I just got a new digital virtual background system a few days ago. I am getting a thin black line around the subject. I've raised and lowered the light box and the projection lens from top to bottom via instructions from VB. I had the subject from inches to several feet from the background. Lighting on subject is good and background looks great. I would love to get this thing up and running this weekend so any help would be greatly appreciated.
The studio I used to work for did green screen. The BIGGEST issues you need to watch out for are try and get the green screen taught with no wrinkles, and watch your lighting. Any major differences in green tone and you'll be cleaning them up.
Look for green spill across your subject and if you have any say in the matter tell your subjects NOT to wear green. It used to drive the guys doing post production in the lab nuts!
I was looking at the Virtual background system to but after playing with green screen and what you can do including overlays it just blows away the Virtual background system.
With green or blue screen.
You can shoot or make a background and use it right away and the quality of the background looks real from real photos. All the VB Backgrounds even from photos look fake they get lost in the transfer to a slide and then when projected have even more loss in quality.
A green screen background can blend into the foreground image so well it can look real if you have your lighting right to match the background.
Using a program like Photo Key Pro you can even add shadows to your foreground image making a real looking shadow on the background you can also set a DOF to the background to make it look better for you image.
Plus you can edit the foreground image and the background each different so you have full control to make a great image.
With the VB system you can not do any of that and the VB system cost ten times more then a green screen system.
Also with green screen you can use you lighting in a lot more ways with out problems.
With green screen you can set up faster at a event shooting right into your laptop and change backgrounds faster then you can change a slide with the VB system.
With green screen you can be at a event and shoot something and use it as a background in seconds on the spot or shoot one person and use them as a background for others to be in a photo of.
I think the VB system was a fantastic system in its day but with the new chroma key software out and better less spill backgrounds you can buy the VB system is very out dated.
For them to make a come back they need to come up with a way to project any image you have in you PC or Mac you want to use as a background and at a better quality then the current system then it would start looking good.
I hope that you will read my email. I have tried to contact you since our emails and phone conversations back in December of 2009. Then the other day I got a call from a Virtual Backgrounds customer telling me about someone asking about Virtual Backgrounds on the "Fredmiranda.com" forum and the negative feedback that person was getting. The customer suggested that I look into it. I did so and found that it was you that was asking about Virtual Backgrounds and getting the negative feedback.
David I am not angry but I am disappointed. The responses that you got were from people who did not own a Virtual Backgrounds System or had not even used one. The one fellow from the UK that did respond and posted an image was criticized as having a outdated look as well as others stated that Virtual Backgrounds was outdated and some other negative comments that I will not get into. You must remember that Virtual Backgrounds is a tool that allows the photographer to work with any medium that allows light to pass through it. That means transparencies, plastics, glass, lace, feathers, to name just a few. The photographer can also make their own background images either by creating something in Photoshop or by capturing a particular scene. The backgrounds that are used in a Virtual Backgrounds are the choice of the photographer and not the machine itself. If a photographer is creative he or she will use a wide variety of background images but if the photographer is not creative then the same backgrounds will be used over and over and over. It is up to the photographer what backgrounds images are used and how current they are. Do you know that you can create your own background images for just $10.00 or less an image. So there is no reason for the photographer to not be current in the style of background images being used unless of course the photographer is not creative.
David some photographers just "Don't Get It" when it comes to Virtual Backgrounds. They don't understand that Virtual Backgrounds is not only a tool that will allow the photographer to be very creative and be able to offer clients as wide of a variety as they would like but it is a marketing tool as well. It is a marketing tool in that Virtual Backgrounds allows the photographer to be so creative that the attention of prospective clients will focus on the photographer and not on other photographers who cannot offer the wide variety. It is a tool that properly used can bring in clients and help a photographers business grow. I can say this because there are Virtual Backgrounds owners across the country that tell me so.
Some might say Virtual Backgrounds is fake. Well it is no more fake than any canvas, muslin, rubber or foam background from Denny or Back to Back. The only real backgrounds available to any photographer are those found outside. So those who say Virtual Backgrounds is fake are also working with fake backgrounds unless they only work outside.
David photographers Joseph & Louise Simone, who are considered to be among the finest portrait photographers in the world "Get It". They work with Virtual Backgrounds not only in the work that they do but they also lecture and teach about Virtual Backgrounds. They would not bother with Virtual Backgrounds if it was not a fantastic photographic tool. Other photographers around the world "Get It" and work with Virtual Backgrounds and many are winning awards with Virtual Backgrounds.
David there are two ways for you to get information about Virtual Backgrounds 1 - please ask those at Virtual Backgrounds or at least those who own and work with Virtual Backgrounds. That way you will get the correct information and answers to your questions. 2 - Attend one of the monthly Virtual Backgrounds training workshops. You live so close that within a couple of hours you could be in San Marcos and attend a workshop. During a workshop you will be treated like an owner even if you are not. You learn proper set and working with Virtual Backgrounds as well as hands on working under the direction of a photographer who works with Virtual Backgrounds on a daily basis in his own studio. Attending a workshop will give you the opportunity to make any decision that you do based on factual first hand information and not hearsay from people who have not worked with a Virtual Backgrounds System.
****Here is my offer to you. Attend a Virtual Backgrounds Workshop (normal cost is $295.00). I will not charge you. You will attend as my guest. Virtual Backgrounds has arrangements with a local hotel for rooms for just $45.00 a night. So you would have your gas driving down and the hotel expense. Lunch will be furnished all three days of the workshop. No one will pressure you to make a purchase. You can walk away and say that Virtual Backgrounds is not for you if you want but at least you will have made your decision based and correct first hand information. If you decide that you do want to purchase a Virtual Backgrounds System I will work with you to find the suitable system for your needs and your budget.
Please respond and let me know what I can do for you.
Thank you,
Jim Wilson
PPA Life Member, PPA Certified, Cr. Photog.
p.2 #10 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Sorry but I am not set up to upload images. Please go to the website
www.virtualbackgrounds.net and after the intro (or skip the intro) then click on
"Blog" on the left side of the page. When the blog opens scroll down and then click on "newer posts". You will see all kinds of images from photographers from all over the world.
p.2 #15 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
That is the big problem with VB. There are ways to minimize the shadow line, and the people at VB claim the new systems can be calibrated more accurately. But I bought a well used system and tried all of their tricks tono avail. Ended up wasting a ton of time.
p.2 #16 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Not my cup of tea, BUT there are photographers that have put their Virtual BG system to good use and are making good money with them. My 17 year old daughter saw some of the images on their site and said "cool!". Personally, I like natural backgrounds or seamless, but there are a lot of seniors out there who think the funky backgrounds are "cool!". Can you do the same thing with green screen? Probably so, but I think it's rude and arrogant to mock those who have purchased one. JMO.
Tell
p.2 #17 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Jim: It's just that I found it really snarky that, as a vendor, you come in here with your very first post on FM and post that email to the OP, which was a glorified advertisement, with "special offers." If you intended to share the offers with others you should have come right out and said it, but if you didn't, then you should have trimmed that part of the post.
And my post was, in part, because I think Cheeba was being a wee bit sarcastic when he posted his response.
Tell: If that was for me, I don't think I mocked anyone who purchased Jim's protect.
p.2 #18 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Ok it is time to end all of this. This is not an advertisement but an explanation. The sole purpose of my posting was an attempt to get the author of the original post to respond either to me directly or by means of the Forum. You will notice that the author of the original post has not responded to the Forum and I can tell you not even to me personally.
Yes I work for Virtual Backgrounds (so I am a vendor) but I am also a Professional Photographer for just short of 50 years that has worked with Virtual Backgrounds and taught others how to work with Virtual Backgrounds. I have seen a lot of products come and go. Some of them worked and some did not. Also some products worked for some photographers while the same product did not work for others. I am currently talking with a young photographer who purchased a Virtual Backgrounds System from another photographer who said the system did not work. This young photographer is working with the very same Virtual Backgrounds System (that did not work) and is creating great images (selling the images) and speaking from the platform about Virtual Backgrounds. My point here is that a Virtual Backgrounds System is a tool and will work well if the photographer will work with it correctly. If the photographer does not work with the Virtual Backgrounds correctly it shows in the final image. Just as if you do not work in Photoshop correctly the end result is not nice.
Back to why my post. It is so very frustrating to me to have people ask questions to people who do not own the equipment or have not used the equipment. You can see by all the initial posts that those posting really had no idea about Virtual Backgrounds, how it could be used etc. So the author of the original post really gained nothing but false information. Is there anyone out there that really wants to make decisions about their business based on false information? I don’t think so.
All the author of the original post had to do was to contact me or anyone of the consultants at Virtual Backgrounds and ask to talk with photographers that are actually working with Virtual Backgrounds. There is information on the website under the “Feature Photographer” section or names would have been given to him to contact. Virtual Backgrounds has nothing to hide and welcomes potential purchasers to talk with owners.
Also the author of the original post could attend any one of the monthly Virtual Backgrounds Training Workshops where he would be exposed to lectures, demonstrations and actual hands on with Virtual Backgrounds Systems. By the way he lives just 4 hours from Virtual Backgrounds. The training workshop is a very intense and informative three days. The workshop classes are purposely kept small in numbers so that there is enough time to answer questions, demonstrate solutions and get plenty of good hands on. What better way to make a solid business decision than with first hand information and hands on.
The author of the original post did none of the above but was depending on information from those who knew nothing about the product. Virtual Backgrounds has the answers but you have to ask the question first so that we know what information to give.
In the photography world today there are a lot of changes going on and one is that everyone who purchases a digital camera thinks they can do professional work. They don’t know lighting, fundamentals of posing or much of anything about photography but they are successfully taking business away from the professional. Family members, amateurs, high school seniors taking images of other high school seniors for their Senior Pictures, parents and family members taking images of their school age children so that they do not have to purchase “school pictures”. These people are not going to go away anytime soon so what should a professional photographer do?
The professional photographer can close up or he or she can go to battle and market harder, be more creative and provide more variety to the customer. If you as the photographer like to work outside and battle the elements that is fine but remember that is where your competition is also working and if you like to work with a canvas or seamless – how different are you really being? Can you use green screen? Sure you can but how well do you work with green screen and how much variety and time are you spending. Can your lab do the green screen for you? Sure they can but what control do you have, at what price and what is the selling process to your clients really like? Do you need green screen? No you don’t you can work in Photoshop and drop in backgrounds if you have the time. Is Virtual Backgrounds the only answer? No it is not. A true professional photographer should be able to offer his or her clients the maximum variety for the maximum sale. A professional photographer should be able to offer clients images from the outdoors, indoors, canvas, muslin, seamless paper or any other way possible to increase the sale. A Virtual Backgrounds System is just a system that allows the professional photographer to be as creative as possible 24 hours a day seven days a week. Unfortunately a Virtual Backgrounds System will only produce the kind of images and the quality of images that the operator is capable of. It is just a tool in the hands of a photographer that depends on the ability of the photographer.
I know that “Common Sense” is dead but that does not mean that when one asks for information that the person providing the information should be ignored. A simple “Thanks not ready yet” or “Sorry I am not interested” or “How do I find out more” would be the common sense reply. But when there is no response some sort of action has to be taken and my post was my action. One or two sarcastic words in a post mean nothing and that is why my post.
p.2 #19 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Yes, these things are for real. Definitely cheesy, and I would never be interested in using one. But to the critics: for many applications, this stuff sells, and some people make a killing off of these things, literally paying for it plus a hefty profit with a single weekend event.
Some photographers are interested in the creative process and in crafting real and enduring portraits; others are interested in making as much money as possible for the least amount of work. On FM, there are many more of the former than the latter.
There are better places to get information about the use of these systems. Speaking of which, Mr Ledbetter, what are YOU doing in these here parts?
EDIT: Haha, I posted before I knew there was a second page to the thread, and how old it was.
p.2 #20 · Anyone using Virtual Backgrounds System?
Humm, Seems to me that the VB system is what we used to call a "front projection" system. It was used, quite effectively, for editorial and commercial work back in the 1960's thru the 1980's.
IMHO, this does allow some creative work if the photographer has the skill to use the equipment properly - in particular, if he has a good selection of slides to work from, and, more importantly, create slides that can be creatively used for later work. (I assume that VB is "slide" based, reading a small amount of their web page).
