Firstly we spoke about what 360 video is and the best definition I came up with from what was said was:
'It is a video stitched together to allow people to look around the frame/space.'
Because this video is 360 it means the viewer can obviously direct and look at what they want within this massive frame so you have to think outside the box, for example things like rule of thirds doesnt really apply here. This is what makes this form of video so unique from other video work.
360 Videos can be referred to in a number of ways, these are:
Immersive videos - I prefer this term because it really describes how much more involved the viewer will be.
Spherical Videos
Virtual Reality - This only really applies on computer generated footage so wouldn't work as a name for live video.
360 Degree Video - This is the term I feel is most commonly used as it is the term I came across first and use because it gives quite a technical overview of what the video entails.
360 Video can be viewed on a number of platforms such as:
Mobile Phone or Tablet - The video uses your phones accelerometer and Gyro-meter to distinguish where you are moving your phone therefore changing where your looking on the video.
Computer - Through programmes and websites online like Youtube 360 you can use the cursor while watching the video to drag your way around the image changing what your looking at.
VR Headset with you Phone - There are headsets such as Samsung Gear VR or Google Cardboard where you can attach your phone to the googles and look through so wherever you move your head to look your phone image follows. This is a much more immersive way to watch them.
We then looked at some examples but it is very different watching something while someone else controls it and watching it while you are in control. Therefore I have re-watched all the examples shown myself so I can control the action/view and see what I then feel about them:
This is a very surreal concept because it is a documentary/reality video with a narrative to follow yet you can look at whatever you like. What I really liked with this was how you didn't just have to watch the presenter you could scroll around and look at the amazing landscape in this video which is what I found I spent a lot of time doing. This meant at times I got distracted with what was going on but I liked it still. One thing that felt a bit jarring was the issues with the sticking in places however I understand this can always be a bit of an issue with 360 but hopefully I will learn the best ways to avoid these problems.
This video was very intense to watch especially when being able to choose where you look because its so tense. I found the beginning of the video a bit strange because of the writing setting up the narrative coming across the screen which you don't have to look out. However it is very good actually at guiding you on where to look by directing your attention with what they say. For example when they said 'come down' I instinctively looked up. I prefer the idea of making a video like this rather than a reality video. I also think this is a very high quality video technically because it is filmed and stitched really successfully.
This piece was more about looking at the landscape however you also get to explore it because you choose where to look. What I liked about this was the narration which is very guiding and talks you through where you are. If you didn't have this narration it would be a lot more boring and simply observation but this makes it educational as well. I really like the ascetics of this video and being underwater is really interesting because its some where I would never go myself however I find it a bit dull because it moves quite slowly. I would want to make something faster paced.
This is an observational wildlife documentary which is very serious and still sticks to a lot of original documentary conventions such as voiceovers however it is enhanced by having the ability to explore the images and the space. I love how you get to see such strong visuals of these animals up close which you would never get to do otherwise. I found this piece to be a lot more exciting than the last because it had a good pace to it and also the camera angles were a lot better especially the high angle looking down at the rhinos and then the low angles looking up at it all. I found this to be one of my favourite pieces we watched and re-watching it myself I liked it even more.
To be able to make a 360 Video you need an omnidirectional lens or multiple cameras because one single lens or camera hasn't got a wide enough view to it. We are using a rig called a 'GoPro Omni' which you attach 6 GoPros into and they all sync up so that you can control them all to record together at once. We are using 6 Go Pro Hero 4 Black cameras in our rig. Here is what it looks like:
The Omni Kit consists of:
Allen Key - to remove go pros from rig and take rig apart
GoPro Tweezers - to take memory card out
Mini SD Reader - to plug the SD cards into the computer.
7 Port USB Hub - means you can connect all cards at once to the computer which makes film management easier.
Remote - This is synced with the primary camera so you can control all cameras via this
Charging USB Cables - charge all cameras at once (battery life is only about 20 minutes)
Memory Cards - 64GB
External power cable and pack - 3 extra hours of battery life
Extra Kit (useful to get):
Magic Arm - Means you can connect the rig to many different attachments giving you more flexibility on where you can film from.
Spigot - Small attachment which connect the magic arm to the Omni Rig
I am very exciting by this equipment which we get to use next week and I am inspired to start thinking of ways I can use the 360 kit to make interesting videos of my own.
No comments:
Post a Comment