It doesn’t matter whether you are a VFX artist or a simple person who just wants to know the difference between rotoscoping and motion capture. There are many misunderstandings between these two. But I will assure you that you will understand very easily. If you read till the end. So, let’s start with the definition of these two.
Table of Contents
What is Rotoscope Animation
It is a technique that the animator uses to trace every action frame by frame of the real version movements and the motion of the person. Then the animator creates the scenes of animation according to the traced scenes. These scenes are traced while placing a big glass and then the movement of the object. To get the camera angle right perfectly. But these types of animated videos used to be created in the 80s. And it takes a lot of time and handwork to create rotoscoping.
This type of animation was used back in the cartoons and animated videos at that time. With time, many production houses start using this because of its ability to replace the backgrounds, objects, and other things in the scene. It’s this ability that makes it the top priority for the production houses that are spending in the animation industry.
To understand rotoscoping better. You can imagine the Star Wars sword which is first traced by the scenes and then the colors are added. And all this became successful because of rotoscoping.
Now, I hope you understand the concept of rotoscoping very well. So, let’s move on to the concept of Motion Capture.
What is Motion Capture?
It is a type of animation that is connected a little bit with rotoscoping. Because it uses the same technique as the rotoscope animation. However, the animator doesn’t create the animation or trace the scene by hand. With the evolution in computers and technology, better ways of rotoscoping have been introduced and motion capture animation is one of those.
The Animator uses computer software to inform the software of the movement and then according to the prediction of the future movement. It creates animation. And that is the difference between rotoscoping and motion capture.
Pros & Cons of the Motion Capture:
If we talk about the difference between the usage of these two animations. So, there are many aspects to the usage of these two. So, let’s find out the pros and cons of both. To understand both things better.
Pros
Saves a lot of Time
Motion graphics are a lot more time-saving than rotoscoping. Because you don’t need to do the tracing manually. And the manual tracing will consume a humongous time for the animator. So, fewer scenes will be gathered and edited. But on the other side, if we talk about motion capture then it saves a lot of time. Because the whole tracing thing will be done by the computer. And it will save hours to produce more scenes.
Less Complex
The complexity of using motion capture compared to rotoscoping is much less. And you don’t have to do the whole process of managing the glass and shooting every scene. And this makes it less confusing and hectic. Also, it is more convenient to use.
Looks More Natural
Production houses and animated movie producers spend millions of dollars just to make the movie look more natural and more aesthetic. And with the motion capture it could be achieved easily. Because the computer tracks the whole movement and predicts future movements. So, there are many fewer chances of bad-looking animation.
Cons
Low-Quality Glitches
The motion tracking will work perfectly if the quality of the video and the camera angles are fine. And the quality of the video is good. But if the quality goes down or the colors look a bit low, Or the movement is too far to capture. Then you might have to see the glitches and errors in tracking the motion. And that is the animators use it very clearly and fully.
Pros of Rotoscoping
Accuracy
Rotoscoping gives more options to animate the video in the most accurate form. Because you have fully control to use it according to your needs. Yes! you can do it in motion capture but with rotoscoping accuracy is better.
Creativity
In this type of animation, the animator can give more leverage to add as much creativity to the scene as they can. Because it is in the hands of the animator to change the scene or enhance the previous one.
Other Benefits
It is more flexible, and you can use it too to adjust the size, shape, and other objects of the animation. And these are the benefits of using rotoscoping animation.
Cons
The cons of this animation are that it will take time and take more struggle to complete it. And the process is more complex. And these are the aspects where motion capture has an edge over it.
Conclusion
The main difference between rotoscoping and motion capture is that motion capture is computerized, and the computer predicts the movements of the objects. And then you can use the tracing for any kind of VFX. But on the other hand, rotoscoping is when the animator has to trace every single frame of the scene manually.
The benefits of using this animation are that it will give you the leverage to add more creativity and be more flexible. But by using the motion capture, you can save a lot of time and struggle. And on those aspects, the motion capture has a wide edge. So, to choose any one you have to know what you need with the animation videos. And what is your goal with the video?
