FRONTIER LAND
surely has to be VR. Both drone and VR technology has reached the stage where this is perfectly practical and the results, when viewed through a headset, give the viewer the impression of being a pilot. “For us this is an exciting frontier,” says Andrew. “Combining drones with full immersion is such a great dynamic. With traditional VR/360 the camera or viewpoint is fixed, whereas with drones and VR, you’re along for a moving ride. “And the technology continues to improve. Our most recent VR/360 shoot was for Oath, an umbrella company that includes AOL, Yahoo! and other digital content subdivisions. With offices around the world in amazing locations, this promo video was all about showing Oath’s international reach. With a proposal to shoot high-quality 360° video across five countries, we brainstormed howwe could achieve ultimate portability and high- quality aerial 360° video on a budget. “Our first task was to decide whether we already had a system that would work or if we needed a new one. Thinking about lightweight, smaller options in terms of both 360° cameras and drones, we considered everything fromGo Pro configurations to the Samsung Gear. While definitely compact, neither offered us the look we needed. We ended up landing on the Obsidian S system fromKandao – a camera with cinema quality picture and higher frame rate options. The ‘R’ version boasts higher resolution, but we chose the ‘S’ model for more speed options.” Weighing in at only 1.2 kg, the camera offered reliability, good colour
TOP Producing 360-degree films from an aerial platform was a challenge relished by the Drone Dudes team, and the set up relied on an Obsidian S system from Kandao. ABOVE The FreeFly Tero is seen as being esentially a land based drone.
reproduction, easy-to-use software and a post workflow that got rid of almost all stitch lines while delivering intuitive auto stabilisation options. Crucially, it was also lightweight enough to be lifted by a drone. “With portability and compactness being a big factor for travel, we decided our larger Alta was not an option,” says Andrew. “We knewwe’d find ourselves in tricky locations with some guerrilla shooting scenarios and we needed a drone that couldmanage. So, fitting the Obsidian camera onto our smaller Inspire II drone became the mission. “Incorporating some parts we ordered fromChina and others fromhobby shops in the USA, we created a frame that allowed us to suspend the camera under the drone on a swing arm. We also salvaged carbon fibre pieces from that original old Cinestar 8 to build out the custom frame. “It took a lot of testing to figure out that the best way to suspend the camera was to use a swivel connection that could be tightened or loosened. In effect, the camera was swinging on a pendulum motion as the drone pivoted and changed direction. Had we decided to go for a
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WINTER 2018 PRO MOVIEMAKER
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