GreatWar360 Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 This summer I took 375 panoramas above the battlefields of the Western Front, and they are displayed here: https://GreatWar360.com I need to get annotations and narrative text for most of them, so I still have a lot of work to do. This page is an example of what I envision for all the pages: https://GreatWar360.com/s-of-apremont/ I hope you find it useful and interesting, and a different way to experience the battlefields. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Cross Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Looks blooming good at first viewing ! MC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John P. Moore Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Looks very interesting to me. The descriptions at the bottom of the page were especially appreciated. Hope to see more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simond9x Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Excellent! It'll certainly be a valuable and interesting resource when it's complete. The only thing I might suggest (and it may just be a problem with my PC) is perhaps to size the panorama to automatically fit to the screen size (if that can be done). When looking at the Apremont panorama, I couldn't see the top and bottom of the photo at the same time. [Edit - just noticed that there's an icon at the top right to make it full screen...... perfect!] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatWar360 Posted 5 November , 2019 Author Share Posted 5 November , 2019 I contacted my panorama host, because the annotations don't work in full-screen mode, so that definitely needs to be fixed. Haven't heard back from them yet, but they said they should definitely be working in full-screen mode. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Maria Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Very interesting , thank you . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonMc Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 That's amazing work - thank you so much for the effort you are putting into this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 You have robbed me of my leisure time for the forseeable future! But thank you. (I think...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 This looks amazing!! Thanks for your work! M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HenryTheGerman Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 You did a great job - phantastic, many thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neill Gilhooley Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Amazing. The "Watch in VR" must be impressive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genegwf Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Really good stuff, thanks for your many hours and hard work. Gene Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aengland Posted 5 November , 2019 Share Posted 5 November , 2019 Looks excellent.... looking forward to seeing more of the same. Well done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteStarLine Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 What a great site - well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b3rn Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 A fresh approach, and effective. Great work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Feledziak Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 Great work. I am currently reading "To Conquer Hell" - The battle of Meuse Argonne 1918 so a good many of your "hats" give a true OVER-VIEW of the locations. Keep up the good work https://greatwar360.com/s-of-apremont/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard_Lewis Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 Well done! Bernard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dundeesown Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 Very Very Nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fattyowls Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 GW360 I am deliberately trying to avoid going on the site because it is so compulsive that I would be on all day. I haven't been to the US sites for decades and this is nearly as good (and in some ways better) than being there. It is an excellent piece of work that will be of huge interest. Thanks for all your efforts. Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug504 Posted 6 November , 2019 Share Posted 6 November , 2019 Excellent work, have posted a link on my twitter to help spread the word. If you ever have time it would be interesting to see how you achieve the images, equipment used etc. Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatWar360 Posted 7 November , 2019 Author Share Posted 7 November , 2019 Doug, I have a DJI Mavic Pro 2 drone. I knew I wasn't a good pilot and knew i didn't want to be taking video and creating Youtube videos, so when I discovered the panorama feature, it really interested me. I practiced in my neighborhood making sure I could really capture the photos correctly, and that the settings were right to make the spheres. Then I started plotting GPS points in Google maps either from famous panorama positions from the past, or ones that I knew were over some really key spots on the battlefield. Some areas I didn't know too well, so I missed some good locations, but oh well. That's why you really have to study before a trip so you're completely prepared to take full advantage of being in the field, and hope the weather cooperates. The process takes 33 high-resolution photos, then I have to upload the RAW files, work with them in Adobe Lightroom, then save them as TIF files . The next step is stitching them with this Microsoft Image Composite Editor. Then you have to modify that stitched image again to make it exactly 2:1. This means adding some sky, because you didn't capture much sky during the process. This part I hate the most, because you have to stretch the sky you did capture, or completely Photoshop it out and add some stock background sky. I don't have time to do that for 375 of them. I can always go back and redo some, and fix some of the stitching glitches. Next is uploading them to a provider, adding the GPS location (thankfully the exact coordinates are captured with the photo!), compass headings, logo, annotations, and then taking that embed link and creating a page on my website that displays the panorama from other provider site. Then I can add some narration for that area to tell what happened. I also have the main sector sites with the map that shows the icons of each panorama, so that was a lot of work as well. Now that everything is up there, it's just a matter of trying to get interesting annotation/callouts inside the panoramas, and then interesting narration down below that to really tell the story of what happened in the area. Without those it's just pictures of farmland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Michelle Young Posted 8 November , 2019 Admin Share Posted 8 November , 2019 Any plans to do some on the Loos battlefield? Having just come back from Cambrai I'm enjoying those ones. Michelle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Feledziak Posted 8 November , 2019 Share Posted 8 November , 2019 (edited) Yes please the brick stacks would be most joyfully received. Very difficult even now to get the Feel for the place. I have been Google earthing but it does not do the job. But I suspect there is far too much work already in the panos already posted. Edited 8 November , 2019 by Martin Feledziak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatWar360 Posted 10 November , 2019 Author Share Posted 10 November , 2019 Dangit, I didn't realize how much good stuff was near Loos. I didn't know the Artois and Cambrai places very well, and was having to Google in my hotel the night before, trying to find important areas. Then you realize just how massive the war was on the Western Front, and just how much there is to learn. No wonder some people prefer to specialize in a particular area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertBr Posted 10 November , 2019 Share Posted 10 November , 2019 Just looked at SE of Farbus. It threw me for a moment as the initial view is NE. Rotating 180 deg and looking down the railway it was great to be able to identify Bailleul Sir Berthoult the cemetery and sunken track where my Grandfather probably was during the Mars Offensive. Then there is Arleux, Oppy Wood and the encroaching industrailisation near Point du Jour. I have many photos of the battlefield but your work has helped to put the northern zone of the battlefield into perspective. Great work Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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