Tuesday, January 11th, 2011 Posted by Jim Thacker

Artbeats adds S3D footage to royalty-free library

Need proof of the ubiquity of stereoscopic 3D as a broadcast format? Look no further than stock footage provider Artbeats, which has just added a collection of stereoscopic footage to its online library. Full details below.

PRESS RELEASE (Excerpts)
Answering the growing demand for 3D elements for television and film, Artbeats, a leader in the production of high quality stock footage, announces the immediate availability of their rapidly growing Stereoscopic 3D (S3D) stock footage library. The initial offerings include a variety of nature shots, plus the first S3D aerial stock footage available to the royalty-free market. New 3D content will be added monthly, including pyrotechnic, city scene, establishment, winter scene and additional aerial collections.

In keeping with the company’s reputation for innovation, Artbeats became the first production company to utilize Pictorvision’s gyrostabilized eclipse 3D aerial rig, capturing aerials of downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, Santa Monica, Long Beach and the shores of Catalina. On this shoot, two RED MX cameras with Optimo 17-80mm lenses were used to obtain nature imagery and dramatic daytime and nighttime shots of Los Angeles skyscrapers. “With a 6.5″ interocular, the distance between lenses, we stayed close to our subjects to get the deepest stereo effect,” says Artbeats President and Lead Cinematographer, Phil Bates.

“Our all-pro crew included stereographer, Ken Corben, DP, Doug Holgate and pilot, John Tamburro. The combination yielded some incredible footage that is now available on our website. Although we’re excited about our initial offering of 3D footage, it is only a small sample and more will be made available in the coming months.”

Artbeats’ 3D equipment, which includes RED MX cameras on a stereo rig, will expand to include RED Epic cameras and a beamsplitter rig later this year. “We’ll be shooting fire effects, urban settings, establishments, and much more,” adds Bates. “We have a very busy year planned. In addition, our 3D library is growing to include content from outside producers.”

Artbeats’ S3D stock footage is offered as QuickTime movie files with formats that include HD stereo pairs (both sides squeezed horizontally into a single HD frame), separate HD Right and Left views and 4K versions (when shot on RED). Available via the company’s website, Artbeats provides helpful metadata specific to each S3D clip including the positive parallax percentage, interocular separation measurements, and the maximum display size, which is the largest suggested screen size on which to display a clip. Artbeats also offers a helpful S3D Video Guide, and a free downloadable full HD resolution S3D clip to help editors gain a feel for the high quality and ease of use that Artbeats footage is known for.

Pricing and Availability
Royalty-free pricing for S3D HD footage is $449 to $799 USD, per clip. Artbeats FootageHub rights managed S3D HD clips range in price from $499 to $1,999 USD. Pricing includes separate left and right views, as well as a side-by-side stereo pair. Most of the S3D clips are also available in high-res 4K versions.

Visit the Artbeats stereoscopic 3D collection

Download a free test S3D clip of a waterfall (usual value $699)