Picture Mode Advisor helps you take better video game screenshots

Three children stare at the crumbling remains of the battlefield, where most of the trees and man-made structures have been flattened, save for the sturdy frame of a lone catapult. It’s a Pensive shot Of bloodshed in A Plague Tale: Innocence By virtual photographer Ludovic “Shinobi” Helme – But it’s not just a screenshot. It’s a precisely framed image, enhanced by realistic photographic techniques: composition, lighting, depth of field, and more. “(Virtual photography) is a way to discover the game differently, because you can check out every detail,” Helme says. “It really enhances the artistry of the game for your eyes, and then creates something out of it for someone else.”

It’s also a photo that can be taken more easily, given the growing popularity – and complexity – of photo modes in games. Helme is one of the very few, if not the first, consultants for these tools, a journey that began when he first approached developer Cold Symmetry about their soul-like spirit. Deadly shell. The studio was impressed with the in-game photos, and when Helme asked about collaborating on a potential photo mode feature, the team quickly agreed. “I basically created this business, at least under the name ‘Image Placement Consultant,’” he says. “Of course, other people may have had a role in advising on other image modes (…) but as an external consultant, specifically on image modes, I am definitely the first one.” His successful collaboration with Cold Symmetry has led to work on everything from a Lovecraftian horror game Beach To popular titles such as Death ring and Cyberpunk 2077.

His last mission was in Light and Darkness: Expedition 33. Helme believes its photo mode is “near perfect,” with a surprising number of settings, including camera roll, aperture, and frames to accommodate photographic sizes and several types of grids, as well as subtle adjustments to lighting, color tones, filters, and other visual effects. Then there’s the sheer freedom of movement that comes from the option to separate the camera from the player’s perspective. After I spoke to some virtual photographers, they all pointed out that many of the shooting modes have a very limited range; This is like not being able to move and extend your arms in real life, Helme says. After in Mission 33photography enthusiasts can now roam further than just an arm’s length away, and even move several steps from the initial scene.

Mission 33Its photo mode is just one example of how these tools are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Ute ghost It has a shot tracking option that allows virtual photographers to slowly move the camera from one point to another, with up to 16 tracking points. Senua Saga: Hellblade IIThe portrait mode has a three-point illumination system, with several focus settings such as focus assist and split focal plane. Image modes are becoming more popular partly due to the increasing number of layouts in Unreal Engine, e.g Advanced photo modewhich Helme described as an essential and easy-to-use feature. “I think publishers want[image modes]more than developers,” he says. “It’s basically free online marketing.”

As a consultant, Helme says his role includes sharing his experiences. “I’m here to provide guidance (to studios), educational explanations about why certain features are essential, or conversely, which ones aren’t really that important,” he says. For him, virtual photography is a completely different experience than just playing through the game, and this distinction is crucial for studios to understand. Thus, the consultation process usually entails discussing and prioritizing specific image placement features with the developer, and once implemented, creating a test and providing feedback.

However, technical issues often hindered developers from adding some of his suggestions. “Some studios get a little anxious, like textures aren’t loading properly, or people might check the surroundings and see enemies hiding,” Helme explains. Crafting cross-platform photo modes is also another big challenge, with Helme adding that many of the features he was trying to get into the photo modes couldn’t be included, as they are particularly complex to implement on consoles. One example of this is the lack of orientation options, whether shooting in landscape or portrait mode. Without it, virtual photographers often have to tilt their heads to take a selfie — something Helme says “really hurts everyone in the hobby.” Many image modes offer the alternative of cropping images with black bars, which reduces the image resolution. “If I want to take a vertical photo without sacrificing accuracy by cropping, I’m forced to rotate the camera 90 degrees, compose the shot with my head tilted, and then manually rotate the file later on my computer,” Cristiano Bonora of Photography of vertical games He explains.

Another nice feature to have? Slow motion option that will allow virtual photographers to fast forward or rewind several seconds to capture the perfect moment. “in Deadly shell“We had a slow motion feature with three different speeds, which is also very convenient and very useful in many circumstances,” Helme says. “Now, what I would like to have is something that does the opposite as well, like being able to rewind a few seconds if you miss (the moment).” Virtual photographer Kabak, compiled by A Games database With picture modes, such an option is also believed to be largely non-existent. “Timing can be everything when taking a shot,” he says.

One of the main challenges in creating a feature-rich photo mode is also ensuring that it is accessible to non-experts. One game that Helme thinks strikes this balance well is Sony’s thrilling zombie movie Days ago. “It’s really one of my all-time favorites,” he says. “You can have very basic features, or you can have an advanced mode and (…) have a lot more control. So it’s perfect for people who just want to take a quick shot, or people who want to work on their shot for an hour.”

Helme is optimistic about the future of photo modes, and is keen to work with more studios, regardless of size – even if some developers have a lot of room for improvement when it comes to these tools. “I hope that big companies like Capcom or Konami will contact me to improve my performance VampirePicture modes or terrible and terrible Dragon’s Doctrine 2 Photo mode,” he laughs.

But as photo modes become more widespread, there’s a possibility that even high-tech photo modes will start to resemble each other across games, a development that Helme warns against cautiously. After all, even real-life cameras have different functions across brands and models. “I really hope that the big games continue to take risks and produce photo modes with new features.”