WYFIWYG: Investigating Effective User Support in Aerial Videography

TL;DR

This paper introduces WYFIWYG, a novel quadrotor camera tool that simplifies aerial videography by enabling scene-based design, exploration, and smooth target framing, informed by user practice and improved algorithms.

Contribution

The paper presents WYFIWYG, a new user-centered quadrotor camera system with enhanced algorithms for intuitive motion and trajectory planning, bridging expert workflows and end-user accessibility.

Findings

User study shows improved workflow with WYFIWYG

Enhanced algorithms produce smoother, more intuitive camera motions

Design implications for future quadrotor videography tools

Abstract

Tools for quadrotor trajectory design have enabled single videographers to create complex aerial video shots that previously required dedicated hardware and several operators. We build on this prior work by studying film-maker's working practices which informed a system design that brings expert workflows closer to end-users. For this purpose, we propose WYFIWYG, a new quadrotor camera tool which (i) allows to design a video solely via specifying its frames, (ii) encourages the exploration of the scene prior to filming and (iii) allows to continuously frame a camera target according to compositional intentions. Furthermore, we propose extensions to an existing algorithm, generating more intuitive angular camera motions and producing spatially and temporally smooth trajectories. Finally, we conduct a user study where we evaluate how end-users work with current videography tools. We conclude by summarizing the findings of work as implications for the design of UIs and algorithms of quadrotor camera tools.