FSX-MS How toi address the "Fish Bowl" view?

[DMullert 215]

Hello Gang!

 

As many of you may have noticed, the look out of the cockpit in FSX looks "fish-bowly" - in other words, it does not look natural - there is a fish bowl look to it.  I remember years ago when FSX first came out that this issue was addressed but I cannot remember, or find, to save my life how to address this.  Any hints would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

 

Dennis

[charliearon 3,017]

Would that have anything to do with the WideAspect=true in the FSX.cfg file?

[cianpars 1,163]

Yep, if you are using a wide screen, you may want to set that line to "true".

 

Otherwise, it's most likely that the zoom settings you are using are giving the fish bowl effect.

 

Interestingly, my FSX looked much more realistic on my old non-wide screen monitor than they do on my new wide-screen monitor.  I think it was designed for the old fashioned screens and I've never been really happy with my wide screen view despite trying wide aspect true and false and various zoom settings.

 

IAN

[Bill Maher 1]

You are probably zoomed out too far, as indicated above.   For my setup, for example, a "realistic" calculated world view is actually in the 1.5-1.6 zoom range.  If you don't like how that looks, then you'll have to put up with the fish bowl.

[jandjfrench 3]

Hi Dennis,

It seems that we may be among the few that find this "fish bowl" view unnatural.  My guess is that this forced wide angle view is preferred is due to more of the cockpit being visible without having to alter the view angle.

So that we're on the same page here, let me describe the conditions that I consider to be "normal".  With the, rather unfortunately named, "WideViewAspect=False" in the Display section of the FSX.cfg and pressing the Backspace key to set the zoom to 1.0 is my definition of "normal".

The default (what you see without pressing backspace) the VC zoom is set to 0.69.  This is defined in the "Cameras.cfg" that's in the same AppData folder as FSX.cfg.  I change the [CameraDefinition.002] so that the InitialZoom = 1.0.  That way it's not necessary to press any key to go to a normal view..

In the included missions the zoom value of .69 is saved so I either edit the FLT to fix this or press the backspace key.  Actually I don't use the Backspace key to set the zoom to 1.0;  I have the control set to "Back slash + Numpad 5".

If MS had referred to the function in FSX.cfg as "WideAngleView" I think a lot of the confusion would be eliminated. This setting has nothing whatsoever to do with the monitor aspect ratio.  And that brings up another point.  Make sure that that the resolution in Display - Setting - Graphics corresponds to your monitors display.

Jim F.

 

[vortex681 806]

Hello Gang!

 

As many of you may have noticed, the look out of the cockpit in FSX looks "fish-bowly" - in other words, it does not look natural - there is a fish bowl look to it.  I remember years ago when FSX first came out that this issue was addressed but I cannot remember, or find, to save my life how to address this.  Any hints would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

 

Dennis

Dennis, there are a two videos on YouTube which explain how to set up the zoom to be realistic (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qjbCFNSofpk). He also explains the much-misunderstood WideViewAspect setting. Long but informative.

[Bill Maher 1]

Dennis, there are a two videos on YouTube which explain how to set up the zoom to be realistic (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qjbCFNSofpk). He also explains the much-misunderstood WideViewAspect setting. Long but informative.

 

Yep, those are good videos and they explain how to determine a realistic zoom setting.

 

For the cliffs notes version, assuming you have WideViewAspect set to True, the formula to calculate your "ideal" zoom setting is:

 

Z =    34

     _______

     2 atan(h/2d)

 

where h is your screen height and d is your viewing distance from your eyes to your monitor.    Just use the same units (inches, mm, etc) for both and Z will be your realistic zoom setting.  You'll need a scientific calculator with an arctan button too.  Or, just create an excel document and use the following formula to get zoom:

 

=34/(2*DEGREES(ATAN(B3/(2*B4))))

 

where B3 is the screen height cell and B4 is the viewing distance cell.

 

You'll likely find yourself zoomed in way farther than you were previously if you use the suggested setting, but this is actually the view that is most realistic for the scenery.  You will not be able to see much of the VC, though, so this is the trade-off to avoid the fishbowl.  For me, this means the use of pop-up 2d panels a lot since I don't have TrackIR.

[PIC007 82]

Use CTRL+ or -  as I recall to fix this (maybe SHIFT, it's been a while since I tried it)

[vololiberista 205]

If you are using a wide screen monitor set WIDE ASPECT to false and set your zooms to the following >

For 16:9 set to 85% for 15:9 set to 81%. Setting zoom to 1 on a wide screen gives entirely the wrong perspective.

Also another vital point is the eye height and paralax. The eye height is entirely dependent on the a/c type. By looking directly ahead over the front of the glareshield establish how much of the ground is obscured. Change your eye height and angle to match. You may also need to change your paralax. That is the offset view directly in front. With the a/c directly over the centre line where does it intersect with the top of the glareshield. If you're in an airliner it should intersect somewhat to the left of centre. Again it depends on the height above ground and how close your seat is to the centre line of the a/c.  These settings can only be done in the a/c cfg and are a matter of trial and error. But once right it makes a big difference.

[DMullert 215]

Thank You folks for the input.  I will tinker accordingly and reply back.

 

Thanks again!

 

Dennis

[flapsdown 45]

Hello Gang!

 

As many of you may have noticed, the look out of the cockpit in FSX looks "fish-bowly" - in other words, it does not look natural - there is a fish bowl look to it.  I remember years ago when FSX first came out that this issue was addressed but I cannot remember, or find, to save my life how to address this.  Any hints would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

 

Dennis

 

This gentleman covers the issue in an excellent and very in depth fashion in 3 separate videos:

 

part 1:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjbCFNSofpk

 

part 2:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikwToOzX_UA

 

part 3:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwGT2hEiDUc

[cianpars 1,163]

You can do it scientifically or just set it at the level of zoom that looks most realistic to you.

 

Whilst the former may work, the latter is guaranteed to suit you best.

 

I use WideAspect=true and 100% zoom.  I may try increasing the zoom factor to 105% or 110% to see how that looks.  I care not whether this is scientifically correct and will use what looks most realistic to me.

 

Edit: what people want from the 2d cockpit and what they want from the 3d cockpit may of course differ.

 

IAN

[vololiberista 205]

Another problem with 2d panels is the left/right view. Quite often the a/c will have a left or right 2d panel as well. But quite often unfortunately the view is not correct.  Not only does one also have to set the zoom, but the view angle as well. So it's a lot of work to adjust it correctly. Especially if you have not had the opportunity to sit in the real cockpit. If you do have the occasion to do so take photos with the camera set to 55m zoom. Almost all digital cameras (with the exception of expensive SLR types) will have a basic wide view of about 35m set. That is not realistic from the point of view of what the brain sees. Take your photos and when home set up your views.

This is my panel.cfg setup.  VIEW_FORWARD_DIR = vertical angle up/down - rotation angle left/right - horizontal angle left/right.

VIEW_FORWARD_ZOOM=0.850
VIEW_FORWARD_DIR=2.800, 0.000, 3.000

VIEW_FORWARD_RIGHT_ZOOM=0.820
VIEW_FORWARD_RIGHT_DIR=4.030, 0.000, 48.000

VIEW_RIGHT_ZOOM=0.820
VIEW_RIGHT_DIR=4.330, 0.000, 90.000

VIEW_REAR_LEFT_WINDOWS=53
VIEW_REAR_LEFT_ZOOM=0.820
VIEW_REAR_LEFT_DIR=2.830, 0.000, 225.000

VIEW_LEFT_WINDOWS=52
VIEW_LEFT_ZOOM=0.820
VIEW_LEFT_DIR=2.830, 0.000, 260.000

VIEW_FORWARD_LEFT_WINDOWS=51
VIEW_FORWARD_LEFT_ZOOM=0.820
VIEW_FORWARD_LEFT_DIR=2.830, 0.000, 315.000
 

In VIEW_FORWARD_DIR 2.800, 0.000, 3.000 The 2.8 represents the eye point set in combination with the zoom so that the rwy view directly ahead is correct. (in this case the eye is about 14ft above the tarmac). The last number 3.00 is the offset so that the rwy centre line passes left of the cockpit centre as it would appear in real life (because the captain is seated on the left and not in the centre).

 

In the other views you can see the last numbers represent the actual horizontal angle of the eye view from the forward datum of zero. The first numbers in view forward left/right are different due to the closeness of the eye to the window.

 

A point to remember is that these are aircraft specific.