Valkyrie ushers in age of the highest-fidelity motion capture ever

Vicon has launched Valkyrie, its new flagship camera range, with four models delivering the world’s highest quality motion capture system.

Valkyrie cameras will capture motion more faithfully and accurate-to-reality than ever before, powering a new wave of innovation and discovery across the visual effects (VFX) sector. 

Designed to work in harmony with Vicon’s powerful software solution for VFX – Shōgun – Valkyrie completes a true best-of-breed ecosystem for motion capture users. 

The range includes a 26-megapixel (MP) model and a high-speed capture mode at up to 2,000 Frames Per Second (FPS). When combined with the new powerful and bespoke varifocal lens, they deliver a greater fidelity in human motion capture and unlock a previously unmatched capture quality. 

With exceptional resolution, Valkyrie enables digital artists to visualise the most realistic characters and scenes, while saving time in post-production thanks to the quality of data it produces. Valkyrie’s speed also ensures that even the most breakneck action sequences can be captured, even for studios working within tighter budgets. 

The Valkyrie range includes:  

VK26 – the flagship model with a 26MP resolution and native 150FPS 

• Ideal for highly demanding applications including full body performance capture, Virtual Production and In-Camera VFX (ICVFX) for AAA films and games 
• Provides robust tracking of people and cameras in large spaces and challenging environments 
• Capable of capturing the most realistic characters and motion, including complex details such as high-definition fingers or large groups, reducing costs in post-production 

VK16 – offering the highest frame rate per megapixel, at 16MP with a native 300FPS 

• Supports ICVFX to track cameras in small or medium volumes 
• Able to capture high-speed character and prop motion 

VK8 – delivers both the highest native frame rate of 500FPS and the best cost per megapixel at 8MP 

• Offers an accessible way for indie film and games studios to tap into motion capture and Vicon’s highly accurate data within a budget 

VKX – strobeless camera featuring 7MP resolution and native 380FPS 

• The most accessible entry point for small-scale ICVFX 

Imogen Moorhouse, CEO of Vicon, commented: “Filmmakers rapidly adopting virtual production techniques and ICVFX are at the cutting edge of the use of motion capture. With Valkyrie we will support the growing needs and demands of the VFX industry with the most advanced motion capture systems ever seen.

“In challenging times, the Vicon team has created an industry-leading set of features providing high fidelity, intelligence, automation and a technical robustness which combine to create a new degree of usability, speed and accuracy. With every design decision we’ve taken we have focused on empowering the global community of motion capture users to take their work to the next level. With Valkyrie, our customers are going to play a massive role in driving forward a new era of motion capture innovation and exploration.”