Projection Mapping with 3D Tracing Tutorial

[@Turboencabulator]

Dave, thanks. I've been searching for a clear concise and most impotantly COST EFFECTIVE solution to 3D projection mapping for MY haunt. You're demo is what I've been searching for. It's January, so in 10 months I hope to show off MY results.

[@BatesHaunt]

That's the best part. No special software is required. Just a full screen drawing program and some kind of multi-layered animation tool or video program. I use Photoshop and Premiere, but you could use Paint and Powerpoint for that matter.

[@BatesHaunt]

Glad you liked it. I run the show with Quicktime Player right now actually, but I make it mostly in Adobe Premiere Pro.

[@melizmatea]

That's amazing. I even like the first year that you did it - it was really creepy with those flying ghosts - it reminded me of those photos that people claim are of ghosts that have weird unexplained streaks of light...!!! So even just that was scary...great job!

[@earlcoyle1977]

thx for your reploy dave. :) , i have a friend that knows alot about useing the softwear and is hes happy to help me out. but he never done 3d mapping and i showed him yr youtube video , so i am sure we will have lots of fun trying this ,all the best yr irish friend earl:)

[@BatesHaunt]

HuckTube I am not sure why I can't respond to your question, so I'll just have to tag you. You asked: Hello, I'm not sure if I'm missing it in the video, but once you trace your house (which I understand) how are you making the masking (in a video software or a physical object)? And how are you making the videos to project on the house? I just make the masks in Photoshop using either black and white, blue, or transparent layers. Then I use those in Premiere Pro to key or mask out things. The videos are all created using pupeteering or normal video of me and my family, then brought into Premiere Pro and heavily post processed. Watch my channel for a making of soon

[@RulesRedefined]

At 3:25 you talk about the various mattes. How are you using the mattes in context of the show? Are they like various masks that create the illusion that the animation is constrained to the matte region? Sorry i am new to this. so the question might sound silly

[@northrad]

Thanks...you are by far an original Haunter! Thanks for sharing. We now know it's not as easy as you make it look. Hope this Halloween is your best yet! ...Time to work on my Haunt

[@BatesHaunt]

No, that makes perfect sense. The mattes/masks are used to prevent bleed onto other sections of the structure. For instance, the house turns red while the yard stays blue. Make sense?

[@thereefaholic]

Tell us about that mount for the projector. How did you make it, how tall is it? It looks like you are projecting from across the street.

[@140379ben]

hey dave, i really want to have a go at this this year. what full screen draw program would you recommend? and what do you use to trim and put the videos where you want them and to the right size? also the ooze effect is awesome and would love to try something like that too :)

[@oldromancechick2030]

Thank you for this video!!! Is there a way to do all of the mapping with a laptop but not have the actual laptop hooked up to project the final haunts? Once you have mapped out your house, can you burn a DVD and instead hook up a DVD Player to the projector that can be running all night? Or do you have to constantly keep your computer hooked to the projector? I attempted to video map my house but the scaling was off, how would you recommend I fix this? Thank you so much!

[@lendavoice60]

Had so much fun watching your video..I shared and cant wait for this years ! Thank you so much

[@BatesHaunt]

The bates haunt website has a lot of info in the faq. Short version I use Photoshop to make the trace and I use Premiere Pro to do almost everything else. Glad you like the ooze. It is a fan favorite.

[@davebates4897]

Sure. Any modern projector will work.

[@kaneh4715]

that looks so cool

[@BatesHaunt]

Thanks! We have a lot of fun. I'm using a Panasonic AE4000U now. I like it although it is a bit on the large side. My favorite feature is smooth screen which reduces the screen door effect of the LCD panels. When your pixels are an inch or more across you need some smoothing

[@harisquadri773]

You are amazing.!!..I wanna know what projector did you use here? Did you use more than one? Thanks

[@BatesHaunt]

This uses only Photoshop and Premiere as mentioned.

[@RulesRedefined]

Thanks so much. One last question. When you are showing the various parts of your trace and saying "Here's the lights", "here's the pumpkins" etc, each time you are saying that , you are also focusing the projector light exactly on the described parts.. How are you doing that?

[@rahmatsyahpulungan]

man, you may save some life on earth by doing this tutorial. much appriciated!

[@RulesRedefined]

is it possible to trace an architectural structure without being physically infront of it? like using a picture and then doing the trace?

[@IlluminationsAtmapping]

really cool project - Halloween and projections are perfect combination :)

[@goldray5526]

thanks bro God bless you.

[@TheTeknoProject]

Simply incredible. Im starting to learn about projection mapping and I love hearing stories of how sets are built. Your house looks incredible. I wish I was in the neighborhood to see it. I am amazed at the quality and detail. *****

[@williamanakin1461]

I realize it is kinda randomly asking but does anyone know of a good site to watch newly released movies online?

[@graysonelliott5649]

@William Anakin I dunno I watch on Flixportal. You can find it by googling:) -grayson

[@williamanakin1461]

@Grayson Elliott thank you, I signed up and it seems to work :D I appreciate it!!

[@graysonelliott5649]

@William Anakin You are welcome :)

[@garyhale5645]

so the only reason for tracing the pumpkins is for alignment during setup?

[@rahulmv1]

really helpful . thanks for uploading this video

[@jaimeypamelacacereserazo9880]

hi. amazing job!!!! well done. I have a questions? What software do you use to do the mapping. I mean, to do the video mix with separating the parts of your house.

[@bluesharp59]

Great job and hope you had a good Halloween. I also gave you a thumbs up.

[@BoogiemanUSA]

I'm using photoshop how do you get the full screen to project on the house? I'm just seeing the mirror image of my laptop screen on the house? (with all the tools) If I take a picture I can trace out all the lines but doing it this way I cant fiqure out how to expand the layer over the whole house.. thanks kevin

[@surfingstrings]

It would be nice if you can make another tracing tutorial from an medium-small object inside your house and show step by step the process! Thx.

[@eugeniobuxo5167]

I would like to learn how to do this on my housw. Where do I start?

[@CoolIHandIMatt]

So how do you get the full screen drawing mode out of PS? I want to attempt this using Illustrator but I notice the size difference when I project the Photosho window the tools pallet etc take up valuable space. How did you overcome this?

[@kneeboarder]

For some reason i cant get it right. i outlined my house and exported each layer as a file. i have just a basic avi file on track 1 that plays colors i want that to be in each window. I take window 1 put that on video 2 and take window 2 and put that on video 3. if i separate the window sequence and have window 1 start immediately and start window 2 five seconds later the video plays in window 1 and stops playing until window 1 is over than window 2 than has video in it. I added a track matte and color key even did a image matte key. Im sure its something stupid. Any help would be great if you know of any videos on you tube to search up let me know i have been trying things all day with no luck. Think i watched half of you tube lol.

[@earlcoyle1977]

hi dave. i have not done any mapping yet but i am trying to get my head around some softwere on it . 2000 lumens thats great news:). i have pluged the projector in and pointed at my house and projected the london newyears firework on to the side of my house 25 feet wide 25 feet hight.. have to say it looked great .so i am going too have a good time trying to do some thing like watts in yr video. you make it look so easy :) so not case. thx for yr reploy.

[@tanjabrooks9910]

Thanks so much for posting - Ur haunt is so wonderful, it always gets me motivated to make this Halloween the best yet!

[@kneeboarder]

I used to be good at Photoshop and premiere but since i haven't used it in a while plus the new version is a bit trickier. Im trying to load a video in timeline than put lets say a window that has a black background the window is transparent. i also have another layer that is another window on other side of house same specs. each layer is saved with transparency and it puts the video in the window until i layer them on top of each other. Cant figure out how to fix i tried many different keying tools with no luck . Any help would be great thx

[@davebates4897]

If you have multiple layers that need independent masking you need to use the image matte key (or track matte) to apply the matte directly to the given track. Either that or you can have sub sequences that have black or blue where you want to key out, and then import them into a master sequence and add a color or luma key. Make sense?

[@RulesRedefined]

how would you accurately trace curved surfaces like cars etc?

[@jennstarr722]

Does it matter if its mac or windows? what do you use? This is so awesome, I'm gonna try it!

[@davebates4897]

Jennifer Nunez Not at all Jennifer, though I prefer Mac.

[@b.e.1753]

Good show, I have had success with PPT and crude animation for basic projection. I want to grow, what is good for a self starter.?

[@davebates4897]

try out my technique. For a step by step walk through check my faq at the bates haunt website.

[@BoogiemanUSA]

I guess I'm asking how big do you make the image or canvas in a new document to cover the whole house and what resolution do you use thanks kevin

[@garyhale5645]

do you black out the pumpkins when you draw the trace? do you just size the animations down to fit Into the area you want it to project on

[@BatesHaunt]

+Gary Hale I do figure out where the pumpkins go with a paint brush if that is what you mean. I keep that to help me put it where it needs to go. Yes I scale the animations.

[@hagarabenyishay8770]

Hey Bates Haunt! Great tutorial! I do have one question, regarding the tracing section- are you doing that trace over the photo of your house that you took? In example - are you taken a photo of your house, from the same spot / height of your projector, then opening this photo on a paint or drawing software - such as Adobe illustrator, or paint - and then tracing the photo? Or - are you tracing directly over your house screening - in real time? If so - how do you do that? Can you open a drawing software while the projection is on and trace live on the house? Thanks in advance! Hagara

[@BatesHaunt]

+Hagara ben yishay You answered you own question. In real time is the only way to do it.

[@hagara84]

+Bates Haunt Thank you for your answear :) All of this is super awesome! I have another question, hope you don't mind - you mentioned using photoshop to trace the house and build the masks. How did you get the live video feed into photoshop?

[@BatesHaunt]

+hagara84 After I have masks and stuff I use Adobe premiere to do the video.

[@earlcoyle1977]

i have a dw 318, lumens 2500 wud this be good enought to try this????

[@Yoyoprojon]

Is there any way to take a photo from the exact view of how your projector will appear on the building? I really don't want to have to trace on site to get everything perfect but when I capture a photo and resize it to fit the projector resolution it just looks distorted. Any suggestions?

[@BatesHaunt]

+Jonathan Saelens I don't think it is possible. This was what I initially attempted too, but there are just too many variables. I believe if you could insert ccd (camera image sensor) right where the lcd panel of the projector is inside the projector you could get this to work. Otherwise the differences in the lenses will make it well neigh impossible. Have fun tracing ;-)

[@kazzityangel]

can you use any projector for this or does it have to a special one. I have a projector from my Uni, it's the ones used in class. would that be ok?

[@BatesHaunt]

toni fagbure Yep. Any projector will work. Most LED projectors are not bright enough to do a whole house though. Bring it home and try projecting on your house. Brighter is better of course.

[@MrIsrael3000]

how many lumens at least do you need to achieve this great projection?

[@davebates4897]

I used a 1200 lumen projector originally and it was fine.

[@marcmendiola2292]

What app do you youse to draw your house

[@kneeboarder]

Got it to work finally it was the videos i was using thanks. Now on to next issue getting the output of video in premiere to be correct. It works in paint and photshop and is lined up perfect but when i output in premiere no good, I have it output set to 1280x800 just like photoshop and computer resolution. I even messed with aspect ratio but its always to small? any ideas.

[@davebates4897]

Glad some stuff is working. What are your sequence properties in Premiere? Maybe you exported it the right size, but it is getting scaled before that. There has got to be something going on.

[@kneeboarder]

***** Settings are 1280x800 and when i export i do the same. I can get it to line up if i use zoom all the way on projector not sure why. any suggestions. Also when you originally masked out house did you set keystones on projector at all or just turned in on and started drawing. Cause i want to take a picture and project that onto house but cant get it to line up at all not even close Im using free transform and other tools even warp but no luck.

[@davebates4897]

Peter Parrillo Sorry Peter. I don't know if I can help on this. Somehow you are missing something somewhere in the workflow because by definition the image will always match up if the same pixels you are projecting in the trace are the same pixels that are in your movie. Do you see what I am saying? You should be able to View the trace in full screen and draw some of the lines on your monitor in dry erase marker. If you view your final movie in full screen and the lines are in the same place then everything will work perfectly. There is no way it will not work (assuming you are using the same settings, projector position etc because pixels are pixels on a digital screen. Maybe you changed your projector's settings between the trace and the show or something. Now getting picture to line up will be very tricky because your lenses are different on your camera and your projector. You will have to do some lens correction stuff, probably some radial deforming or something to make it work. Sorry I can't really help without seeing it. If you want to email me a link to your final movie and your trace I can look at it and tell you what is off, but I probably won't be able to tell you how you are introducing the issue.

[@vivilavita5950]

you re awesooome

[@rubenseptian8110]

what is software to make projection mapping?

[@LeonardoScarciabudastudio]

How many lumens get the projector ?

[@frostvisto9610]

the singing voices in the background are really annoying

[@BoogiemanUSA]

awesome!!

[@cjimenez1203]

Hi Dave ! Do you have some pictures of the structure that you used for the projector ? Thanks in advance !

[@davebates4897]

There is somewhere I have posted that, but here is two pictures on flickr www.flickr.com/photos/dhbatesbunch/5339881175 www.flickr.com/photos/dhbatesbunch/4082519388

[@ignaciocorzo1597]

Thank u, U are the best.

[@dcartier100]

Dave, first great job !! What kind of projector are you using and how many lumens. Thanks so much

[@BatesHaunt]

+dcartier100 Thanks! It is a Panasonic PT AE4000U right now. Check my faq on my horrible web page at bateshaunt.com/faq.html it has a discussion of what I like in a projector.

[@nachoseret5480]

Great job!!!!! Thought it was harder to do that!! Which software do you use to run the show????

[@tungcrazymonkey]

Thanks for the tutorial! So useful !

[@StagersLife]

So onced you've traced your home, how do you do your animation? what do you use? Thanks!

[@davebates4897]

I use adobe premiere for most of the elements in my show. Please see the faq at bateshaunt.com for a detailed run down.

[@earlcoyle1977]

srry me again .how many lumens is yr projector?

[@secondaryactons]

when you take a snapshot of your house for tracing, does lens size factor in?

[@davebates4897]

There is no snapshot involved. It is a tracing which automatically takes lens size into account. That is the best part.

[@davebates4897]

You can use the path tool if you want to be perfect, but I usually just paint the curves with the brush and use that for masks. Sometimes I just use a bunch of lines because I am lazy ;-) This is not that precise of a science, because odds are your projector may move enough to make being picky much less important.

[@SmallBen1407]

what full screen drawing programm did you use????? is there something like that for windows 8????

[@davebates4897]

Photoshop. It works great in Windows 8 I hear.

[@SmallBen1407]

***** ok but photoshop is not full screen!!!! Maybe it is possible to switch to full screen mode? Anyway I found some vids on how to make full screen photoshop but i cant make it fullscreen!!!!! It has a big black stroke around image!!!!

[@davebates4897]

Also you need to zoom your image to 100% and make it the same size as your screen.

[@crystalbradshaw5172]

I've been wanting to try this out....what exactly is the machine you used called

[@BatesHaunt]

+Crystal Bradshaw Not sure what you are asking. You may want to check my faq on my ancient website bateshaunt.com

[@crystalbradshaw5172]

+Bates Haunt I'm wanting to know what kinda projector you use.

[@BatesHaunt]

+Crystal Bradshaw Panasonic PT-AE3000U

[@griffithhillcemetery4120]

Awesome ! What projection software do you use?

[@BatesHaunt]

Thanks I don't use projection software per-se. Just Adobe Premiere and Photoshop.

[@deejay5089]

So a 3,500 lumens would be fine??

[@oddsandwindsocks5905]

Looks awesome, please show where you put projector in relation to the house and do people walk in front and cut out images. Thankyou

[@adanayalas]

hi im from Guadalajara mexico ,I made a videoin 2011 to celebrate the day of the dead here in mexico to honor my mother in law and my brother. I spent a lot of time in this place called el refugio. in past times this was an asylum and has ghost activity,i just saw your video and it is great.i have one question how do you insert the video into the photoshop mask, I use photoshop cs5. congratulations your work is awesome. I tried to put the link of my video but I could not do it

[@BatesHaunt]

I'm just turning my mask layers on and off in Photoshop.

[@wykidone]

Great vid man! What What projection mapping software do you use?

[@davebates4897]

I'd don't use any specific mapping software, just Adobe Premiere and Photoshop.

[@wykidone]

Kool, thanks for the reply

[@kyldareteixeira4023]

Good Sir, thank you for your video. I'm hoping you can help me with this question. So I turned projector on, resolution 1920 x 1080. Instead of duplicating my desktop, I extended and ensured the resolution was 1920 x 1080. Mapped my house, imported the traces from photoshop to adobe premiere, added the FXs on top of the trace, exported as an AVI so I could have it playing back. Not sure what I did wrong here, it was not the right size, I tried mannually adjusting the width and height to 1920 x 1080, and tried to exporting the size it suggested first (based on the size of the photoshop file I'm assuming) however, I am still not able to get it to the right size, any advice you could give me?

[@davebates4897]

Sounds like you did everything right, but something must not be. So your AVI, your photoshop file, your premiere project, basically all the steps are 1920x1080? And you are playing the video back in full screen on you computer set to the screen size of 1920x1080? Something in that list is not right if you are having issues. There is an exhaustive list of steps to check at bateshaunt.com/faq.html . Inspect your whole workflow and see what you are missing. Good luck! You will find it.

[@kyldareteixeira4023]

My photoshop file is not 1920 x 1080 because when I go full screen mode I get scroll bars unless I zoom out, is that normal? So I should create new file, and have width x height on photoshop to 1920 x 1080? I am currently reading your website, apologize if that was answered and I,'m not at that part yet...

[@davebates4897]

Yes it needs to be the real size all the way through. You should not have scroll bars if your screen size is also set to 1920x1080. It has to all be 1920x1080 for it to work reliably. Good luck!

[@kyldareteixeira4023]

Dave Bates it worked!!! Will upload a video omce I get it all edited!

[@RyanJackson2008]

what app is this?

[@davebates4897]

Photoshop, but any full screen drawing program will work.

[@gamertheclixchannel]

Hey! Is there a possible way you can sende me the eye you use in the vidoe? or tell me where i can get it, i want to use it for my 3d mapping on halloween!

[@BatesHaunt]

+CLIX & ADMINATOR The eyeball is available for free on the haunt website bateshaunt.com

[@BatesHaunt]

+Bates Haunt Oh... it's on the resource DVD page fyi

[@gamertheclixchannel]

thnx!

[@RulesRedefined]

thanks so much for your help.. You've cleared a lot of my doubts :-)

[@BatesHaunt]

Check my website faq for much more info. They won't let me link to it in a comment, but just go to bateshaunt's website. My projector is 2000 lumens and distance is between 40' and 100' depending on the side of the house.

[@BatesHaunt]

2000 for my current projector, but I used to do it with only 1200 and it was fine.

[@brigettegilliam6164]

Which projector would you recommend?

[@davebates4897]

I have a bunch of info about my decision making process on my faq at the haunt's website. bateshaunt com. Basically I like LCD and I like Panasonic's smooth screen tech. Most traditional projectors will work.

[@brigettegilliam6164]

Thank you for such a fast response! You do amazing work!

[@brigettegilliam6164]

***** Would it be possible to project on to a dark grey stucco home? I am new to this I do not have a projector yet and do not want to spend a lot starting out since i may be horrible at it ;)

[@davebates4897]

brigette long Yes but you will get less light bounced back than on a lighter house. You may want to borrow a projector and try it out to see if what you are going to get will be satisfactory. I project on my roof, grass and asphalt road which are much darker than my house, and it works, but there is less light. It is surprisingly OK though. Watch those areas on my show and see if it looks like it will work.

[@joseeliassanchezsilverio8306]

someone knows what is this effect 1:20

[@JV-we6vr]

Hey a car just flew by on your driveway!

[@BatesHaunt]

I can't respond to you either OldRomance Chick. I can't even tag you because of the space in your name ;-). Something's wacky with youtube right now. I use my laptop the whole time since switching to HD, but you could use a blu-ray player or DVD player no problem. I have to use my laptop because I use it to stream the audio across the street and I never have time to burn a blu-ray. Otherwise it would work. If the scaling is off you missed something somewhere. Everything needs to be exactly the same resolution all the way through your workflow. Maybe you tried to burn a widescreen DVD with a trace that you had made with square pixels. Everything has to match. Happy Haunting!

[@rvtw]

is there also easy free software. the most is very extensieve

[@davebates4897]

There is free video editing software out there, and free presentation software, but I haven't ever used any of them. Sorry.

[@Luciferwarren]

whts the name of the program ?

[@davebates4897]

Luys Nuñez I just use Photoshop and Premiere. No specialty program required

[@BatesHaunt]

Don't understand your question. Can you be more specific?

[@rvtw]

how do you get the movies in it

[@davebates4897]

Ronald van't Wout There are lots of different ways. I use premiere, but beginners can start with PowerPoint or keynote to lay out something simple. Check my FAQ at bateshaunt.com for lots more info

[@deejkl]

Thanks for your reply, pls let me know, have any software for 3D projection maping.

[@davebates4897]

Now it is 2000 lumens, but I used to use a 1200 and it was fine.

[@oskarsimon2809]

Dave Bates, what did you use: lamp, led or laser projector? thanks.

[@bradyhogan2416]

What software do you use

[@davebates4897]

Just Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro pretty much. See my website for more info.

[@jompis007]

How powerful projetor do you need?? I want to buy one myself

[@davebates4897]

Anything over 1200 Lumens will work fine for most situations.

[@rvtw]

ok thnx , i gonna try abdobe premiere

[@davebates4897]

My favorite. Look into the keyframed motion tools and the garbage matte tools. They are really nice now.

[@jasonllapp]

Very Very cool :)

[@Omele.t.t.e]

What about edge detection software instead of drawing the whole house?

[@BatesHaunt]

I have tried this, but is is impossible. You can not be accurate with this. You need to be there with the exact projector in the exact spot. Sorry.

[@jrtoy704]

what inflatable pumpkins are those?!

[@BatesHaunt]

They are old Gemmy pumpkins. They were only rated for inside use, but they have worked fine. I want to make my own some year so they will each be unique. Maybe this year is the one!

[@adanayalas]

the video I told you about is in my channel it is called ...promo proyeccionpyoutube . I could not add the link. thank you

[@mariajoseecheverria2676]

Hello! Thanks so much for this! So many possible uses for videomapping. I've been trying to use it for contemporary dance, but still learning. I have a question, I hope you can help. So far reading the comments I understand which projector you use for this. Do you think the same Panasonic AE4000U could work for these kind of things?: www.emptykingdom.com/featured/anthony-mccall/ and NONOTAK / DAYDREAM V.02 at INSANITUS 2013. Thanks again!

[@seanshea8596]

Turn off the music. People are trying to learn here.

[@awignasdailydose5086]

Nice video dude.keep it up. subs added. I also uploaded a great video. hope you'll love to watch it. Congrats!