Camera Questions for ACES Team

[tlittle]

Greetings! I wondered if anyone handling the “camera” portion of the upcoming TS2 could elaborate on features of the camera? Camera’s can really help immersion level and make things interesting.

For example, will it be possible to set camera’s lat/lon position, altitude, heading, zoom level and active radius (if train is within “x” miles of camera then this camera is active) all set via a text file similar to FSX?

Also how about something FSX doesn’t feature, a “random” camera much like option 4 in the first MSTS where you never know where the camera angle will be but it is almost always interesting. It may not be possible, but if so how about the occasional camera’s looking out from a window in an autogen or hand made scenery house/building?

Lastly, perhaps a camera that follows the train and if there is a spot that you want to “stop” the camera press a button and the camera stops right there, while the train continues past the camera?

Thank you to the ACES team for making the TS2 dream come true! And thank you for answering any of these questions you can.

[MatthewS]

I hope in TS2 (and FS11) that SimConnect has a way to place a "free roaming" camera. A camera that can be placed at a specific location (long, lat, altitude) and a specific direction (heading, pitch, bank) and specific zoom level.

This would be very useful in FS11 by allowing a utility to place the camera at the runway threshold to watch incoming aircraft land.

And it would be very using in TS2 too!

We really need it! A new type of camera, that can be positioned dynamically by SimConnect.

[Kristian]

I lately installed KRS and dumped MSTS completely, good riddance.
In case you're not familiar with it. The camera work in KRS is a major improvement over MSTS's, albeit not (yet) ideal.
It has two interesting improvements I've noticed so far, in one of the configuration files you are able to set the distance from the train before it passes you, so there is more time before and after the train has passed you. This is similar to trackside view in msts, but more configurable. Switching every 10sec to a new position is a little too dynamical for my brain.
Secondly, the free roaming camera '8' can be set *at any point* no matter where your viewpoint is (except in tunnels), so you can switch easily from passenger, coupler, cab, trackview to free roaming view.
E.g. when you are in a speeding train and stick your head out (on both sides possible!) when you pass the station, press '8', then you are standing on the platform as it were watching the train pass by. Very nice, and more importantly, very flexible. And no sound problems as in msts! The free roaming camera in msts is nonsensical.
One small drawback I find, is that you still need to press the right mouse button to rotate the camera. This should be avoided in my view, rotate the camera by mouse movement alone without having to click any mouse button (or by use of the arrow keys), this would make camera movement more natural.

Would be nice if TS2 has something similar, or even better, embrace and extent;).

[tlittle]

Oh and one last question, how about a camera that is looking straight back from the last car in the train (almost as if you are standing right above the coupler) looking back in first person view? Might be interesting too.. ;)