Content marketing for Dataton
Video mapping, projection mapping, 3D mapping, spatial
augmented reality or plain old mapping, the technology has plenty of names but
the effect can be summed up in a single word: wow! We take a quick look at what
it is and when to use it.
From static object to captivating experience
At its very simplest, projection mapping is the art of
making multiple projectors work together on a surface to create amazing visual
displays. By playing video, animation or graphics off different shapes and
textures, the practice creates a captivating experience of light and movement
over previously static objects.
Also known as ‘spatial augmented reality’, ‘3D mapping’ or
‘video mapping’ the technology can transform everyday objects – cars, cakes,
metro tunnels, airport terminals, entire city districts, even water – into
interactive displays. In skilled hands, projection mapping will paint entire visual
stories, fantastical illusions and immersive environments - delivering
additional impact combined with stagecraft lighting effects.
Mapping has a long history but has experienced a surge in
popularity and accessibility in recent years. It's used in a wide range of
applications – from projecting colour and design onto cars in an auto showroom
or elevating product at an international trade show, to providing an ambient
backdrop synchronous with the beat of an EDM concert or the atmosphere at
a sports stadium. Most commonly, we see the technology being used to transform
entire building façades or public spaces into art on a vast scale.
The tools
The essential tools for projection mapping are
self-evidently a series of powerful projectors and software (like WATCHOUT)
which maps the coordinates of objects in relation to the projectors,
aligns multiple projections together and controls all the hardware. The
XYZ orientation, position, and lens specification of the projector are used to
determine a virtual scene. Opaque templates can be used to ‘mask’ the
exact shapes and positions of the different elements of the geometry or space
of projection. Bringing 3D models straight into the software helps creators
design and visualise more complex projection mapping shows.
Advances in high-lumens and high-resolution projection
technology – up to 8K and beyond – and increasingly sophisticated software have
driven the creative possibilities of the technique. Crucially, reductions in
price mean the technology has moved from the budgets of a rarefied few into the
hands of any venue owner, advertising brand, design agency or live event
specialist.
A short history
Disney is credited with pioneering the use of projection on
three dimensional objects in its Haunted Mansion display at Disneyland in 1969.
Two decades later it patented a system for digitally painting an image onto ‘a
contoured, three-dimensional object.
By the late 1990s the technique, then called Spatial
Augmented Reality, was the subject of academic research into futuristic office
environments. The definition*, according to Henry Fuchs, Ramesh Raskar and
Greg Welch, was: "In Spatially Augmented Reality (SAR), the
user’s physical environment is augmented with images that are integrated directly
in the user’s environment, not simply in their visual field. For example,
the images could be projected onto real objects, using digital light
projectors, or embedded directly in the environment with flat panel
displays."
Jump forward to the early 00s and artists like Oliver Bimber
began to explore its potential for superimposing images onto paintings. Video
projection-mapping gained wider prominence through guerrilla advertising and
has subsequently become a staple of campaigns for the world’s largest brands in
major cities across the world.
Different surfaces, same technique
Mapping can be loosely split into two kinds: on 2D where you
projection map flat surfaces such as screens, walls, ceiling and floors to
amplify the event space, or on 3D objects, often curved, cornered, or otherwise
irregularly shaped (like the mapped polar bear shown opposite), to create
interactive displays. Especially the latter is capable of creating mind-bending
effects through warping content around geometry with a control software,
letting images take on physical form.
Mapping requires edge-blending to ensure a seamless effect.
Geometry correction and blending multiple projectors seamlessly on a complex
surface can be a tedious and time-consuming task. Using an automated camera
projection alignment system can save time and energy for both initial
calibration and recalibration.
Map for Impact
Mapping content to an object comes with its own set of
technical, creative and budget challenges. But as many artists and marketers
have realised, it adds extra dimensions, enhances ambience, reinforces
messages or simply creates the ‘Wow’ factor which leaves an audience breathless
and taking away a positive impression of brand image. Even better,
content, themes and branding created for projection mapping make an event
portable, completely customisable – in any space – and unique. Any object can
be specifically created for the sole purpose of being projected on – a feat
where the only limit is the imagination. Just take a look at Shogyo Mujo
developed by BARTKRESA studio and Josh Harker, as an example.
Creative and skilled use of projection mapping delivers far
more memorable impressions than traditional forms of media and renders the
world around us as a digital canvas.
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