with the settings and make things look fake.

These are stills from the video. Thoughts?

The AI enhanced version is the one with the glass.

 

PS: Today I'm going to get two more paper panels and extend the set a bit, to be able to separate the model from the background a little more.

Edited April 4 by Divitis

[Lego Tom]

11 hours ago, Divitis said:

Thanks for the tip. I heard of it but never tried myself. I don't think it works with video though.

I tinkered a bit more with the lights yesterday and managed to solve the burnt highlights. The side light is a little flat but that should not be hard to solve.

I also got a recommendation from a friend to run the footage through an AI enhancement tool (Topaz AI) and I must say it does a good job, although it's easy to get too cocky with the settings and make things look fake.

These are stills from the video. Thoughts?

The AI enhanced version is the one with the glass.

 

PS: Today I'm going to get two more paper panels and extend the set a bit, to be able to separate the model from the background a little more.

So, AI stands for Alcohol Induced?  

[bruh]

In those last two pictures you showed, they look a little dark, as I’m sure you also noticed. I think I agree with aurarosaurus for a lighter background. And, are you going to create a topic on that car?? It looks great!

[Divitis]

On 4/12/2025 at 2:23 PM, bruh said:

I think I agree with aurarosaurus for a lighter background.

I couldn't find gray backdrops at the time, so I went for black. Which I must say I quite like, although it seems I'm the only one. To me there's no lack of detail in the model itself, and that's what I find most important.

 

On 4/12/2025 at 2:23 PM, bruh said:

And, are you going to create a topic on that car?? It looks great!

Thanks! As soon as the video is ready I'll make a proper presentation thread. For now, there's the WIP: 

 

[bruh]

bro... What a CRAZY thread! Just read the whole thing. CRAZY what you had to engineer and the persistence with which you reengineered. I wouldn't have lasted that long!