Tiny Planet

The first class of the new module introduced us to the basics of 360-degree filming. We had the opportunity to experience the Insta360 ONE camera firsthand. I captured some video clips from the 5th-floor balcony in downtown Seattle.

What did I learn in the first class

Because the Insta360 One captures an encompassing 360° view, users can focus on enjoying the moment, instead of on what they are filming. With traditional cameras, my experience goes like this — look around, find the most exciting or beautiful part of what I am filming, and then do my best to shoot it inside a rectangular viewfinder. The problem is that I am unable always to know where the key moment of a scene will be. I could get the sunset view of the temple in Bali but missed the monkey snatching bananas from my bag. Professionals solve this problem with a crew and multiple cameras while the One captures every angle of a scene with only one camera, and myself. Cool!

Snow on the balcony shot with iPhone camera

Also, Insta360 Studio, the Insta360 free desktop editing software, is a powerful and capable editor for spherical format videos. After loading the footage, I can view my clip in various projections. One may choose from Flat, Rectilinear, Fisheye, Tiny Planet, and Crystal ball views. Entering the editing mode, more options are live. To select a starting and ending frame for the video, click and hold on the grey bar on the left and right of the timeline. Having decided upon the opening frame, click the yellow target icon shown above the timeline towards the left of the window. After setting the options of resolution, name, and where to save, I can click on "Export to" for export.

What I would like to learn in this module

This week we have all got some raw footage that we will be editing with Premiere for the next class. Although I am unfamiliar with the application (and I am looking forward to learning more about it), I tried to edit the clip with iMovie, which I know better than Premiere at this point. Here is my tiny planet video for study.