VR video production is still in it’s infancy. Now is the best time ever to explore and push the edges of how we produce virtual reality video. VR video production is normally made from live action video footage. This post will show you 360 VR videos made from 2D content. Keep reading to see examples of 360 videos made from photographs, 2D graphics, and a tutorial on how to make compelling 360 degree videos with this technique.
The New York Times launched the NYT VR application to give people the ability to go places in VR that would be nearly impossible in real life.
Our goal with these NYT VR experiences is to give people the chance to go places they wouldn’t otherwise be. Things like a Trump Rally or an Olympic stadium. We’re always thinking about what makes something valuable in virtual reality. There has to be a reason that we’re making it in VR and not a standard 2D medium.”
Graham Roberts – Modern Games Producer
A creative way of doing that is stitching together old photographs to create 360-degree immersive scenes. In this NYT VR Modern Games 360 video the viewer is taken back to historic Olympic stadiums and moments as far back as the 1896 games in Athens.
Old Photos Used To Recreate Olympic Stadiums In VR
This sample of 360 VR video is by Duran Duran, feat. Janelle Monáe & Nile Rodgers. The official 360 Lyric Video is created in After Effects with my favorite VR production tools by Mettle. The viewer is placed in the center of a white room, with animated lyrics and oldschool graphics peppered throughout.
Duran Duran 360 VR Video Created from 2D Graphics
Are you inspired and ready to use that massive corporate media archive to make a 360 video? Have a look at this tutorial. Every 360 video I’ve produced has used Mettle and After Effects to some degree. The SkyBox studio and VR tools are an excellent way to exploring and pushing the edges of how we produce virtual reality video.