nschultz@polyslo.UUCP (Ned W Schultz) (08/19/87)
Have any of you folks using Digi-View cooked up a simple solution
allowing you to plug into the Amiga monitor and the "dongle" at the
same time (a switch of some sort?)? I've looked at the solutions
in the manual, but seem to remember mention of a simpler approach
posted here in the past.
Also, would be interested in hearing about lighting set-ups. What
types and sizes of bulbs are you using with success? I have the
copy stand.
Lastly, has anyone had success taking images from laserdisk or other
external sources? If so, I'd appreciate hearing about that.
Thanks for all the help!
Ned Schultz Psychology Dept. polyslo!nschultz
Cal Poly St. Univ.
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407kim@amdahl.UUCP (08/30/87)
In article <414@polyslo.UUCP>, nschultz@polyslo.UUCP (Ned W Schultz) writes: > Have any of you folks using Digi-View cooked up a simple solution > allowing you to plug into the Amiga monitor and the "dongle" at the > same time (a switch of some sort?)? I've looked at the solutions > in the manual, but seem to remember mention of a simpler approach > posted here in the past. I've been using an "Antenna/Cable Switch" for some time without noticing any degradation in the digitized images (the insertion loss claimed was "less than 1/2 db", as I recall). The unit I'm using was obtained from a "home improvement store", and was $5-$7. The manufacturer is Electricord, but I imagine there are many other comparable units. You also need a couple of short (2'-3') 75 ohm cables, preferably with the correct type of connector on each end (both the Digi-View and the 1080 Amiga monitor use RCA phono-jacks, and the switch I'm using has type-F connectors on input and outputs). If you cannot find the correct combination of connectors, there are a variety of adaptors available that can get you there, but bear in mind that each adaptor in the signal-path will introduce some loss. You *may* need to trim the length of the center conductor of the cable that you're plugging into the Digi-View box. Some phono-plugs are pretty long, and cause the plug to "stand-out" from the box, preventing a good shield connection. This is thanks to the potting compound that NewTek uses to hide it's circuitry from inquiring minds. With this setup, just plug one output from the video switch into the 1080, and the other into the Digi-View ... the input of course goes to the video source (camera, VCR, etc.) In use, just throw the 1080's Video Mode switch to COMPosit, and flick the video switch to the output headed for the 1080 monitor, and your're looking at the video source. Make any adjustments (focus, lighting, composition, whatever), and then flip both switches (1080 to RGB, video to Digi-View side), and digitize away! Don't try using a "splitter" in place of the video switch, as such devices can drop the output signal by 3 db's or so (db's are logrithmic ... a 3 db drop is really a 50% drop in power). This may be enough to significantly degrade the quality of the digitized image, since the Digi-View itself does no amplification of the incomming signal. Another posibility is to use a splitter/amplifier so the outputs are (at least) as hot as the input. I haven't tried this ... a switch is alot cheaper, but I'd be interested in hearing how this works out WRT image quality, from anybody who has. > Lastly, has anyone had success taking images from laserdisk or other > external sources? If so, I'd appreciate hearing about that. Sure! I feed the output of my VHS VCR into the Digi-View all the time (it's a Cannon VR-HF600, and has a ROCK-soild freeze-frame). Of course, you can only get a b/w digitization at present, though NewTek has another "little box" in development that will provide the electronic equivalent of the R, G, and B filters, so color digitization from such sources will be possible in the (hopefully) near future. I think this box (which has been called Digi-FX) will provide some other tricks as well. At one point, I was going to develop such a circuit myself, but I decided to wait for the NewTek device due to the considerable amount of analog support circuitry needed (filters, synch-seperation, etc.) The heart of such an electronic RGB filter can be designed using parts like Moto's TDA3330 TV Color Processor, and MC1377 Color Encoder ... see their specs/app notes if you're interested. Even without color capability from such a source, you can get some interesting effects. Try digitizing a frame in red, and then advancing a few frames and digitizing in blue. Depending on the amount of motion between the two frames, you can get a psuedo-3D effect when you combine the red and blue frames, and view it thru red and blue "3D glasses" (sort of, anyway). Also try digitizing completely different scenes in red, blue, and green, and then combining them for a "ghosted collage" effect. And of course, you can colorize these images using Digi-View itself, as well as Digi-Paint, DPaint, etc. Another fun thing to play with is to leave the VCR running, and digitize while the image is in motion. You can get some interesting blurs, smears, and so forth. Great stuff! /kim -- UUCP: kim@amdahl.amdahl.com or: {sun,decwrl,hplabs,pyramid,ihnp4,seismo,oliveb,cbosgd}!amdahl!kim DDD: 408-746-8462 USPS: Amdahl Corp. M/S 249, 1250 E. Arques Av, Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CIS: 76535,25
ewhac@well.UUCP (Leo 'Bols Ewhac' Schwab) (09/01/87)
In article <13298@amdahl.amdahl.com> kim@amdahl.amdahl.com (Kim DeVaughn) writes: >Even without color capability from such a source, you can get some interesting >effects. Try digitizing a frame in red, and then advancing a few frames and >digitizing in blue. Depending on the amount of motion between the two frames, >you can get a psuedo-3D effect when you combine the red and blue frames, and >view it thru red and blue "3D glasses" (sort of, anyway). > If you want to do this right, and get some *excellent* 3D out of DigiView (I've been doing a lot of this of late), try this: Focus your camera on a still real-life object. Digitize it. Now, without adjusting any of the DigiView parameters, move the camera about 2.5 inches to the left or right, making absolutely sure to keep it focused at the same place. Then, digitize again. You now have a stereo pair. Viewing it is your problem (although we'll be addressing this problem shortly with a 3D Experimenter's Kit for the Amiga). There are other techniques for making your 3D pair look really good, but I don't want to give too much away. We've gotta give you *some* reason to buy the kit........ :-) _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ Leo L. Schwab -- The Guy in The Cape ihnp4!ptsfa -\ \_ -_ Bike shrunk by popular demand, dual ---> !{well,unicom}!ewhac O----^o But it's still the only way to fly. hplabs / (pronounced "AE-wack") "Work FOR? I don't work FOR anybody! I'm just having fun." -- The Doctor