THE FUTURE OF LIGHTING FOR IN-CAMERA VISUAL EFFECTS

One of the benefits of shooting a scene within a virtual production LED volume is realistic reflections and lighting from the LED panels themselves. The RGB panels we use today are great for direct view, but not so good at lighting a scene. Their spectral output is very different from normal lighting sources, so skin tones in particular can look unnatural and some colours are shifted.

Adding an additional white LED emitter to every pixel offers a potential solution. A white LED has a broader spectrum with light output at all wavelengths, so skin tones look natural and colour shifts are avoided. But if every pixel is RGBW, how is this additional emitter controlled when the source video only contains RGB data? And how is colour accuracy maintained with the extra complexity of additional emitters?

The answer is TrueLight, a game-changing new technology from Brompton Technology. It builds upon the company’s unique Dynamic Calibration technology to enable RGBW panels to be fully per-pixel colour-calibrated and ensure that colour accuracy is maintained at all times. It gives the user full control of how the RGB to RGBW conversion is achieved through an intuitive user interface, so they can easily get the right result for a particular application.

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The outcome is a significant leap in colour- rendering accuracy, especially noticeable on skin tones and in blending foreground elements with virtual environments.

The complex algorithms required to perform spectrally-aware, full-colour, per-pixel dynamic calibration for an RGBW panel rely upon the immense processing power of the new Tessera G1 receiver card. The G1 is by far the most powerful receiver card ever to go into an LED panel, and its potential to disrupt the world of LED video is already being recognised with the G1 receiving a Product of the Year award at the recent NAB show.

Utilising the full range of Tessera software features, TrueLight takes advantage of PureTone for consistent linearity of both RGB and ‘W’ LED output, ThermaCal for temperature correction of all LED colours, ShutterSync to eliminate on-camera artifacts for RGBW lighting and direct-view applications, and Extended Bit Depth to significantly enhance the dynamic range of RGBW output, amongst others.

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Chris Deighton, Brompton’s CTO, comments: “There has been increasing interest in broader spectral output from LED panels, and we were determined to meet this demand without compromising the existing levels of image quality and flexibility expected by Brompton users. The immense processing power available in the G1 receiver card means TrueLight can perform spectrally-aware full- colour per-pixel calibration of all four RGBW LED colours, with fully dynamic controls to adapt the spectral behaviour in real-time. We’re incredibly excited to see how the industry adopts this technology to achieve ever more realistic in-camera visual effects.”

NAB Show attendees were among the first to witness the revolutionary TrueLight in action, with the demos being made in collaboration with ROE Visual, who were showcasing their brand-new Carbon 5 RGBW panel powered by TrueLight. Carbon 5 RGBW is the first panel of its kind calibrated by Brompton’s Hydra advanced measurement system to offer a fourth emitter providing a broad spectrum white.

Frank Montero, Managing Director at ROE Visual US, comments: “ROE is very proud to be investing in new technologies with Brompton. Brompton and ROE have long been successful partners in live events and virtual production. Our rapid collaboration on Carbon 5 RGBW is just a small measure of what we can accomplish together.

According to Cesar Caceres, Brompton’s Product Lead, thanks to TrueLight technology, users can dynamically adapt spectral behaviour using controls in the processor UI, including optionally disabling the ‘W’ LEDs for conventional fully-calibrated RGB-only operation.

“TrueLight technology unlocks a whole new realm of possibilities for applications that demand uncompromising image quality and colour accuracy,” Caceres concludes.

“Whether it’s virtual production, XR, simulation, theatre, fixed corporate installations, fashion, or retail, TrueLight represents an industry- changing solution for scenarios where the screen is used as a lighting source. TrueLight is the perfect choice for high-end applications that require nothing but the best.”