How to Edit Insta360 360-Degree Video for a First-Person Perspective

In this article, I will explain how to edit 360-degree footage captured with Insta360 and customize viewpoint transitions. Specifically, it focuses on how to control the visuals to show the user what you want through pre-edited viewpoint movements, so that HMD users can experience the footage naturally without having to move their necks. This allows users to experience first-person footage naturally while remaining facing forward.

Limitations and Solutions in Insta360 Studio

When exporting 360-degree video for HMDs using Insta360 Studio, control over rotational direction is often insufficient, which can cause discomfort due to unnatural viewpoint tilting. Specifically, when a user turns their head, the movement may not align with the viewpoint transition in the video, leading to an unnatural experience.

To solve this issue, we use Adobe Premiere Pro and the GoPro FX Reframe plugin to finely customize viewpoint transitions. This allows for free control over the rotation and movement of the viewpoint, resulting in natural transitions.

Requirements

• Insta360 Studio
• Adobe Premiere Pro
• GoPro FX Reframe plugin (install beforehand)

Steps

1. Import footage into Insta360 Studio

First, import the footage captured using Insta360 Studio. Since two .insv files are generated per recording session, import them together.

2. Stabilization Settings

In the Stabilization settings, turn on the items at the top. However, keep Direction Lock off. This allows you to freely edit the viewpoint movement using Adobe Premiere Pro in later steps.

3. Adjusting color and audio

Adjust the vividness of the video colors or apply audio noise reduction as needed. These adjustments are not mandatory but are useful for improving the quality of the video.

4. Export as 360-degree video

When exporting the video, select the 360-degree video tab and increase the bitrate to set it to high quality.

5. Import footage into Adobe Premiere Pro

Import the MP4 file exported from Insta360 Studio into Adobe Premiere Pro. From here, you will begin customizing the viewpoint transitions.

6. Create a sequence and apply GoPro FX Reframe

Create a new sequence and apply the GoPro FX Reframe effect to the imported footage. This plugin is a tool that allows you to freely edit the viewpoint movement of 360-degree video. Please ensure the plugin is installed beforehand.

7. Preparing to edit the viewpoint (Yaw, Pitch, Roll)

From the Effect Controls, click the stopwatch icon for each parameter of GoPro FX Reframe—Yaw (horizontal rotation), Pitch (vertical rotation), and Roll (tilt)—to enable keyframes. This allows you to record viewpoint changes over time.

8. Adjusting Yaw, Pitch, and Roll

Use Yaw, Pitch, and Roll to adjust the viewpoint. In this step, we recommend temporarily changing the Projection setting to FHD or 2D video. This allows you to adjust the viewpoint while checking how it will look when viewed in an HMD.

How to handle heavy editing in Premiere Pro

If editing 360-degree video in Adobe Premiere Pro is too heavy, it is also effective to adjust the viewpoint (Yaw, Pitch, and Roll) in Insta360 Studio beforehand and record those values. Viewpoint adjustment in Insta360 Studio is relatively lightweight, making the editing process more comfortable.
The Yaw, Pitch, and Roll values recorded in Insta360 Studio need to be converted when entered into Adobe Premiere Pro. Please convert and enter the values as follows:

• Yaw: -Yaw (invert the sign)
• Pitch: -Pitch (invert the sign)
• Roll: Roll (as is)

By performing these conversions, you can reflect the viewpoint adjustments made in Insta360 Studio directly in Premiere Pro.

9. Editing viewpoint transitions using keyframes

Add keyframes at the specific moments you want the viewpoint to move within the video to control the transition. To make the movement look natural, add "in" and "out" keyframes at the start and end of each transition.

10. Final Export

Once you have finished setting the keyframes, change the Projection back to the original source image and export the video. Check the preview window during export to ensure that the viewpoint changes are being applied correctly. If they are not reflected, you may be exporting the source image by mistake, so please re-verify your settings.

With these steps, you can now smoothly edit the viewpoint transitions of your 360-degree video from a first-person perspective.