Zeiss has just unveiled significant updates to its CinCraft suite, rolling out CinCraft Scenario 2.1 and CinCraft Export 2.0. For users immersed in the demands of virtual production and VFX-heavy workflows, these enhancements will appeal to professionals in the field of control in camera tracking, lens calibration, and post-production alignment. Let’s break down what each update brings, particularly focusing on Scenario 2.1’s new manual spherical lens calibration.
What is CinCraft?
CinCraft is a suite from Zeiss focused on providing precise lens and camera data for efficient workflows in virtual production, VFX, and post-production. The ecosystem includes CinCraft Scenario, a camera tracking system that captures accurate camera movements across various production environments, and CinCraft Mapper, which supplies essential lens characteristics like distortion and shading data to streamline VFX compositing. CinCraft Export further supports post-production with tools to undistort footage and reapply lens-specific distortion, allowing digital elements to integrate naturally with captured footage. Together, these tools enable productions to maintain consistent, lens-accurate data from shooting through to final compositing.
CinCraft Scenario 2.1: Greater Lens Compatibility and On-Set Flexibility
The highlight of Scenario 2.1 is the introduction of manual spherical lens calibration, which expands CinCraft’s compatibility with an even broader range of lenses. Users can now manually input lens data, perform calibration fine-tuning, and create fully customized profiles for their unique glass, all within CinCraft’s equipment manager. This is a welcome addition for productions using specialty lenses or legacy glass not traditionally supported by automated calibration systems, opening up compatibility for spherical lenses across both virtual and broadcast applications.
Additionally, the update has streamlined the process of adjusting CamBar offsets by introducing a manual configuration option. On-set adjustments to the CamBar-to-camera offset can now be made directly from the dashboard without needing assistant intervention, meaning fewer interruptions in dynamic shoot environments. Zeiss has also introduced automatic clip name detection for ARRI and Sony cameras, which auto-populates clip metadata within the Wrangler interface. This automation makes matching takes in post-production more accurate and time-efficient. For unsupported cameras, manual input is still an option, preserving versatility without compromising data consistency.
Beyond these new features, Scenario 2.1 also refines existing calibration workflows. The finetuning and manual calibration processes have been merged, allowing for deeper customization of lens profiles and improved accuracy during calibration. This update is especially impactful for productions requiring frequent lens swaps or recalibrations mid-shoot, as users will notice more precise CamBar offset calculations and better calibration guidance within the system.
CinCraft Export 2.0: Streamlining Post-Production with ST Maps and Point Clouds
While CinCraft Scenario 2.1 focuses on improving on-set flexibility – something we lens geeks and DPs benefit from – CinCraft Export 2.0 targets the post-production side, where lens data meets digital compositing. This update, though perhaps less relevant to readers of The Cine Lens, is still worth covering, as it aligns real-world lens characteristics with VFX.
With Undistortion ST Maps, Export 2.0 enables VFX teams to undistort footage without the usual step of shooting lens grids, a process that can be labor-intensive. By using these undistortion maps with Zeiss’s built-in distortion data, artists can strip distortion from footage, then reapply it in post, maintaining visual consistency from capture through final compositing.
Additionally, Point Cloud Export adds a new way to deliver spatial camera data to post. This feature captures a 3D point cloud of the camera’s position, which is compatible with both Unreal Engine and Nuke. For VFX teams, having exact spatial data streamlines camera alignment and eliminates much of the guesswork in integrating CG elements with filmed material. While this may seem secondary for those of us focused on the glass itself, these additions give VFX artists valuable tools to ensure seamless results when compositing shots involving complex lensing.
Quality-of-Life Improvements and Fixes
In addition to the major features, Zeiss has incorporated a series of quality-of-life improvements and bug fixes in Scenario 2.1, aiming to make workflows smoother and address common user pain points. Notable among these are enhancements to encoder mapping, offset calculation accuracy, and the introduction of a low-density point cloud option. A default “low” smoothing mode has also been applied to tracking configurations, intended to help stabilize tracking data for a smoother performance right out of the box. Furthermore, subtle UI improvements, including a reminder for rehoming external encoders when recalibrating lenses, reflect a thoughtful attention to detail that keeps the CinCraft suite user-centric.
In Summary
The CinCraft Scenario 2.1 and Export 2.0 updates signal Zeiss’s commitment to a workflow that bridges the gap between practical production and VFX integration. The versatility added by manual spherical lens calibration and ST Maps addresses a significant industry need, giving production teams greater control from capture to post. It’s worth noting that Zeiss very specifically left anamorphic lenses out of this update and only mentions the ability to manually input lens data for spherical lenses. I applaud Zeiss for making progress, but I do hope to see anamorphic profiling in a future update. As virtual production and high-fidelity VFX compositing continue to drive demand for precise camera and lens data, these updates will be welcomed by cinematographers and VFX artists alike.
Zeiss has announced that CinCraft Scenario 2.1 is available to all users as of today, with supporting demo sessions and training materials. For users invested in optimized, flexible workflows, this release is worth a closer look.