ZEISS has announced the release of CinCraft Scenario 2.1 &  ZEISS Export 2.0, featuring new updates that enhance the compatibility of their camera tracking system. 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.

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.

To learn more, visit: https://docs-cincraft.zeiss.com/scenario/release-notes