WHAT IS VR PHOTOGRAPHY?
VR Photography is the art of capturing a scene for view in virtual reality. Photography has a rich history as an art form, VR photography has a whole new set of requirements, but the goal is the same, to convey to the viewer what the artist “saw and felt” when capturing the scene.
There are a number of different types of photographs that can be a part of VR Photography. “360 photo” refers to a photo that has a complete 360 degree field of view. “Pano photo” is a photograph that has a wide field of view, and is often created by taking several photos and “stitching” them together. “Immersive panorama” is a photo with a 180 or 360 degree view, and likely stereographic. Spatial photo is a term coined by Apple for a stereo photo in either 180 or 360 degrees field of view to be viewed in the Vision Pro.
What about photogrammetry and volumetric capture?
We consider these next generation types of VR photography. Some folks call this object capture, or 3D scanning. Ultimately a full capture of the scene that can be explored by the user requires more than just a single camera capture. Photogrammetry and volumetric capture require captures from a large number of different viewpoints.
What are the key features of VR headsets?
By understanding the intrinsic nature of the medium, artists can create more engaging content.
- VR is Stereographic. AKA 3D, VR without stereo is a bit like TV without color
- VR is 360 degree.
- VR has full range of motion. AKA 6 DOF, VR users can not only move their head completely, they can “walk” around a scene.
- VR has audio. Ideally this includes “spatial audio” that increases the sense of presence.
A New Artistic Medium
Photography is an artistic medium, and while VR photography can be seen as just an evolution of photography, really it is a revolution. VR adds a whole new level of reality by giving images actual depth, the entire view is the canvas, and everything in the VR view can be manipulated. By exploiting human stereo vision, scenes are even more engaging than ever before. A new visual language is being invented, and it is exciting to explore.
A New Viewing Technology
Perhaps a slightly different take is that VR Photography leverages the current availability of VR headmount displays to view 3D stereographic and panoramic photography in a new and different way. Previous attempts at 3D viewing had various drawbacks (see 3D TV), but humans have stereo vision and the physiological reaction to 3D is very real. Owners of new headsets like Apple Vision Pro will create demand for photographic and videographic content besides games, and the VR Photographer will be key to providing this content.
How Do I Create VR Photographs?
The easiest way to create a VR Photograph is with a dedicated 360 degree stereo camera like the Insta360 Pro or Insta360 Titan. A more complicated way is by using the technique of “twisted panorama” to use a standard camera with wide angle lens and a rotating panorama head.
STITCHING
Stitching is the process where the multiple images of a VR capture are combined into one picture. There are different viewing formats that also need to be considered, and stereo photography also has a number of technical challenges. Applications like Mistika VR and PTGui are used by VR photographers in the creation of the final image.