XangleCs documentation

This page gives you a practical first-pass workflow to get a small bullet-time installation up and running with Xangle Camera Server. It focuses on the basic studio process: connect the cameras, assign numbering, align the rig, calibrate, trigger, review, and then expand into interval, jump-and-freeze, sharing, or light-painting workflows.

You can follow the quick video walkthrough below, then use the step-by-step checklist as your setup reference. For deeper details, also see Digital calibration, Camera focus, and Using strobes.

Basic installation workflow

It used to be much more complicated to do multi-camera work, but the workflow is now straightforward enough to get a first installation running quickly. For this demo setup, we use 6 DSLR cameras, 6 USB cables, one powered USB hub, one wireless presenter, and one computer.

1. Get your equipment ready: cameras, cables, hub, trigger device, and computer.
2. Connect the USB cables to the cameras, then to the USB hub, and then connect the hub to the computer.
3. Unzip Xangle Camera Server on your desktop and launch it.
4. Turn on the cameras one by one, in order.
5. Put every camera in Manual mode.
6. Disable auto-power-off so the cameras do not disappear during setup.
7. Set the camera count from the camera status area in the top-right corner. Green means all cameras are connected.
8. Click Automatically assign camera numbers from the dashboard.
9. Place the calibration bar at the center of the installation. Use live view and the grid to align all cameras as precisely as possible.
10. Open the Calibration panel in Xangle. Start with settings around ISO 200, f/4, and 1/200s, then calibrate and fine-tune until the result is clean and stable. Once the digital calibration is good, it becomes the reference for later captures.
11. Connect your USB dongle or trigger device. The trigger button is b, but you can also trigger from the keyboard, a gamepad, or directly from the dashboard.
12. Take your first shot and adapt exposure settings to your actual lighting conditions.

First capture and review

• For a first test, continuous LED light is enough to validate the workflow.
• To freeze the moment more reliably, hold the trigger to put cameras on standby, then release at the exact moment you want to capture.
• Open the Player tab to review the generated video. Use left and right arrows to move between takes, and use the 0 key to jump back to the latest one.

Next trigger modes to test

• Interval mode adds more movement to the replay. Start between 5 ms and 30 ms to understand the effect.
• Jump-and-Freeze creates the classic bullet-time jump effect, but it becomes much more convincing when you have more cameras in the array.

Precision, sharing, and expansion

• If you need the best trigger precision, add an external flash and set the cameras to 1/60s.
• Use the Gallery to review and share results from thumbnails.
• You can add more replay, sharing, or control devices by connecting to the local server from another browser. Use the IP address or QR code shown in the dashboard.
• For light-painting, use Bulb mode or a longer exposure such as 8 to 13 seconds in a dark environment.

Related setup guides

• Digital calibration
• Camera focus
• Constant lights vs strobes
• Using strobes

Once this basic workflow feels comfortable, you can move on to chromakey, overlays, color grading, animated foregrounds, vertical shooting, and more advanced trigger patterns.