The Paddler Autumn/Fall issue 2017

ThePADDLER 22
Having said that let’s come back to reality. As
mentioned, this camera has been around for a
year now and back then you would have shelled
out near £200, which even then was a bargain.
However, look around now and you can
purchase this camera for less than £100, which
considering all the accessories you get with it –
makes it an absolute steal and a fun device on
which to cut your VR teeth on.
As with all VR cameras, there is something to
bear in mind before you’re ready to view VR
material: it can be a long winded process to get
there. Firstly, you have to convert the 360
degree footage for that 360 experience using
software like SYMAX360 that can be
downloaded from http://symax360.com.
Open your video, select ‘high’ quality and wait for
the bar to hit 100% as it transforms your video.
You can then edit your video using standard
video edit software, however before you upload
to YouTube you have to run your video through
another process with a piece of software that
injects metadata to make sure you get the full
on 360 degree VR experience. It is free and can
be downloaded here:
https://github.com/google/spatialmedia/releases.
After that you’re ready to
upload and view your results.
The Immerse Duo
So the original 360 was released a year ago and
as mentioned, came with lots of goodies in the
box, one of which is a waterproof case, good for
a depth of 30 metres. Then Kitvision released the
Duo version of the Immerse earlier this year but
curiously without a waterproof case, which limits
its use. However, if you intend to stay clear of
white water, eskimo rolls, etc, I don’t see it as
presenting too much of a problem.
Indeed I would encourage the use of the 360
Duo on calm water as the VR experience is a
leap above the standard 360.
The Duo has two lenses front and back, which
gives you a full-on 360 degree video with no
blank areas.
Although still not 4k, the quality of the recorded
image on the Duo is undeniably a level above
that of the original single lens 360, with the extra
lens capturing a more immersive range of
footage - the advantage of the twin lens.
The Immerse 360 Duo comes with some great
accessories, three of which instantly catch the
eye: the flexible tripod, the wrist mounted
remote control and the cardboard VR headset
on which to view your footage.
The flexible tripod is really neat in the way you
can wrap its bendy legs around anything.
Combined with the wrist remote, it really comes
into its own. Wrap it around a branch
overlooking your favourite run, hit the remote
and off you go. There are no limits and stability
can only be a good thing where sometimes only
the slightest of camera wobble can induce a
feeling of sickness, especially in 360 degrees!
Another really good area for the tripod is to try
it with time lapse in mind – you’ll look very
professional.