A SCOTTISH filmmaker is pioneering the way in which we understand wildlife conservation and how animals live in their habitats through a unique 360-degree virtual reality experience.
The Edinburgh-based filmmaker, Elaine Ford who owns the immersive studio Electrek Explorer, has combined 360-degree filming with virtual reality technology to place viewers at the heart of nature.
Ford, who was inspired by the natural world, wanted to offer people a different perspective to view a variety of species and habitats from across the world in a “sensual experience” like synaesthesia.
The filmmaker works with conservation scientists and park rangers to learn about different animals, their homes and where to capture the best shots.
Ford (below) explains the filming is to “raise awareness of the importance of connected landscapes and ecological connectivity” and it is something she is passionate about sharing.
Some of the environments she has recorded include the rainforests in South and Central America, tropical jungles of Southeast Asia, the Mediterranean and coastal routes across Scotland.
One main opportunity for filming in virtual reality is the unique learning aspect of being able to place the viewers right in the middle of an animal's habitat.
Ford said she had taken the virtual reality headset to Edinburgh Zoo where visitors were able to come face to face with exotic animals from all over the world in an intimate learning experience.
She said: “Being at the same eye level as that animal, you feel like you're a part of that landscape and you're part of the animal's world.
“You learn and kind of start to get to know the different species of different animals and their habitats, and feel more connected in that way to the natural world.
“Suddenly people realise that we're sharing the planet with so many other species and this kind of experience really lends itself to being able to evoke those kinds of connections.
“Like from an emotional point of view, it's awesome because you're right in that environment, right at eye level and you're seeing the animal interact.”
Ford’s most recent expedition was to the Indonesian island of Komodo where she filmed Komodo dragons.
Best known as living dinosaurs, they are the world's largest venomous lizard, and are living fossils.
She explained that filming can present its challenges as Ford acts as a director to find the best shots of the animals for her films.
“The dragons have been known to attack people, so it definitely was a tricky one,” she said.
Ford uses wide-angle lenses which usually provide a 180-degree viewpoint and then uses specialist technology to stitch the footage together to make it a full 360 degrees.
This provided spectacular footage where the viewer can be up close to the dragons and look fully around their habitat as they move around them.
“It's super interesting to see how different animals respond differently to the cameras, and how some species just don't notice it at all,” she said.
“When I was in the Okavango Delta the zebras saw [the camera] as like a glint, like the light would catch the lens just slightly, and I think they saw it as an eye.
“They were very cautious of it at first.”
Ford added: “Then there were wild dogs, and they were so curious about it. They were puppies and were pouncing up to see what it was and exploring.
“Then they decided to destroy the camera.”
Sky and Sea Scotland's Sea Bird Sanctuaries is a project closer to home which Ford is working on and is about Scotland’s international significance to sea bird conservation.
There are more than 350 species of sea birds across the world, but they are the fastest declining group of birds.
Scotland is home to more than five million seabirds and Ford wants to showcase its incredible sanctuaries and natural habitats to some of the country's most iconic species like puffins and gannets.
By capturing sea birds in 360 degrees, Ford hopes it can be upscaled from a VR headset to be viewed in a dome to a large group of people, like school classes, for a more interactive learning experience.
She said accessibility is a big part of the project too and wants to look at ways to improve access to nature for people.
Ford believes that being more immersed in these environments will help create a better understanding for people and can ultimately lead to building greater conservations for the natural world.
