Installation

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Technical Information

Canal View is an interactive media installation produced through a contemporary approach to interfacing, physical interaction and the development of a software platform.

The work is composed of two projections: the pano-video (panoramic video) of the Grand Canal on the wall of the cloister and the interface projected onto the floor, representing the form of the canal to be covered on foot.

The panoramic video is the fruit of a research project (the entire installation draws its name from the Canal View project) begun over two years ago by Chiara Masiero Sgrinzatto and Luca Nicolò Vasco with the aim of exploring the expressive means and the communicative value of the Grand Canal trip, while providing the most engaging vision possible. This is only the first part of a larger project that will extend to all of the main waterways of Venice.

The first attempt was made in the summer of 2008 and the observations and studies have led to the results presented in this project.

The panoramic video is a collection of interconnected immersive photographs.

The shooting took place, aboard a pattana, on July 10, 2009 between 5 and 6 am, in order to take advantage of the suggestive dawn light and the minimal wave movement.

In order to obtain the highest image quality, detail and versatility of use, the 1659 photographs were taken and then assembled in 553 panoramic images, using specially design optical equipment (the authors explain the entire process in an upcoming article for the NITAL, Nikon Italia on-line review). A tracking of the entire route was kept via a GPS system, thus every photograph is geo-referenced.

Equipment used:

  • 3 Nikon D700 cameras
  • 3 10.5 Nikkor lenses with sawed-off lens hoods
  • Agnos MrotatorR panoramic head
  • BIGAgnos pole
  • Nikon GP-1

The interface and software development was also the result of a research project, carried out by Marco Luitprandi, Giovanni Rosa and Alvise Rabitti, who wish to create a new approach in the field of physical interaction.

The visitors interact by moving through the space with their entire body, without the use of auxiliary equipment for any physical support, thus achieving a cognitive, polysensoral, and engaging experience. Using his or her entire body, without the aid of a touch screen or the movements of single parts of the body, the visitor interacts with the pano-video. Thus, the outcome is an experience of complete perception. Moving back and forth controls direction and speed of perception, while vision is rotated through a left-to-right movement. The body thus experiences complete interactivity without any artificial auxiliary equipment.

In order to guarantee the visitor’s interaction with the interface projected onto the ground, three motion tracking methods have been applied. The visitor’s movements are registered by a digital video camera and examined with Processing. Processing guarantees a dialogue between the information rendered by the video camera, the design and the modalities of interaction between the interface and Adobe Flash CS3 – the software with which KrPanon manages the visualization and the modes of interaction with the pano-video.

In order to produce this installation, two projectors were used: BARCO G8 DLP da 8000 ansi lumen.

Equipment used:

  • 2 BARCO G8 DLP, 8000 ansi lumen projectors
  • 1 digital video camera
  • 1 PC for interface management
  • 1 PC for controlling the panoramic images

Software used:

  • Processing (latest version)
  • KrPano 1.0.7
  • Flash CS3

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