News Media in construction
For at least 11,000 years, the human race has been making, building and constructing.
And just as techniques have developed rapidly, so have our ways of ‘telling the story’ of individual projects through multimedia.
From time-lapse and site monitoring capture, to aerial photography and video, these advancements in technology have revolutionised day-to-day operations on-site and have breathed new life into marketing campaigns.
Time-lapse now commonplace
As a leading provider of time-lapse and site monitoring solutions, we are proud to have now captured on sites for all the UK’s top contractors on crucial construction projects across the country.
This highlights the extent to which time-lapse equipment has become a familiar element on construction sites. Professional bespoke camera systems provide optimum image quality of activities on-site, built for all manner of internal and external environments.
Professional services tailor each camera system to the specific needs of each project. Available for hire, each system incorporates specialist technologies that are often as complex and intricate as the environments that they are built to oversee.
In the usually very crowded, busy environments they operate, it is impractical to gather an accurate visual record of developments on-site from the ground (as well as the angle of capture not being desirable). Time-lapse camera systems can be securely fixed into all manner of positions, and with the relevant professional assistance, innovative measures can be taken to ensure that even the most difficult of projects can be captured in the right way without missing a thing.
Remotely does it
Remote capture is an added benefit of a professional service, as access to the camera system is only ever necessary upon installation and de-rig, and perhaps occasionally when the camera system changes position.
Secure networks allow images to populate a secure online server in real-time and camera settings can be monitored and adapted as needed. Online viewing portals also mean that there is potentially at least one pair of eyes on the action at any given time.
These innovative and remote methods adapting time-lapse photography make construction monitoring an assured practice. Viewing on-site activity as it happens guarantees control and accessibility.
Aerial innovations
Although time-lapse capture is flexible in terms of how and where it can be applied, sometimes the visual perspectives needed for a particular construction site can be enhanced using other modern technologies.
The use of drones in the construction industry is on the rise for the creative and practical benefits that they can provide. Proven to be cost-effective and efficient tools, drones – also known by their ‘proper’ name, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) – equipped with HD cameras and sensors which can generate a more comprehensive view of projects.
Aerial solutions as a wider genre have revolutionised the pre-construction phase of jobs in this sector. Precise data retrieval, as well as the performance of potentially hazardous tasks no longer require on-site personnel or as rigorous health and safety regulations.
With a bird’s-eye view of the construction environment, drone technology makes surveying practices easier and can cover a larger surface area. When combined with the capacity for 360° photography and video, drones considerably enlarge the frame of reference available from the camera lens.
Particularly in metropolitan landscapes like London, where construction developments are constantly in progress in heavily concentrated locations and/ or across a vast expanse of land, aerial solutions can retrieve visual results that accurately reflect the scope of large-scale projects.
360° technology also enables a level of interactivity with this type of digital media. Clicking and dragging on a 360° image allows the user to control how they view and interact with the particular content, as if carrying out their own tour of the area in question. See an example of how this method has been used in relation to project developments at Nine Elms in London.
Perfect for promotion
Such visually impressive content has shaped how construction developments are mediated. Video marketing campaigns are given fresh momentum by inviting new perspectives on building methods that date back for centuries.
Most professional time-lapse and site monitoring services include post-production as standard. Skilled editors create visually engaging narratives from the high volumes of images collated over the course of a particular project, which can be tailored to the specific aesthetic requirements of your brand.
Time-lapse allows construction developments of any duration to be condensed into bite-size, shareable content without having to omit any important details – perfect for this multimedia, digital age.
Since the advent of the Internet, new lines of communication have opened wherein images play the most instrumental role. Construction work can now be viewed and shared on websites and a whole host of social media platforms, potentially engaging new audiences on a global level and thus boosting appeal.
The modern media discussed here are by no means the only examples of how such technology is reshaping the construction industry. The practical and creative innovations that are now available do encourage new ways of thinking without completely abandoning more traditional modes of construction and documentation.