Using LED Volumes on Smaller Productions

Using LED Volumes on Smaller Productions In the last few years, LED volumes have exploded in popularity for productions both big and small, drastically reducing the need for post-production and allowing for more in-camera VFX shots. Here at Mount Pleasant Studio, we’re so excited to be able to offer LED volume hire to our clients, giving them an outstandingly versatile modern production tool. If you’ve never worked with an LED volume before, then you’ve come to the right place. This article will be a touchstone, covering the basics of working with LED volumes and why they’re an outstanding and affordable replacement for greenscreens.

What Are LED Volumes

First of all, let’s talk about what an LED volume is. Developed by Industrial Light and Magic when working on major productions like 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and 2019’s The Lion King, LED volumes effectively allow for real-time set extension by utilising a large screen of LED lights. The major benefit of this as a replacement for chroma keying is that it allows everything to be captured in camera. Actors, directors, and cinematographers have real backdrops to work against. VFX shots are captured on the day rather than constructed over the course of weeks.

Digital Set Extensions

Of course, it’s not quite as simple as placing a large screen in the background of the shot. An LED volume needs to be reactive to the camera with digital set extensions rendered in real time so that a parallax effect can create the illusion of depth. This is done by utilising real-time rendering software such as Epic Games’ Unreal Engine to build out the scene inside the computer so that a virtual camera can be synced to the real-world camera.

The Benefits of LED Volume Hire For Smaller Productions

The real cost of LED volumes is in initially purchasing and setting up the technology. Even if you have the space, you need the right lighting setups along with a camera placed in just the right position to match the virtual one. Naturally, it’s just not cost-effective for most smaller studios or production companies to have their own LED volumes but LED volume hire can actually save money. As we said before, capturing an entire VFX shot in camera on the day drastically reduces the need for expensive post-production. This not only gives directors more control over the shot, but it also means that you swap that post-production time for more pre-production, allowing your digital set dressers to build ever more elaborate and detailed backdrops. To find out more about hiring an LED volume from Mount Pleasant Studios, call 020 7837 1957 or email us at simon@mountpleasantstudio.com.