Introducing the Gigapan

A New Type of Content

Content marketing is evolving swiftly and with it new and exciting types of content are emerging. We’re all used to text based content, videos, podcasts and photos – so what’s next? The gigapan is a relatively new type of content that still has the novel factor attached to it – and it’s fun to look at and play with.

What Exactly is a Gigapan?

Gigapans are massive digital images consisting of billions of pixels. They are interactive, panoramic images – so they’re zoom-able and movable. From cityscapes to big events (like President Obama’s inauguration) the detail is remarkable.

View original image HERE

View original image HERE

GigaPan was formed in 2008 (as an offshoot of a collaboration between researchers at NASA and Carnegie Mellon University) and the technology employed by the equipment is similar to that employed by the Mars Rovers.

How Does it Work?

A gigapan image is made up of thousands and thousands of photographs, stitched together using GigaPan Stitch Software. You’ll need a robotic mount on which to place your camera (the mount supports a wide range of point-and-shoot cameras and DSLRs).

Your camera is mounted onto the heavy duty “robotic tripod head” and photos are taken of the top left corner and bottom right corner of the whole image – this sets the markers for your camera. The mount then moves your camera to take all the shots in between the markers, however many there may be.

All the separate photos are then combined, creating an enormous gigapan image.

Want More?

Have a look at the 360Cities site for more interactive imaging.

Get Involved

All the new technologies available to us, from 3D imaging to panoramas, creates a whole new window of opportunities for content marketers. If you employ the correct methods your content stands the chance of going viral.

There's a world of high value content out there and the time to get involved is now.

Coming up: Next week’s article will cover Virtual Reality Panoramic Images.

Sound Idea Digital is a full service digital marketing agency that specialises in content marketing.

info@soundidea.co.za | www.soundidea.co.za | SoundIdeaDMA