suggestions and tips for Theta V video capture

[SwirlyBird]

I have a Ricoh Theta V camera and read that outdoor images can be uploaded to Maps Via SV.  

What are some specific tips for this? .....Ride bike down the street using a helmet mount and capture the neighborhood, etc.?

I thought most images from the view from most streets have already been captured. I just don't want to duplicate what's already uploaded.

Thank you,

Charles

[davidcox]

@CharlesS yes it is true and the concept is in Beta. You shot video and post it to Streetview app and it grabs and converts 360 pictures and then places them on the map and then connects them. So now places not mapped can be done by walking, bike, ski, kyack ect so people can explore a place the cars do not go. Here is a link to the announcement.  Not everything is perfect but it is very close.  There is a thread of discussions regarding how to use it and some settings.  The theta V is the only one right now to use. It is locked down so you can not edit the video before posting to Streetview app I think because they do not want to tamper with the images or doing color correction. Right now you can not edit the nadir either.  I am not sure the point system is defined or announced yet for this type of contribution.  It does take time to do but you produce a  lot of pictures and cover way more area than single shots.  Here is a link to a sample shot. This section has both Theta S shots that were mapped and my New Theta V shots that go much farther. When you click on Pegman you can see some of both shots if you go south from this point. The old ones are the summer shots. Sunny days look best and changing the camera settings for exposure helps.  I am going to put together a  full list of what settings and process works for me and hope to learn more.

[RobertMartinez]

Hello, @davidcox I am thinking about purchasing the Richo Theta V just for this feature. I need to update the actual StreetView of the front of my client's locations. How fast can you travel while recording? Have you tried this on a vehicle instead of on a helmet? Also, how long did it take from the time you uploaded it until the time it was published? Thanks in advance for your help!

[davidcox]

@RobertMartinez Travel speed is about 30 MPH and another contributor has quoted 70 kilometers and I have not converted it. At too high a speed it tends to get blurry. The second effect is the linking of the resulting panorama does not work well, so then you have to go back and reshoot. I have not done car mount since most of my shooting is in areas that have been well covered.  If I had to do one quick I would take a long selfie stick and shot with it out the sunroof.  I have done it with riding a bike and that worked well for me.  Here is a shot where I have done some work for a dentist. Now he has his branding in the parking lot for all visitors to see. I have gone on a sidewalk and you can hop from the sidewalk to Google Car shots and back. You need to click the other side of the street but you do get off the sidewalk into the road. Here is a bike shot up on the sidewalk. I think there will be a great market for this and need to get out and contact new stores or buildings to let them know of the service. I have not tried to displace a Google shot but and sure it will be based on being an earlier date.  I find they go live is 24 to 48 hours with full navigation. Individual shots will start to show up in an hour. 

If you need it I can reshoot a small section of road to update what Google Streetview has since it is now very different. When you can shoot with the thin edge of the camera into the sun.