The notes below are informal, unedited and anonymized remarks captured into a shared Google document during the students' presentations of Project 4, December 2015.
###Miranda & Smokey - High Speed Video & High Frequency Audio Capture
Ali: check out SoundHack and AudioSculpt software.
Video was very entertaining to watch although I wasn’t quite sure if I should pay attention to the audio b/c it was very movie-esque. Some parts where there isn’t video (a black screen that fades into video) might help so that the audio is the main focus of the video rather than the comedic story.
Very nice storytelling in short period of time. I would suggest exaggerating the spit take, perhaps filming it in a setting in which the light isn’t behind you and replaced with a dark backdrop and more spit +1
The audio / video speed mismatch doesn’t bother me, though it would be interesting to see the video briefly speed up to match the audio at those moments.
This was a joy to watch and felt really clean. All the audio felt related to video, but there were many video moments that I didn’t hear what I would expect to hear. For example small drops falling in the the cup.
I loved the story you were able to tell with it, especially since there was a natural build up with the slow motion footage. The subject choice was also interesting because we all know what a cup sliding and a lemon squeezing sounds like in real time. Would have also liked to hear an unexpected sound or a human voice.
Sound was interesting and sharp at moments but too many echo effects were quite distracting.
While I found the final moments of the video entertaining, there didn’t seem to be the same great balance between interesting audio/video that the first half of the video had - is there a way to have a similar moment which has more of an auditory punch?
The audio was super high quality but became somewhat predictable as it directly described the video; it could be interesting to re-map the sound to different elements in the video that it doesn’t correlate to.
###Miles Peyton: Japanese 1860’s Protest/Carnival Re-enactments
ali: beautiful work; would love to see/hear more; look this up for sound inpisration;
Very nice timing and looping
GL: I think this would benefit from some wall text that explains the historic protests which this is interpreting.
The visual style is very cool, and something unlike anything else I’ve seen. I don’t enjoy the inclusion of the anti aliasing spikes because they don’t seem to fit in or have structure.
Just when I was going to say I wanted more sound and color - you came right in and delivered! I very much enjoy the experience of the piece. You have a good sense of timing at the start of the video. I think there could be a bit more time of ‘blank canvas’ before the start of each new “sensory sequence.” I also agree with Golan that I would like some synopsis of history of the events this piece is based off of. Maybe if you don’t think it is important to the piece, don’t mention that it was influenced by those events. Put that in your “making of” or something like that but not in your initial summary.
I like the subtle hint of the Japanese reference in the character design, sound, and colors. The English voice and the use of a sans serif font for the countdown kind of counters that though.
The visual aesthetic is very reminiscent of Japanese art, and the protest/carnival setting feels the same. Overall, I think it captures the feel of Japanese culture really well.
I’m not really sure what’s going on, but there is a clear central subject matter. Besides the countdown, the subjects are almost too central (everything is in the center, characters and motion), so it feels like a very direct statement that I am not clued in on.
Renderer looks great, the details are a bit muddled but that is an aesthetic choice.
I don’t know how you’re generating the performance, but if there was a way to have a couple key structured moments that work there way into the general flow so that they serve as touchstones and really give a sense of the gestalt of the piece it would be great
Something with the shadow choices/style are throwing me off - hiding details instead of bringing them out. (Shadows have low Dpi?)
There’s a very special quality about the video that makes it so mesmerizing! I feel like I could totally get lost in the world you created, engulfed by a beautifully eerie environment inhabited by the strangest of creatures.
I’m curious if the framerate is intentional or just due to technical limits
idk if i’m getting feudal japan but idk if i need to
Want wall text.
###Akiva : Panoramic Thermal Cinemagraphs
speaking of “painting”...reminds me of Guernica
intrigued by the idea of thermal fiducial markers
Is the cold liquid pouring off of her face on to her chest, or is she actually drinking the liquid? It would be amazing if there was a way to track the liquid as it went into the body.
Love the possibilities of putting a complex (well, more complex than a smaller framed image) narrative inside a staged panorama, thermal or otherwise.
Shirt fold details with the man front left are phenomenal
Since heat goes hand and hand in motion, would have liked to see all the subjects move.
Awesome work getting this stitch to show up as a panorama - it shows that it must have been a hard technical challenge. Share how you did it! Super curious
Nice job removing the “cooler” parts of the image -- the warm bodies really stand out, and are easily recognizable. The panorama effect makes me think of looking through night vision goggles, being able to see the thermal contrast in the periphery.
I think right now is a bit early to say anything very critical about your piece. Kudos on getting the technology to work! I think the best form of the work is something that reveals something in an image that only your thermal image can see. (It would be cool if you go to a mattress store and take a picture of the mattresses to see which ones have been laid on. Or maybe go to a park right after recess ends and see where the kids had been playing?)
have you considered taking composite photos? this camera + a slr, photoshop them together with a weird gamma filter? (could auto-align them, put a color gradient on the thermal, then use the color blending mode from thermal, with higher resolution tonal information from dslr. Worth experimenting with, but i’d be afraid of losing the sort of pure thermal qualities. gigapan may be a better approach for higher resolution, particularly with staged scene).
Want to see things that I can ONLY see in thermal imaging: e.g. hot handprints ->or maybe portraits of friends vs. couples? (something that may get their blood boiling) or maybe a thermal interview where you get them to feel as embarrassed/uncomfortable as possible? I really like the idea of relating this back to people/portraits
I love how the people look like light bulbs, emitting an energy all their own. Seeing hot-blooded mammals this way gives me a whole new appreciation for these forms literally full of life.
Great start to this investigation. Would love to see you take it further.
###Ryan : Concertmaster
It looks very impressive in terms of technical challenges overcome, but I think the overall effect would be more dramatic had the Pausch bridge been larger/control target was something that resembled the effects rendered on the screen.
Documentation does not adequately show connection between the bridge as affected by the laptop.
Put transparent black rectangles over the non-active part of the screen.
“Gestural control of architectural lighting” -- Play the bridge, not your laptop. Do you really need the local screen? (Ali)
Would love to try different types of control methods/algorithms. One without a delay from dropping the color blobs, perhaps.
The dropping of materials makes me think of playing tetris -- it would be super cool to see what you’ve “dropped” and how what you’re dropping currently builds upon that. Then you could save this as a file (“sheet music”) and replay the piece. Also, I’m curious how the laptop visualization maps to the 2-pixel tall array of lights!
It kind of goes along with your previous project where you mocapped the conductor. Are you interested in these dynamic body gestures and gesticulations? I really like the concept of performing for an outcome and the outcome (in this case the lights) performing for you.
In addition to highlighting the active band, it would be great to know a bit more detail of how you’re generating colors based on hand motions. What connection between the physical motion is causing those specific colors to be generated and dropped.
Super idea! But I think the project could be even more impactful if you could be closer to the bridge. Or clarify which part of the screen colors relate to the bridge colors.
For your video, show somebody looking at the bridge putting their hand out - with no idea what is about to happen. Get the reaction of them realizing they are controlling the lights.
I agree that the documentation needs some work. Also consider using gifs (something easily tweeted) to demonstrate the effect. Also, try talking to Ticha Sethapakdi(+1 she’s really good at documentation) about documentation. She has experience documenting remote controlled stuff. You can maybe have a video of the hands and screen at a corner of the doc vid and a video of the bridge next to it.
Can sound be incorporated? The people walking on the bridge probably won’t notice a difference. If you add a sound component that the bridge goers here they may take extra note of the lights and sounds and how they connect. Clear interactions between the lights and the walkers could also have this effect.
Documentation should be expository, then expressive. Build it up so we can see what’s going on.
I’d love to see the lights being controlled in a way that isn’t the typical “LED rainbow.” The fact that the bridge is so long and narrow creates an opportunity to develop a gestural interface informed by the form of the bridge. Can you “swoosh” water back and forth across the bridge or slide parts of it down and up? Etc...
###Nivetha - Seeing Me. 360
When presenting the work, at the outset describe how you made a collection of panoramic videos, which depict the world from the POV of some of your objects.
I would like to see versions of these videos that last all day. For example as a door most of the day would be rather dull, but when things do happen it would be a big deal. That duration must be a big part of the experience of being an object.
For the front door, it would be interesting to put the camera in the peephole spot - so you get both sides of the door split 180 each. Possible interesting narrative possibilities. (+1)
Did you build the ipad app? Clarify that if you did because that’s great. - or clarify that you can view from youtube on your ipad so others can lookup your videos on their tablets.
There are some interesting implications of lashing this on to all of the devices in our everyday life that have cameras involving spying etc. Or of the view from your stuffed animals (I see there’s a toy one, may that covers the idea).
I want to see the menu of object/places first, that would help me understand the project. The documentation is sometimes confusing as to whether i’m looking at the thing’s POV, or the documentation of the thing’s POV
Putting it onto interactable objects would be the next step (+1)., your toothbrush would be awesome. - if they are portraits of you, i’d be nice to see you interacting with them, not just nearby.
###Michelle Ma - Hand drawn / photogrammetry
mesmerizing.
Wow. Damn. Beautiful.
Breathtaking.
Awesome to see this working, I know you had a lot of trouble getting the photogrammetry. ← yes, kudos.
You could try other photogrammetry software that might yield better results - there are so many out there and each one has its own quirks.
Animating the textures or trying to use the model itself in animation may be interesting
So cool. Time to make a short film?
A slight bump map or specular map on the graphite might add to the effect.
yeah!! never seen anything like this.
i like how the idea for the project came from an insight about photogrammetry (producing uncanny textures), and combining automated + manual/gestural processes
prescriptive comment: i wonder if this could become a form of street drawing
I wish there were some depth of field on the edge of the person, some blurriness. (I disagree, get camera artifacts out of there, keep drawing artifacts)
The left leg texture is a bit misaligned, but I was so distracted by the rest of it being beautiful that I almost missed it :)
Wish the edge were crosshatched. Want you to do it again, but 10 times better: more cameras, model who can sit still better,
Incredible demonstration of photogrammetry mastery - choosing only 11 frames to draw. +1+1
It looks amazing right now! Your documentation of the work looks great!
Wow. What a fascinating project, process, and concept! Simply breathtaking.
kill bill clip: https://youtu.be/UlTYcF9_Zjg?t=114. Also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb-hWG3cHMQ
###Vidya - Thermal Video Capture
Need a stabilizer - tripod! Also, what’s with the composition of the ice rink? Bottom half is the boards? Bah. Get closer to the subject!
The trailing effect is very interesting in itself and maybe other physical mediums would bring that up. For instance, swimmers in water. I’m not sure if the pool is heated though. What other sorts of artifacts may have a trail? Thermal leftovers.
What is the frame rate of these? Is that a limitation of the camera? Jarringly low.
An exploration of thermally interesting spaces. Thermal landscapes. Want to see things that are surprises.
Ali: Want to see comparisons, regular vs. thermal. Want to see things that i didn’t know contained thermal information.
I take it there is no way to get rid of the Flir logo :-(
Scratch deeper! If you’re curious about the reflections, as you said, then go deep into that...
Have you thought about thermal reflections and thermal shadows? I can spot a few of these in your images. They are both secondary images, and thus bringing them into focus could be worth while.
There’s an interesting aura-like white outline around people on the black/white clip at the end. I wonder what that is?
Since you’re in some ways doing a landscape, it might be interesting to find a way to make it into a thermal video loop.
Maybe you could play with decoding the colors in a different way. As in, maybe it could all be in the same shade of purple and yellow and those colors represent hot and cold.
Very interesting how objects of the same temperature have a near-seamless edge.
###Swetha: Georgia O’Keefe Revamp
Congrats on working out the interactivity. But this reads as a proof-of-concept.
What if this is all towards making a 4-second GIF? The right couch, the right model, the right clothing, the right framing and positioning of the monitor?
How does this relate to O’keefe specifically -- her life, biography,?
Really curious on how you were able to animate a 2D painting. More specifically, did you have to render each flower petal individually and then bring it into the image?
Great job taking this project to the next level. Maybe change the music which makes it sound a little childish, which the project isn’t!
Wish the title in the the video were better. “Georgia o’Keefe Revamp” is not a clear, explanatory or even particularly inspirational title.
Would have liked to see this in a better setup/context.
Project feels well executed. I think the suggested changes in context/setup for the documentation video would really let it shine.
i love the humor of opening/closing legs to control a prosthetic flower
the music feels campy, which might not be bad?
I think it would be great if you could redo the documentation. I think it’s taking away from the conceptual aspect of your project. I think you should focus your documentation more towards the core concept of the project.
The "ideal gif" idea that Golan talked about sounds like a great way to go. This is a simple (and I mean that in the best way) idea, so making the way we experience it simple as well will make everything more powerful.
problem report for Adobe CS5?
i personally don’t know about the gif idea. there is some strength to brevity, but the joy of this is seeing people interact with the software you’ve made- silly or not, it is pointing at some real history and gender shit. i think it is fair to give people either interpretation, as well as the experience of playing with this thing in space. (+1) +1 -- Well, yes, but it's not like this project will exist forevermore in some kind of permanent installation. Documentation is how it will live on!
###Liz: 3D Reconstruction from a Single Image
Seems like it could have potential in photo editing software (or is this how it works?) Look up 3D paintings for the blind
Although you started with the idea of creating something 3D from a single image. I’m wondering how these same techniques could be expanded by using small sets of photos. For example combining two or three point clouds (from the light field camera) to create a form that looks good from more than just one point of view.
How manual is this process? are you creating interactive ‘photos’? Algorithms to do the perspective transformation for you to direct towards a selected plane?
Super glad somebody is exploring the creative/novel possibilities of lightfield cameras.
Holy cow! I would like to see this exploration made into a nice video with nice process explanations.
interesting how it only looks right from certain perspectives
I would like a diagram and a better (written) explanation of how you are using the perspective transformation in correspondence with the Lytro imaging.
Good image choice
###Will: Dare To Be Boring
ali: check this research
Not exactly sure what your project is 'getting at'. So, the motion in the CSpan footage (what little there is) is mapped to the spatial placement of the frames; OK, why, or to what end? Can you point to an "insight" about the CSpan content which it's possible to get from your display? A more 'useful' display might dimply chunk the footage into shots.
reminds me of a sorting algorithm for movement
Have you heard of sites and books that have every (or almost every) frame from films. Your layout style might be useful for sorting through large sets of footage.
I think a better video choice would help documentation. Can’t tell the people are even moving or differences between stacks/movement here.
Real time rendering of this video is sort of defeats the purpose of creating this as a summary?
I wonder if there would be some sort of surveillance commentary about how the news records politicians as they’re coming into and out of these meetings, vs how they’re recorded on CSPAN during the meeting time
Maybe you could use videos off of Wikileaks? If you’re interested in the surveillance topic.
Agree with what others are saying about maybe just trying it with a different video choice.
Public vs. Private is an interesting thing to look through, maybe make the video more in tune with paranoia or conspiracy?
This seems like the perfect platform for micro expressions - maybe see how many lies or indicators of lies that can come up in an interview or conversation?
Not sure this is 'surveillance'; not sure this is a legible mapping which works towards visualizing the content. CSpan isn’t surveillance or even "sous-veillance" of the Government; it’s the US Government's public record. For surveillance, I'd want to see babycams, zoocams, dropcams...
###Ben: Lidar Photography, cont’d
Gorgeous. You chose a great subject too since the forest is still and naturally mesmerizing. The fact that there is a black hole in the center of the scene is surreal and fantastic. There are so many themes you could do with circle. One that comes to mind right now is fairy circles.
“Having a conversation with a piece of technology.” (Ben) -- “Wow, you’re really good at talking about this” (Ali)
You’ve been doing great work turning a (relatively) basic lidar device into a super powerful lidar device. In that vein would you be interested in adding color? Perhaps a DSLR attached the the rig and aligned to points.
(I want one.) +1
i want to put my finger/head/arm in the hole. (omg yeah vr with your pov there)
print these. + 1 +2
Keep going! Great investigation. It's clear you've learned a lot, and have been enjoying yourself.
i’m fantasizing about a library of pointclouds generated using this method, from locations around the world. i wonder if people would post their data if you created a tutorial.
So much data… It’s great that you can get this much (and this rich) data. I’m also picturing VR for this or at least some sort of way for viewers to feel like they can walk through the environment. I think you’ve captured something really beautiful and ethereal so the final product should enhance/spotlight this somehow.
I’d love to see a 360 (or vr) video that moves along a track. So capture as stop motion and move your rig an inch between shots. I’d be cool too see the perspective changing (revealing things in and out of the center hole void) as it moves. In other words, I want to move through this space but keep the spherical effects, and be at the center of it.
Uh-mazing. The black hole in the middle + the surrounding ground reminds me of super hi-res shots of pupils + irises : https://www.behance.net/gallery/Your-beautiful-eyes/428809
It’s interesting that the documentation has placed us outside of the scene that was captured, looking through one wall of objects, rather than in the location of the capture device
great documentation photos
Some of the photos have a very similar look pen drawings!
These images feel ephemeral and just stunning!
“continuing to have this conversation with the piece of technology”. Nice.
make a print series? postcards? these would really look nice in print. (Sell them during open studio) Katie Rose Pipkin: Aquarium Rover
It feels like it’s kind of a mini mars rover simulator - interesting idea of creating miniature worlds that we experience through the perspective of a small robot.
How does the user know about the shape/existence of the object he/she is controlling? Might be interested to know this if/when going through holes/ around things, really brings into question how we relate to our environment, existentially.
The image documentation in the Github article is small and not particularly legible.
Golan: Katie Rose, you need to work on your explanations: verbal and visual storytelling.
I disagree with the above, you don’t need to spell things out for a general audience for the artwork to be successful.
Dry ice would indeed be nice.
Plaster forms are “Abstract enough that they become monumental”-- nice. +1
I’m seeing this as a physical version of an exploration game. You don’t tend to see this style of game outside of video games. Is that what you're aiming for? If so I wonder how the excitement of finding new things could last longer per square foot. In other words: how can you place things in the space that take a long time before you fully understand the space.
Is there something to discover in the world? Mysteries? Why bother exploring? What curiosities or world-rules (architectural?) are going to spark imaginations.
###Dan - Burning Time
Focus! At this macro scale, a tilt-shift could give you more focal creativity.
Nice communicating the desired effects of painful slowness -- I’m sure it’d only be much more painful watching the 30 minute clip. The going in/out of focus was great in creating mystery.
The color is throwing me off. Keep it surreal, but get away from those purples and towards the red/orange. (also, any green you can splash in too accompany the moment of money coming into focus?). Premiere’s curves tool will become your friend... i’m sure it already is.
I feel the pain. +1
Perhaps try it with $100 bills for added pain. (I kid.) (That is what Kyle M. said when I showed him)
Wish you could gamma correct, see the darks a bit brighter. Lovely, reminds me of the YouTube fireplaces. That could be a context for you :) (Tomorrow I’m thinking of displaying it with a tip jar filled with the remaining burned dollars and ashes I’ve saved)
Your explanation of your goal could be more clear: Consider the simple statement: “I wanted to see a movie scene from the perspective of one of the actors.”
Compelling concept -- I can’t wait to see all of the scenes :-)
“wendy is always on the opposite side of the camera” - huh? as in, is an actor? +1, I agree, that was poorly explained. GL
Also, Wendy shifts her gaze around. It would be interesting for the Wendy-perspective-cam to adjust accordingly.
Applaud your sense of exploration because this really starts with a question that you were curious enough to explore.
Follow her head or lines of sight. Fake it, but use camera shake to bring in the first person feel.
I love the idea of capturing something to be able to see it from the perspective of that which is captured—it’s not about the object that’s captured, but about what someone else sees from what you see. It’s almost as if you’re projecting her experience down a dimension onto your experience.
It scares me how well the images turned out from using such few photos, with such limited drone flying experience, etc. Nice work! Would’ve loved to see this used for purposes that aren’t reminiscent of surveillance, but props for trying so many different venues!
One of the benefits of using the drone is the ability to fly around something -- it would be nice to see the subject building from multiple sides.
“There were so many places I went to shoot but I got kicked out”.
Mentioned capturing non-permanent structures while looking at footage of an ancient church? Not till the school was mentioned did I get that.
LidarDrone. Awesome. +1!
Lots of learning about getting around regulatory frameworks ….shooting video in parks, abandoned places, etc. Bring some friends...
(bring friends. wear suits. look official. Be con artists.)
Results look really good.
Wow… I feel for ya. It’s hard to find a good spot. It’s incredible how many points you get. I also love how eerie it feels… very similar to the lidar, except you get the subtleties of the shadows and highlights. One question I have is: How does the act of capturing with a drone influence the form which is captured? You must be able to get such high detail up where you wouldn’t normally be able to get it. Would love to see photogrammetry of places higher up where cameras can’t go.
“Nostalgic Loneliness” ... I’m not sure I understand the connection to nostalgic loneliness from a being in a low poly, fresh/unrotted/’new’ halloween pumpkin model?
“You’ll feel more 'submersed' in the environment”. I think you mean ‘immersed?’
I like the idea of doing this under the bed, as well.
A discarded candy under a bed would be quite lonely. Also would offer foreground, middleground, background.
With under the bed, perhaps people’s feet moving past. Something to ignore the candy.
Maybe when you present give us a picture of what an AlmondJoy is. I have no idea but now i understand it is a candy.
if you are inside a pumpkin, you are very small :~)
Wish the scanning of the Almond Joy was better resolution. Blurry.
Under the bed with a bunch of crap would be great to convey that feel. Being with the sole piece of candy could be interpreted as the 1st piece of candy you’ve received, the best piece of candy that you’ve saved for last, etc. Curious how you captured the inside of the jack o lantern.
You could add some lighting and other effects to convey a mood. For example, pumpkins usually have lights within them - could you create that kind of feeling using Unity?
Recommend the location be under a bed (with dust bunnies, old shoes, etc.) instead of the pumpkin, which is just a plain orange ganzfeld.
Using light to represent signal strength is curious because light has behaviors - shadows being casted - that don’t represent signal strength. This then has inherent inaccuracies.
Drone wifi sniffer is a great idea. i like the aesthetic of the pure data as much/more than the images with the maps right now.
I look forward to seeing the final product - should be very nice.
i kind of like the word art / blobworld aesthetic