THE WORK
THEN & NOW
119
photo
DEMPSON MAYUGA
E
xponential” aptly describes
the growth of 360° media
in the past two years.
Today, you can find
360VR in all manners of industry
and across multiple platforms of
delivery. We’ve all probably seen
or experienced them at one time
or another as it transported us
inside elegant castles in Europe,
the majestic Himalayas or inside
centuries-old churches in Bohol. But
how are 360s being produced? Are
the basics the same as traditional
shoots, be it for still image or video,
from conception to post processes?
Let’s start with the camera. You
can either use a single wide-angle
DSLR or a multiple camera rig
depending on the concept and layout
of the environment. Commercially
available software like PTGui for
still image or Autopano Video
for moving sequences is usually
preferred for stitching. The basics
of image capture are to shoot a
series of images around, covering
the complete sphere, including
the zenith and the nadir. Images
taken have to have at least 30%
overlap with each other for the
stitching software to match and
work. If you are doing 360 video,
the process suddenly becomes
more complicated as the entire
scenario has to be captured in a
ubiquitous fashion. For a traditional
director, he/she can be thrust
in an unfamiliar situation as the
concept of framing is suddenly gone.
Everything becomes omnipresent.
Take for example a typical
shoot for a condo model unit; to
start, the placement of the camera
is important. Anyone can put the
camera at the center of the room,
but it takes perception to highlight
a particular area, say the dining
table or that sofa near the window.
Is everything in order? You now
have to be aware of not only what’s
in front, but at the back and all
sides as well. Add to that is keeping
yourself and the non-related
personnel from the cameras’ field
of view. We haven’t even begun
to dwell on directional audio for
a truly immersive experience.
Lighting is also crucial, unlike
traditional photography, in a 360
shoot, you normally can’t use flash
or artificial lighting as this can have
an adverse effect in luminosity as
you complete the circular frames
in a series. If there’s high degree of
differences, stitching may become
a problem and blending in between
images (dark bands effect) may
ruin the overall aesthetics. This
is why only natural or ambient
light is used in a 360 shoot.
When there are moving elements
in a scene, like people or vehicles,
the difficulty level antes up. You now
need to account for the following:
not capturing the same person at a
different area in different frames,
capturing a moving object in whole
July - August 2016 | adobo magazine