Camera's viewfinder reticule going yellow

[Jim di Griz]

I've been trawling the web and even the Ubi forums for an answer on this but am unable to find an answer. It seems also that no one else knows why either.

Simply put, I'm sure you've all noticed how the camera's view finder goes yellow occasionally when focused on certain things. If you subsequently take that photo you get the chant sound similar to when picking up a relic.

The answers I've seen hint that tagging relics and letters from a distance. Sometimes you see a glimmer in the distance where a relic is - taking a zoomed photo will place it on you map and mark it as a waypoint. Others say dead pirates/people show up that way - but I think that is just people getting confused with the one side mission in Badtown where you have to photograph dead pirates.

Other things like The Medusa's name or some of the Japanese artillery pieces are less easily explained; as are random people who light up the viewfinder such as the guy outside the bar in Badtown. I only found that one out as I thought maybe you could recognise and tag the missing Hollywood star - no such luck so far on that though.

Any ideas good people?

[mandru]

Broken Neck Home Outpost.  Walk West to the ocean shore then North up the beach and look for two people hanging from a tree limb extending out over the sand. 

When you find that if you scan the beach near by you will find a head buried in the sand and a little further off a machete standing up.

[Jim di Griz]

Thanks Mandru - I have since weakened and did a search for that part. I was quite content to mosey around the islands myself until I came across the Hollywood star until today.

My question was more related to the camera and why it flags certain things - that's the mystery. I wondered if anyone could enlighten me about  :)

[Art Blade]

Maybe I can. The only time it turns yellow outside missions is when dead bodies or animal carcasses are going to be in the picture. During missions it seems that it turns yellow when you get targets to be in your picture.  :)

[PZ]

Interesting observation Jim. I've not seen that effect but will look out for it. That would be a cool feature because the relics and letters give valuable xps, useful early in the game.

[fragger]

Sometimes you see a glimmer in the distance where a relic is - taking a zoomed photo will place it on you map and mark it as a waypoint.

There was some discussion elsewhere about what those glimmers were, as I recall nobody knew and the general consensus was that they were merely decorative. This solves that little mystery. Cheers Jim :-X

[Jim di Griz]

Cheers guys - and I'm glad that I was able to bring some clarification myself - though it was only repeated hearsay that I'd read  :)

Maybe I can. The only time it turns yellow outside missions is when dead bodies or animal carcasses are going to be in the picture. During missions it seems that it turns yellow when you get targets to be in your picture.  :)

So it may only be that...hmm, I can't help feeling that there is something easter-eggish involved somewhere. I'll try and see if that artillery gun I noticed was at one of the Wanted Dead missions or not - there is still the matter of the fella outside the bar in Badtown - unless it was the bar itself.

Cheers all.

[Art Blade]

thank you for your informations, too :) Let's hope we get this riddle sorted. Any new ideas and observations welcome :)

[Dweller_Benthos]

I did see this once and wondered myself what it was. The color changed and when I took a picture the sound was different but I didn't notice anything happening. It was fairly early on and I think I was looking at an outpost that was mostly or completely cleared if I recall correctly. I haven't seen it since, and I use the camera a lot. I'll have to notice if a dead body or animal sets it off, but you'd think I'd have looked at one of those with it by now.

I do recall that it was a very specific and small spot that made the viewer change like that, but didn't think to go look if there was anything special there.

[PZ]

I've been playing with the camera regarding the bright sparkles, and have noticed that they mark the location of the relics and letters, but not loot chests.  However, they are not marked on the map.  I took this screen capture of the sparkle on the beach which turned out to be a relic beneath an overturned boat.  I tried taking a picture using the camera in hopes that the relic would be marked on the map, but to no avail

[smg id=5485 width=400 align=center]

The nice thing is that early in the game you can gain quite a few dollars and experience points by collecting these items, and do not need a purchased map.

[Art Blade]

nice  :)

[fragger]

Well done PZ :-X

[PZ]

Thanks guys; but all I did was confirm what Jim initiated.  ^-^

[Jim di Griz]

...and all I did was repeat what I'd heard  ^-^

[mandru]

Is it just relics laying out in the open on the surface or will it show the location of relics that are deep underground or underwater?  I'm asking because early after I started playing FC3 there was one evening (game time) when I was looking at at a distant mountain range that was alive with sparkles like the one in PZ's screenshot.

I'm fairly sure many of those spots would not have been out in the open.  ????

[Jim di Griz]

Hmm, not sure. The only time I've seen it for myself was whilst looking into a cave where it was visible, so I'll have to test that out.

[PZ]

I've been doing the tower activations and as a new rule with each I complete I do a camera sweep of the immediate vicinity.   On one of them I saw a sparkle, and it ended up being a relic that was in a cave.

[mandru]

 :-X

[Jim di Griz]

Cool, that saved a bit of wandering around  :)

[Dweller_Benthos]

I have seen the sparkle a few times where it did seem to coincide with a relic location, but then, I've seen camera views that were positively cluttered with sparkles, and thought they couldn't possibly all be relics. I'll take a screenshot next time that happens.

[PZ]

I have seen the sparkle a few times where it did seem to coincide with a relic location, but then, I've seen camera views that were positively cluttered with sparkles, and thought they couldn't possibly all be relics. I'll take a screenshot next time that happens.

Same here, but I don't know what the range is.  I notice that the letters also appear as sparkles.

[fragger]

I noticed the other day that an alarm pole in an outpost had a sparkle on it. I think maybe the sparkles indicate general objects of importance as well as collectibles.

[Dweller_Benthos]

Found the camera view going yellow a lot after I killed a bunch of pirates on an assassination mission. These guys were just normal pirates, so I don't know why they would make the camera act differently.

[smg id=5593]

Then, I did one of the monkey see, monkey boom quests where you have to kill three traitors and take pictures of their bodies. This time it was part of the quest, when aiming at the body, the view goes yellow and gives you the chant sound when you take the picture, but why it does it other times I don't know. I did try it on a pirate that was just a random guy in a fight with some Rakyat and it did it then too, I'm wondering if it does it for any dead pirate.

[Art Blade]

thanks for confirming :)

The only time it turns yellow outside missions is when dead bodies or animal carcasses are going to be in the picture. During missions it seems that it turns yellow when you get targets to be in your picture.  :)

[Jim di Griz]

Yeah, I'd say that the camera is coded to do that for any dead pirates, mostly due to those kinds of missions that need you to immortalise their death posture - the only difference is you won't get the chant normally.

Good sleuthing everyone. I like the idea that other important object sparkle also.