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friends or foes?

  • friends

    Votes: 3 8.6%
  • foes

    Votes: 32 91.4%

  • Total voters
    35

Unami

macrumors 65816
Jul 27, 2010
1,359
1,564
Austria
i hate those black pillarboxes - at least make three copies of the video to fill the screen.

if playback devices like tv's or computer monitors werde vertically oriented (or the videoplayer of popular websites would not comfort video to a fixed aspect ratio), vertical videos would make more sense.

but as it is, it's just a waste of good space and most of the time someone showing that he/she has no clues about filming.

plus, human field of view is more horizontal orientated than vertical.

i still vote "friends", because like anything in film, you can use it to your advantage, if you know what you're doing (just rotate the goddamn TV by 90 degrees an make a vertical movie)
 

Arran

macrumors 601
Mar 7, 2008
4,856
3,801
Atlanta, USA
If these videos are meant to be artistic expressions, then it's somewhat petty to criticize the format or orientation. We should be judging the content, the message.

That said, plenty of folks are preoccupied with orientation. Maybe because there's no meaningful content to discuss? :rolleyes:

I didn't vote because it's not a clear-cut issue.
 

Jessica Lares

macrumors G3
Oct 31, 2009
9,612
1,056
Near Dallas, Texas, USA
People should take video more seriously and flip their phone to the side. We didn't have a problem holding camcorders that weighed five pounds back 20 years ago did we? Why do we have such a problem with just changing the way we hold our phones?

Everyone has a right to artistic expression. I've seen animations done in vertical mode that were great. But that really shouldn't be the "thing", it makes you break a lot of rules that destroy the whole mood of what you're capturing. Everything's either going to feel very cramped, or there's going to be a lot of dead space. Both of those things are easily fixed... Gasp... By simply turning the damn camera the correct way!

The way something is shot has EVERYTHING to do with the message. You can take a picture of something a thousand times - at different angles, lengths, exposures, etc, etc, and every time, it says something different. And that is why it's important for people to use their cameras the way they're designed to be used and to follow the most basic principles of composition.
 

needfx

Suspended
Original poster
Aug 10, 2010
3,931
4,247
macrumors apparently
plus, human field of view is more horizontal orientated than vertical.
definitely correct

i still vote "friends", because like anything in film, you can use it to your advantage, if you know what you're doing (just rotate the goddamn TV by 90 degrees an make a vertical movie)

sounds like a forum challenge

That said, plenty of folks are preoccupied with orientation. Maybe because there's no meaningful content to discuss? :rolleyes:

the example posted may not have been of a meaningful theme, but it would have definitely been best served in horizontal orientation allowing the entirety of the cosplay in the frame; something the recording user in this case did not oblige to. It was a mindless, spur of the moment recording, someone might suggest, or maybe smaller mobile devices are more safely handled in portrait when partly hanging out of a moving car. Or sustained consumption of media via that orientation.

Is vertical orientation taking over? How doomed are we?

People should take video more seriously and flip their phone to the side. We didn't have a problem holding camcorders that weighed five pounds back 20 years ago did we? Why do we have such a problem with just changing the way we hold our phones?

Everyone has a right to artistic expression. I've seen animations done in vertical mode that were great. But that really shouldn't be the "thing", it makes you break a lot of rules that destroy the whole mood of what you're capturing. Everything's either going to feel very cramped, or there's going to be a lot of dead space. Both of those things are easily fixed... Gasp... By simply turning the damn camera the correct way!

The way something is shot has EVERYTHING to do with the message. You can take a picture of something a thousand times - at different angles, lengths, exposures, etc, etc, and every time, it says something different. And that is why it's important for people to use their cameras the way they're designed to be used and to follow the most basic principles of composition.


Maybe apple will address this issue and save digital humanity by automatically repositioning the camera lens & sensor to horizontal. Front facing camera too. We need more horizontal selfies.

there's also an app for this, but it heavily crops the image
 
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Small White Car

macrumors G4
Aug 29, 2006
10,966
1,463
Washington DC

Notice, though, that this video was made 2 years ago. A lot changes in technology in that amount of time.

I loved that video back then but now that I do a LOT of video watching on iOS devices. I always believed that you should shoot for what the display will be. Back in 2012 that did usually mean TVs and laptops. But now that's not always a given.

When I'm shooting something that I know will be viewed on an iPhone I find vertical video to be quite nice sometimes. What's an example of that? Well, FaceTime, for one. Or if I'm shooting something that will be iMessaged to someone with an iPhone and then never played in again.

Yes, those are minor cases, but it's a heck of a lot more uses than I had a few years back.

I still detest vertical video on televisions, but as I find more uses for video that I know will never see a TV, my views have softened. I expect them to keep changing as the technology changes too.
 

Arran

macrumors 601
Mar 7, 2008
4,856
3,801
Atlanta, USA
the example posted may not have been of a meaningful theme, but it would have definitely been best served in horizontal orientation allowing the entirety of the cosplay in the frame; something the recording user in this case did not oblige to.

Or maybe the artist wanted this particular, cinéma-vérité-in-the-smartphone-era look? Added authenticity?

Probably not, but who knows?
 

Tomorrow

macrumors 604
Mar 2, 2008
7,160
1,365
Always a day away
When I'm shooting something that I know will be viewed on an iPhone I find vertical video to be quite nice sometimes. What's an example of that? Well, FaceTime, for one. Or if I'm shooting something that will be iMessaged to someone with an iPhone and then never played in again.

I watch videos on my iPhone in landscape mode as well. I even use FaceTime in landscape. Portrait makes no sense to me for video.
 

Small White Car

macrumors G4
Aug 29, 2006
10,966
1,463
Washington DC
I even use FaceTime in landscape. Portrait makes no sense to me for video.

Even for single people?

Not sure I understand that. What's so important around the side of their heads that you'd rather see that instead of their body?
 

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Tomorrow

macrumors 604
Mar 2, 2008
7,160
1,365
Always a day away
Even for single people?

Not sure I understand that. What's so important around the side of their heads that you'd rather see that instead of their body?

Single AND married people, although I'm not sure why that matters. :confused:

It's FaceTime. If I really feel the need to use it to see someone's body, I can simply have them sit farther from the camera. But as it's been pointed out in this thread, many people are accustomed to viewing a screen horizontally, because even without a screen we typically view and process the world around us horizontally. It's just more comfortable to look at.

(As an aside, when you're FaceTiming with someone, you see their picture depending on how THEY hold THEIR camera, not how YOU hold YOURS.)
 

Small White Car

macrumors G4
Aug 29, 2006
10,966
1,463
Washington DC
Single AND married people, although I'm not sure why that matters. :confused:

I just find this more comfortable

picardvertical.jpg


Than this

picardlandscape.jpg


Obviously having a second person in there changes that, but with just one I'd rather see more of the person and less stuff around the head.


(As an aside, when you're FaceTiming with someone, you see their picture depending on how THEY hold THEIR camera, not how YOU hold YOURS.)

People tend to match what they going on. I find that if I hold the phone vertically they'll often do the same.
 

JustinePaula

macrumors 6502a
Mar 14, 2012
644
269
I hate Vertical Video, it makes no sense, but I am afraid that Mr Jony Ive is the biggest fanboy of Vertical video, his ipad from 1-to next Gen are all Vertical Video compliant, that is the audio sound the best when played in a vertical or portrait orientation.

Until Mr Ive changes this, then we have to accept that Apple Inc is Vertical Video based!!!
 

JustinePaula

macrumors 6502a
Mar 14, 2012
644
269
If you use headphones, then use landscape orientation!
If you use on board speakers, then use portrait mode!!

It seems that Mr Ive and his band of less than skilled engineers were incapable of placing two tiny speakers in a landscape orientation, not sure what the reason for this is, other than Mr Ive loves Vertical Video or we need to use headphones, if the latter is true, then for the love of pears, why is there a speaker system that has a stereo playback???

I wonder of Mr Ive had a stroke a long time ago, not diagnosed...Something just does not make sense..
 

Parkin Pig

macrumors 6502a
Oct 23, 2009
670
141
Yorkshire-by-Gum

This video pretty much sums up my feelings too, Screens that are impractical/impossible to orientate are horizontal, while a phone is so easy to use horizontal for both filming and viewing. I don't think that Apple's poor design of sticking the speakers on one end should should even enter the equation - it's just poor design.
 

rei101

macrumors 6502a
Dec 24, 2011
976
1
The iPhones already should have a n option to always record horizontal even if you hold it vertically. I mean... they are always adding crap that no ones needs.
 

Zwhaler

macrumors 604
Jun 10, 2006
7,113
1,619
The iPhones already should have a n option to always record horizontal even if you hold it vertically. I mean... they are always adding crap that no ones needs.

That's a good idea, though I'm pretty sure it has to do with the orientation of the camera sensor and cannot be accomplished with a simple software feature.
 

rei101

macrumors 6502a
Dec 24, 2011
976
1
That's a good idea, though I'm pretty sure it has to do with the orientation of the camera sensor and cannot be accomplished with a simple software feature.

Yes, I am sure of that too. But those are the kind of features that I see are extremely necessary that Apple do not pay attention too. THAT would be innovation... not making things thinner or "trash can" looking. :s
 

Pakaku

macrumors 68040
Aug 29, 2009
3,150
4,470
The problem isn't the layout of the video, it's the fact that there are black borders on the sides. Too much wasted space and it looks horrible.

If Youtube could detect the size of the video, and adjust itself accordingly to remove any letterboxing, there wouldn't be any problems. Youtube isn't a physical screen, it's a virtual window on a website, so there shouldn't be any excuse not to do that.
 

JustinePaula

macrumors 6502a
Mar 14, 2012
644
269
The headcase,sorry I mean VP of Design, Jony, has declared Vertical Video as the standard for video and audio playback on ipads! This was a decision made when the ipad was approved for sale, so until this decision is explained and reversed and all ipad with Vertical Video reclaimed and replaced with stereo landscape playback, then the standard will remain the official Apple standard.
 
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