‘Robotic’ video studio targets online content

StyleShoots Live is a fully automated studio that captures still life and high-resolution video and automatically exports it, ready for online, social media and in-store digital signage.
 
LookDepot, a curator of retail solutions, is bringing the most exciting technology release for retailers in years to Australasia. StyleShoots Live, which was released in Europe last month, is a fully automated studio that captures still life and high-resolution video and automatically exports it, ready for online, social media and in-store digital signage. 

The robotic ‘smart studio’ is operated using an ipad, with no need for a photographer, videographer, lighting expert of editing suite. 

It’s the answer to retailers who need a constant flow of high quality imagery and video content to satisfy the demand of consumers.
“Online shoppers are prepared to buy online – but they need the right visual information to do this. You’ll notice major retailers overseas are now including at least four images of a garment on their ecommerce website: front, back, side and close-up detail shots, so that would-be buyers can get a clear idea of what it is they’re buying and how it will look in real life,” explains LookDepot managing director, Andy Mackie. 

The latest best practice is to include a video, showing what the garment looks like on a moving model. 
“It might be showing the swish of a skirt or the movement of pleats in a dress – a short video offers a virtual tactile experience that online shoppers otherwise miss,” says Mackie. “We’re seeing video is being the strongest trend on websites and social media such as Facebook and Instagram – StyleShoots Live makes it easy to achieve ongoing content for this. Sharing video on a brand’s social media channels is a powerful way of storytelling and bringing your consumers on that journey with you.”  

Video also increase the chance a consumer will hit that ‘Buy now’ button, with 52% of shoppers are more confident in their purchases when shopping with video content, 57% of consumers saying they’re less surprised when receiving products after having seen a video and are less likely to return them, and 62% of consumers discover new products through watching videos on their social news feeds. 

Businesses can use StyleShoots Live to produce high-quality video for websites, digital signage for bricks and mortar stores, and content for YouTube channels, Facebook accounts, Instagram accounts and more. It produces fully edited video content within 5 minutes.  

StyleShoots Live was an immediate hit with retailers, with 20 units sold prior to the official launch into the European market in July. 

The smart studio is equipped with robotic lighting, a Canon 1DX Mark II camera, and machine intelligence for shooting, processing and exporting photos and video automatically. A variety of technologies then make technical decisions, adjusting lighting and camera settings as necessary to shoot content that matches customized styles specified by the brand.

The resulting content is automatically processed, including things like cropping images to certain aspect ratios or stitching together multiple videos. The final content can then be reviewed by the human in charge and, if approved, exported for various platforms. A human is given control over the entire process via a built-in iPad Pro with a Live View mode of the model.

LookDepot has the exclusive distribution license for the StyleShoots Live machines for Australasia and Singapore markets. Mackie has already had expressions of interest from large ecommerce brands in both New Zealand and Australia, who have been looking to streamline their content creation and cut costs, while continuing to push the boat out in terms of quality and quantity. Cotton On, Billabong and The Warehouse already own other machines by StyleShoots, but this is the first machine with video capability.  

For further information go to www.lookdepot.com