So, it’s been a bit of a week.
My thesis proposal was accepted, and while that was a relief, figuring out how I’m going to be able to execute it, has been a bit of a struggle. I feel pretty strongly about doing this project in VR, but have some concerns of being able to pull it off in nine weeks. A one on one with Nancy, reminded me that I could do it using sound. While it wouldn’t be my first choice, sound can in many ways be more immersive than a VR experience.
While discussing what tech I’d need for the project, Mithru suggested that i look into 360 video as a faster way to get up and running, since I’ve got nine weeks to work with. Lola helped me work through my production schedule, and suggested that I setup a more visual schedule, rather than a list, which is what I currently have.
Working on my production schedule admittedly caused a bit of panic. It’s one thing to see a list of dates and bullet points, it’s another to see it laid out visually. I think it’s possible though, just have to buckle down and solidify how i’m doing this.
In the past week, I’ve been playing around with the Ricoh Theta V, and seeing how it would work on google cardboard. While the technical aspect of 360 video seems like it will be easier to ramp up, doing video leads to new things to consider. I’ll have to find actors, a physical space in which to shoot, a time that works for everyone involved, and figure out the logistics of doing the shoot itself.
This week’s explorations, consisted of taking both video and time-lapse pictures. The Theta app makes it easy to stitch together the time-lapse footage into one video, which is handy. I set up the Theta on a light stand in the hallway outside of the ER on two different days.
The resulting time-lapse footage, while helpful in learning how to use the Theta, didn’t quite yield the results I wanted. The video footage was more in line (I think?) with what I’d hoped I get. This week, I’ll try to get video footage of people having conversations, and see if that works a little bit better. While running my idea by a friend, he suggested speaking with someone from the film department, so I’m going to reach out to him, and see if I can chat a bit about using a different camera instead of the Theta, for better quality footage.
I’m also going to grind out something with audio to see how I feel about that. Lots to do, but I’m excited.