I've just started to get into the various types of cameras. When I pick Main, or Aux, they look the same. I have no photography knowledge other than "point and click". Can someone tell me in easy to understand plain terms what the difference between these two cameras are? Also, when would I need to use one or the other?

Message edited on: 02/05/2006 23:27

Suppose you have set up your Main camera and really like your settings. Yet, you also want to have a look from another point of view. Then you can use the Auxiliary camera for example to move around without losing the settings you know you like.

Both cameras rotate around the centre of the studio.
If you want to rotate around your selected figure, you should be using the Posing camera.

Don't forget that you can (and should) set Scale and Focal length also. Scale works like a zoom lens (you zoom in or out) whilst Focal length tells with what lens you are looking. For example: if you zoom in with the standard 35mm lens, you get ugly deformed faces. 80-90mm is ideal for portraits. You can test this out for yourself with a few renders of the same face at the same size, but, for example, one with a 35mm camera and zoomed in, and one with a, say, 90mm camera for farther away.

Message edited on: 02/06/2006 01:47

Main and Aux are simple TWO different camera locations. You can change the locations around. The fact that you see no difference between the two camera locations is prob due to the fact both locations happen to be at the same location. The default settings of my installed POSER 5 program has two different locations so... you should see SOME difference if you change camera location.

Since cameras is the subject what about the Dolly camera? What this one is for?

In the manual it says the dolly camera stays true to it`s own centre making it good for animations and it says that the dolly camera is the only free floating camera in poser.

The basic difference between the Main, Aux, Posing, Face, Hand CAmeras et al, and the Dolly Camera, is that the dolly camera rotates around its own axis. All the other cameras rotate around an external point - in the case of Maain and Aux, I think it's the zero point of the scene (though could be wrong), while the Face and Hand Cameras - well, it's kind of obvious what they're parented to/rotate from. This means that the dolly camera is the ideal one to use in animations where you want to get a feeling of the camera being 'held' by an operator. When the dolly cam rotates, it doesn't move in space as well. Hope this helps. jonthecelt

So the dolly cam must be controled by moving and not rotating!
That makes sense!
Thanks for the info!

:^)

the Dolly is most like a proper camera. think of it like a camera on a tripod. while the main, aux, face etc are locked to a specfic idea. (Main on the scene center, face on the face etc), the Dolly is the one that you can pick up, move and point anywhere you want.. just like in real life. personally it's my favorite one because of it's flexibilty and it's fine control ... :)

I have not noticed... ... the dolly camera seems like any other camera to me. It can be rotated and moved just like any other cam.

The dolly camera can be rotated and moved like other cameras... the difference is in the centre of rotation. The dolly cam is the only one with a centre of rotation on it's own axis, so will move 'properly', as if you were hold the camera yourself. Other cameras have a drift in their rotation. jonthecelt

For the dolly camera, think of yourself in a large studio holding a camera to your eye. When you move the camera, you're walking around in the studio. When you rotate the camera, you're twisting your torso to aim the camera.

Main difference between Main and Aux cameras: there's no freakin keyboard shortcut for the Aux camera. ALT+DCA is as close as we get to a shortcut.