Guide – How to configure Cockpit Views / Cameras using Custom Camera controller assignments

Is it possible to get rid of the additional views when successively pressing yoke/other keys assigned to custom views. It drives me mad that pressing an assigned key/button does not always and uniquely get the view you set. I have tried without success to eliminate the additional view/s that pressing the same button invokes in a sequence.
Chase plane never did that. What is the point of the unwanted view sequence?

It seems that a default view is offered the second time you press a custom key. Why? This default is never a view that I want. It will frequently provide a view that you just had by custom panning the hat switch. What twisted imagination decided that you could not emulate the perfect function of Chase Plane?

In cockpit mode how do I stop the camera from auto centering in freelook? A pain to have to keep fighting it. It works fine in external view but I don’t know how to set it up in cockpit view,

Under Options/ General/ Camera:
there’s an option to set the reset of the free camera to Manual

I also use “toggle” mode for free Camera
I hope this could be helpful

Yes. this is exactly what happens. for me I press the custom key once, then if I want to return to forward view (default camera) I press the custom camera again. But in most of the cases, I just press another custom view. For example I look to the left and then look to the right. It’s just a matter of getting used to the view system.

You can emulate the chase-plane view by setting custom camera outside the airplane. A previous post in this thread is talking about passenger camera, you may use the same method to set chase plane camera custom Camera.

Alternatively, just go to external view and press the button for rest view to arrive to the chase-view camera. (this is the method I use)

I’m saving my views with Alt+Ctrl+number.
However, when I return to a view like Alt+2 it has zoomed out compared to the the one I saved. What’s wrong here?

Mats

There is a separate thread on this already

Front view without cockpit - Self-Service / Home Cockpit Builders - Microsoft Flight Simulator Forums

Asobo even tried to implement this view in the standard menu (“home cockpit mode”) - which unfortunately does nothing, though.

I remember this happened to me before. Here’s the solution I found to fix it:

I think you have the default zoom level is not set to 50. You can find it under options/genera/Camera/zoom

Make sure the value of zoom is set to 50

as shown in the screenshot below

By the way, in my personal opinion zooming is distorting the image make it unrealistic. So for my setting, I use the following:

  1. Move back (instead of zoom out) inside the cockpit. If I want wider view I use “Translate backward” button

  2. I use focus mode if I want to focus on something outside or inside the cockpit using “Toggle Cockpit Focus Mode” button while in VR I use “VR-Cockpit Focus” button. This is really useful to focus on something momentarily.

  3. I can set a smartCam with zoomed-in view such as on instruments but as I said above, to make it work, the default zoom level under the options must be 50

Thanks, working, and I see your points!

Anyone know how to edit or delete a custom camera view?

They are stored in a file, per aircraft. Here is my folder for the default C152:

C:\Users\USER\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\SimObjects\Airplanes\Asobo_C152

Inside you will see a ‘CAMERAS.CFG’. This file has your custom cameras. Each one will have a header, like:

[CAMERADEFINITION.0]

Just delete that entire section, and the view will be removed. I suspect you need to reload the plane for those to take effect. I know you can overwrite them on the fly, and they will become active, but I don’t thing deleting them from the file stops them from working, if you see what I mean.

Hobanagerik answer is great. There’s also an alternative and more traditional way:

  • to modify existing view:

    • use the shortcut to get the custom view,
    • then modify it using mouse/keyboard/joystick etc…
    • finally re-save it using the normal shortcut for saving. (Ex. ctrl+alt+8)
  • To delete a custom view:

    • use the shortcut to get the custom view,
    • then click the button used to "reset cockpit view",
    • finally re-save it using the normal shortcut for saving. (Ex. ctrl+alt+8)

So that last one just saves out a camera definition that matches the default pilot view? That’s one way to achieve it.

exactly. Saving the default view will result in deleting the custom view (sort of… as clicking the shortcut will retrieve default view)

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I wish Asobo would build a small and simple companion app to adjust and define camera views. “Think like a visual basic programmer”, “visually,” and give us views of a model aircraft relative to new views, then, after a user selects a view, write/edit that new view automatically into the cameras.cfg file. In my view, the present way is too confusing for the average user.

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I wonder if you could please advise me? Please see here when you have a moment, thanks!

The custom camera setting seems to be broken after SU7. The last 2 updates have broken hours of my work setting my custom cameras. With SU6 I didn’t have a backup of my camera config files and the update over wrote what was already there. After SU6 I set them all again and this time made a backup. I can’t use this backup after SU7. In fact after setting a brand new custom view using CTRL-ALT-0 when I move the view and then try to return using ALT-0 the camera just shakes badly. I haven’t yet found a way to stop the shaking without returning to main menu and re-loading the flight.

To reproduce try C172(G1000) and move camera fully forward and up as much as you can such you have a view over the glareshield of the cowling and prop.

Anyone else seeing this behaviour.

While exploring through the camera options the other day I came across some options that I have yet to find any documentation about.

Instrument View UP
Instrument View Down
Instrument View Left
Instrument View Right.

According to the descriptions it sounded like would allow a user shift their view from instrument clusters based on their relative positions, but I’ve not yet managed to get it working or seen it demonstrated.

What I’d hope to achieve is the ability to use a simple 4 way hat to navigate through a series of instrument or custom views without being limited to cycling through “previous” and “Next” inputs.

What I’d really love is for the ability to assign all of my custom views to a grid, and then navigate that grid with simple up, down, left, inputs.

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I can show you what settings are required to get that segmented instrument cameras working. Yes, you can then assign a POV hat and make smooth view transitions between those views, exactly as you describe.

Due to the complexity of implementing the Xbox controller logic, there are now quite a number of settings and all of it can become rather messy…the thing that makes everything harder is the fact that not all available commands work or they do not work as they should - as well as the fact that options related to camera control and camera behavior are under a few different options submenus.

Fortunately, Asobo is working on improving all that…quite a lot of things of various nature they are working on all the time, quite a lot.

Thank you.

I was able to get the auto select Instrument Views working somewhat but found it difficult to use. It seems the edge of screen detection was inconsistent and the hover areas aren’t always obvious so I opted to stop trying to use it with the mouse edge detection. I haven’t yet tried it with assigned to a hat switch other than using the next and previous commands.

Another idea I had was trying to assign multiple views to a certain input and have them cycle.

So Custom Views 1, 2, 3 could go to Hat left. Views 4, 5, 6, could go to hat right, etc etc.

It would be nice if the simulator could register the difference between short and long presses. That could open a whole to possibility for expanding the use you could get out of a hat as a long press might switch modes. ( internal, external, showcase) just by pressing and holding…

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Hi Ayman, and Flight SImmers !

Thanks you fixed one of my issues, which is having a cockpit pilot view thats not too close of the windshield by using ‘‘Translate Backward’’. But now is there a way to make it default that way? Because after moving around in the cockpit, when I use my ‘‘Reset Cockpit View’’ hotkey it brings my face into the windshield again. Before I used the zoom feature, but you are right about distorsion, and it also messes with my custom camera views inside the aircraft.

Essentially save my Translated Backwards view as the Default cockpit view ?

I saved a custom camera to where I want it and then I have mapped my Joystick hotkey button to ‘‘Load Custon Camera 1’’. But you notice it’s not the real default cockpit view because sometime, it’ll bring my face in the front windshield again and have to press again to load that preset. Ideally I’d wish to use the ‘‘Reset Cockpit View’’ command in order to have a view matching my Custom Camera 1.

Thanks so much, this is really helping out with cameras !!
Heres the default (Face in the window) can’t see surroundings :

Here’s the view I would like to use as default cockpit view (I used the ‘‘Translate Backward’’ command to set the view) :

It doesn’t look too bad on those little picture, but on my 32’’ Curved monitor there is a much bigger difference. Also while in the air.

Sorry for my broken english !