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Condition One immerses iPads and iPhones in 180-degree video, shakes up dreary apps (video)
Video in tablet magazines and similar apps sometimes -- okay, often -- comes across as a grafted-on extra. Condition One, a startup by war photographer Danfung Dennis, wants to make video an intrinsic part of the experience by taking advantage of the motion sensors in smartphones and tablets. Video shot from a DSLR or similar camera is converted into a 180-degree format that you can swipe or tilt through on an iOS device to get a more involving look. It's a lot more lively than plain movies, and Dennis sees the technique being used for documentaries and tours where it would help to put viewers directly in the action. Producers only need off-the-shelf hardware and software, too. There's a show-off app at the source link to get an overall sense of what the footage is like, but if you're looking for the first official projects, a pilot project has just started that's bringing apps from Discovery, Mercedes-Benz, Popular Science (below), The Guardian and XL Recordings.
Insert Coin: The Kick, an iPhone-controlled camera light
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. Lighting in photography or movie making is often the reserve of pros who can either afford a studio's worth of equipment or who have the know-how to generate just the right effect with one light. Rift's Kick light mostly tackles the latter by using a control you (probably) already know how to use: your iPhone. If you opt for the WiFi-toting Kick Plus model, an iOS app can control one or more lights for basics like brightness and color temperature -- but it really comes into its own when you want a dash of color or to record video. A Kick can sample color from a palette, a video or directly from the iPhone's camera; temporal effects like a lightning storm can spice up an amateur horror movie. If you're only looking for a straightforward white light to back up production for a traditional camera, the Kick Basic will let you control the rudiments from buttons on the light itself. Unless you're just looking for a sticker reflecting your support, every pledge tier is directly tied to buying a Kick light in advance. Early buyers can put down $89 to get a Kick Basic in black or white, or $139 for the Kick Plus. The more you buy, the cheaper it gets: $180 or $280 will land a pair of Basic of Plus lights, and stores can pay $4,300 or $6,500 to get a hefty 50 units of either model. If you're starting on a small-scale movie production or just have to have properly-lit subjects for street photography, head on over to the Kickstarter source link and chip in.
New OmniVision 16-megapixel camera sensors could record 4K, 60 fps video on your smartphone
Nokia has reportedly been dreaming of PureView phones with 4K video; as of today, OmniVision is walking the walk quite a bit earlier. The 16-megapixel resolution of the OV16820 and OV16825 is something we've seen before, but it now has a massive amount of headroom for video. If your smartphone or camcorder has the processing grunt to handle it, either of the sensors can record 4K (3840 x 2160, to be exact) video at a super-smooth 60 fps, or at the camera's full 4608 x 3456 if you're willing to putt along at 30 fps. The pair of backside-illuminated CMOS sensors can burst-shoot still photos at the bigger size, too, and can handle up to 12-bit RAW. Impressive stuff, but if you were hoping for OmniVision to name devices, you'll be disappointed: it's typically quiet about the customer list, and mass production isn't due for either version until the fall. On the upside, it could be next year that we're feeding our 4K projectors with Mr. Blurrycam smartphone videos.
Could future PureView devices support 4K video?
As we eagerly await the arrival of the 808 PureView, video professionals are pondering the usefulness of that 41-megapixel sensor. On paper, it's capable of shooting continuously-focusing 34-megapixel video that's then resampled down when compressed, but blogger James Burland wonders what it could do with less resampling. He claims that a member of Nokia's imaging team told him that shooting at 4K "might be possible," although there are plenty of issues that prevent it being achieved on the 808 handset itself. The hardware wouldn't be able to handle the storage or processing requirements, so it's unlikely Peter Jackson will be shooting on a Symbian-powered device any time soon -- but in any case it's an interesting pointer to the future of cellphone cinematography.
iPhone 4S video compared to Canon 5D MK II
For budding moviemakers who want to shoot cinema-quality 1080p video, the Canon 5D Mark II digital SLR camera is a favorite. It's a lot less expensive (starting at around US$2,400 for the body alone) than a Red Epic-M (rock-bottom price of about $43,000). Now Robino Films is showing that the 1080p, 30-frame-per-second video capabilities of the iPhone 4S might be a new and really inexpensive low-end video camera for the next Stanley Kubrick. The filmmakers took a Canon 5D Mark II and an iPhone 4S, mounted them on a rig for simultaneous shooting and then put the resulting video side by side for your viewing pleasure. They made sure that they were matching the exposure, shutter speed, frame rate (30 fps) and picture style as much as possible. The results are spectacular, at least for the iPhone 4S. The image is a bit warmer than what you see with the Canon footage, and of course you have no way to change lenses on the iPhone 4S (well, you do have those fun lenses from Photojojo...), but it's a remarkable example of just how good the video capabilities of the 4S really are. Bumping the video up to full-screen on a 27" iMac, I could see the difference between the 21.1 Megapixel sensor on the Canon versus the 8 Megapixel sensor on the iPhone 4S -- some details seemed a bit fuzzy on the iPhone footage. Also, the rolling shutter of the iPhone 4S causes the digital billboards in the Los Angeles footage to have scrolling black lines on it. For those of us who just want to shoot some amazing vacation footage without carrying around a bag full of equipment, the iPhone 4S can't be beat. iPhone 4S / Canon 5d MKII Side by Side Comparison from Robino Films on Vimeo.
Gomite Tiltpod magnetic tripod: snapping awkward family photos just got easier
Nothing ruins a Kodak moment faster than taking a timeout to set up a tripod, which is why the folks at Gomite went magnetic when developing its tiny new Tiltpod. Designed for compact cameras or video recorders, magnets enable users to sidestep the whole "screw-in" process that typically eats away precious pre-shot moments. The underside is made of an elusive "grippy material," enabling it to perch easily on rocks, car hoods, bathroom sinks or any other odd place you may want to recall vividly. Kind of like a cheaper version of this guy, the Tiltpod is available online now for a cool $17.95. For those still struggling to grok the purpose, there's a gallery's worth of explanation just below. %Gallery-133307%
NASA's Space Shuttle launch videos are spectacularly incredible, incredibly spectacular
Did you know that it takes nearly seven and a half million pounds of thrust to get a Space Shuttle off the ground and into the final frontier? NASA opts to generate that power by burning through 1,000 gallons of liquid propellants and 20,000 pounds of solid fuel every second, which as you might surmise, makes for some arresting visuals. Thankfully, there are plenty of practical reasons why NASA would want to film its launches (in slow motion!), and today we get to witness some of that awe-inspiring footage, replete with a silky voiceover explaining the focal lengths of cameras used and other photographic minutiae. It's the definition of an epic video, clocking in at over 45 minutes, but if you haven't got all that time, just do it like us and skip around -- your brain will be splattered on the wall behind you either way.
