From: Bill.Costa@alumni.unh.edu "Bill Costa - NIS/CIS - University of New Hampshire" 15-JUL-1998 08:06:31.67 To: xxxxxxxxx CC: W_COSTA Subj: RE: 3D camera Mark, You recently wrote to me: > The reason Im asking is that my company does 3D animations and VR of > buildings, bridges, etc. Right now we are creating a 3D walkthrough of > the college that I graduated from, California State University, San > Marcos. In order to model the buildings, their interiors or parts of > the landscape we use a standard VHS camcorder. Unfortunatly, it doesnt > give us the clarity of depth to model in 3D software that say maybe a > 3D camcorder might. So if I understand you, the video is for the benefit of the human who is doing the animation on the computer, as a way of comparison. Now when you say 3D animations, we need to clarify a point. When folks in 3D (a.k.a. stereo) photography say "3D" they really mean an image with actual depth. You can tell which objects are nearer or farther away with no other depth cues. But I take it that when you say "3D animations" you mean 3D the way it has unfortunately been adopted by the computer industry -- meaning that there is 3D data in the computer, but the information is display in 2D with depth cues. Is that correct? Of course there are 3D computer systems that really do provide *real* 3D images using shutter glasses (like the Toshiba) and other techniques, but that's not what most people mean when they talk 3D on a computer. > I was wondering if you still have the original box it came in, No. I purchased it used and it did not come with the original box. The only brand new Toshiba I am aware of, complete with all original packing material, is linked on my 3D page. 3DTV has it, but the last time I checked they want $12K for it. > along > with all the manuals and user guides? Yes, I have all the manuals -- including the service manual which is not something that came with the camera. > Also would Toshiba give technical > support for this item or are you pretty much on your own? Depends upon what you mean by techical support. I doubt anybody at Toshiba could answer questions about this camera any more. As for repairing it, that should be no problem, subject to the availability of parts. The only parts that might be a problem should be the plastic housing pieces which are unique to this model camera. A few years ago I checked on the availability of the front cowel because I was thinking of making a customization for attaching accessories to the lenses. It was available, but I changed my mind and didn't get it. But there is a limit to how long a manufacturer will keep specialized parts on hand, however, and this is an old (for electronic gear) camera. That's something to keep in mind. > Would I also > need a special VCR to view what I recorded? No, the tapes can be played back on any standard VHS VCR. Since this is a VHS-C unit, the tape is small, but you place it in an adapter giving it the same size and functionality of a conventional VHS tape. The tape plays back normally, you can rewind, fast forward, and edit from the tape with no problem. It's just without the glasses, the image looks funny. You can easily see what is going on, but it's as if you are getting some strange ghost-like interference. But put on the shutter glasses, or use a Head Mounted Display (HMD), and the images suddenly have realistic depth. I've had the experience, and seen others do it too, where you move your head trying to get a better view of what is behind an object on the screen. Can't do that, of course. After all, this *isn't* holigraphy. :-) The reason I bought the service manual is so that I wouldn't have any trouble getting it repaired if it broke. Indeed any VCR may eventually need some adjustments over time to keep it in peak working condition. If the unit did need repair or adjustment, I would *not* send it back to Toshiba, but would take it to an independent *professional video gear* repair shop. Such a shop, with service manual in hand, would have no trouble fixing or adjusting the unit. (The service manual is 187 pages long and contains all of the board layouts and schematics as well as service and adjustment procedures.) I would trust the technicians at a pro gear repair shop before I would a tech at a consumer equipment repair shop. Consumer gear techs are OK for equipment that they work on all the time, but the chances are excellent that a Toshiba tech today would have never seen one of these before. Techs in a pro shop, however, are *real* techs who understand the theory, they are use to actually trouble shooting and fixing things at the component level, not just swapping out parts. And they are also use to working on equipment that cost 10 times as much as the Toshiba. They are also fussier about getting things adjusted just right given the nature of their customers. Of course such a shop will be more expensive too, but worth it given the rare nature of the camera. In summary, the Toshiba could be ideal for your application given that it already has the stedicam and is ready to do 3D with no muss, fuss, or bother. But a late model camera with image stablization and one of the Nu-View 3D adapters maybe more cost effective. An important strength of the Toshiba over the Nu-View is the ability to do close-ups, but that doesn't sound like an issue for you. Hope that helps. Later.....BC -- +----------------------------[ Bill.Costa@UNH.EDU ]---+ | Bill Costa | | 33 College Road -- CIS PHONE: +1-603-862-3056 | No good deed... | University of New Hampshire FAX: +1-603-862-4778 | goes un-punished. | Durham, NH 03824-3591 USA | | | +-----------------[ http://pubpages.unh.edu/~wfc/ ]---+