When you think of the words “visual effects”, how long until an image of a green screen comes to mind? The blue/green screen techniques, also known as Chromakey, has been an integral part of the visual effects (VFX) process in the post-production industry for many years, but that’s slowly starting to change. New alternatives are in development that improve post-production efficacy, save labour costs, and foster creative breakthroughs – and they’re being created right here at Carleton University.

In this talk, graduate student Lea (ChangAn) Zhu will discuss how she and another Carleton researcher have developed what they believe is the first five-view camera system prototype. She will explain how the technology perceives real-life scenes from horizontal and vertical directions and fills in blind spots to generate more accurate depth sequences and how the technology can be applied in video object cut-out, visual effects composition, video’s 2D to 3D conversion, and image post-processing. Lea will explain the methodology behind their work, showcase sample shots and discuss how the technology could be used in AR, VR, machine vision and auto-pilot areas.