Google presented the first video of its project «The Master and Margarita I Was There» in a 360-degree format, in which celebrities read the main work of Mikhail Bulgakov in those locations where the novel takes place. In today's article, we found out how to learn how to make such videos yourself, after consulting with the studio specialists https://video-vr-360.com/. The latter has been engaged in professional shooting in 360 and VR formats for several years.
The technology itself has been around for a long time, but it has become popular right now. The thing is that there are many channels for the delivery of content. Video in this format has become easy and convenient to watch — on a desktop, on a mobile device or through augmented reality glasses. It is enough, for example, just to go to YouTube and select the video you like in the required format.
We shoot a panorama — no matter whether it is normal or video — with a 360-degree 180-degree viewing angle. That is, cameras (usually two or more) see absolutely everything around them. Each camera shoots its own sector. The number of cameras required for shooting varies greatly. If we shoot a static image for a photo panorama, one camera is enough, which is rotated on the nodal head around the non-parallax point and the panorama is taken in several passes.
The minimum number of cameras for 360-degree video is two (now there are cameras with one lens of which "sees" at 270 degrees. It's a very funny feeling when you look through such a lens and see your own legs. Usually six cameras are used (most companies prefer GoPro for their compactness and good characteristics), because the more cameras are involved in the shooting process, the higher the resolution will be in the finished video. From a creative point of view, the most important thing is to create a story that would justify the use of such technology. You cannot just take an existing idea, for example TV script, and turn it to life in a 360-degree format. The story should be conceived so that the audience has a desire to look around. To achieve this effect, you can use visual cues (for example, make the hero leave the viewer) or audio beats (for example, a loud sound or a voice that sounds off-screen).
You cannot choose a small space. You don't want to make the viewer claustrophobic. It is better to stop at the site that you want to examine and study in detail. Curiosity is very conducive to engagement. And it is clear that in a small closet there is less space for creativity than, for example, in a labyrinth.