Software-based Method for Assisted Video Creation

Abstract

The invention allows for a first set of persons to create and modify templates that contain visual effects, synchronization information, and possibly director assistance. These templates are utilized by a second set of persons to generate personalized motion photo videos from photographs, video segments, personal narratives or animation. Motion photo videos are a novel because they very quickly and inexpensively allow (1) persons to create and modify templates which are synchronized to music and may be easily populated with content by others, and (2) persons to select a song and associated pre-made template and create a high-quality synchronized custom video using hand-selected visual material to populate the template with included direction and without any required editing. Populated material in template can be further modified by additional persons instantly generate new, modified motion photo videos.

1 . The use of a template providing visual direction on a display to guide a user in the selection of an existing image or sequence of images to be placed in the template. 
     
     
         2 . the method of  1 . where the template is displayed using software residing on a processor enabled digital device such as a personal computer, web server, phone, or other computing device that provides a visual representation and where the template may include sample images and music synchronized with a given template. 
     
     
         3 . the methods of  1  or  2  where multiple templates reside on the device and provide the user with a choice of one or more templates and where the templates may be related to a particular theme, song, mood or event. 
     
     
         4 . the methods of  1 ,  2  or  3  where the template includes instructions specifying inter-image transitions such as image-to-image fades or intra-image transitions such as pan and zoom effects and where the transitions may be synchronized to music. 
     
     
         5 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3  or  4  where the templates are downloaded through a wired or wireless connection from a database of templates that may reside on a server or are downloaded via the internet to a client type computer. 
     
     
         6 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4  or  5  where the user is assisted in the selection of an image or sequence of images relative to subject positioning with regard to backgrounds, landscapes or other subjects 
     
     
         7 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5  or  6  where the user is assisted by visual indicators shown on the display of the device, including the use of shapes to dictate the placement of a subject, such as position of the subjects eyes relative to a particular location and where the location may include a sample image with the location indicated. 
     
     
         8 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 , or  7  where the template is synchronized with music and where the music is played for the user as part of importing images or image sequences into the template and where the combination of music and the template aids in the selection of an image, selection of a transition effect or some additional modification to the image, such as a transition from gray scale to color or transitions between multiple images taken in a sequence. 
     
     
         9 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 , or  8  to arrange or organize a selection of previously captured images in a palette and where the images are selected according to criteria associated with the mood, song or theme of a given template and where keywords or labels associated with a set of images are used to select and arrange them for importing into a given template. 
     
     
         10 . the methods of  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 , or  8  where the template suggests the use of multiple images taken at different settings where the settings may include depth of focus, shutter speed, ISO level, flash intensity or synchronization or focal point or where additional software recognizes or organizes images based on depth of focus, shutter speed, ISO level, flash intensity or synchronization or focal point. 
     
     
         11 . the use of methods  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 , or  10  where software is used to graphically display a template with a sample image and a media player is provided that synchronizes the images transitions to music and where additional images may be provided to show the beginning and end of the intra-image transitions such as a pan or zoom effect and where the media player may be used to view the inter-image transitions from sample image to sample image, such as fade effect, style or rate. 
     
     
         12 . the use of methods  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10  or  11  to generate a motion photo video consisting of a sequence of images synchronized to music, stored in the form of a software object, where the object may be a video or the set imported images with a computer instruction set to specify the template style or transition effects. 
     
     
         13 . the transfer of a motion photo video in method  12  or template object used to generate a motion photo video in method  12  from one device to a another digital device such as a computer, phone, television, frame, digital book, printer, disk drive or digital media such as a DVD, CD, flash or USB based memory device through wired or wireless communication. 
     
     
         14 . the embedding of the motion photo video or populated template object resulting from method in  12  in a personal or commercial webpage, either through the direction of the user or automated through software residing on a personal computer, web server, or other computing device. 
     
     
         15 . the sending of the motion photo video or populated template object resulting from the method in  12  to another person via email where the object is sent or a link is sent where the object can be downloaded. 
     
     
         16 . the use of methods  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 , or  8  that includes the purchase of a song or some form of a digital media license for music, where the music is associated with or linked to a given template or where the sending of an object or link of an object to another person results in the purchase of a song or some form of a digital media license for music 
     
     
         17 . the transfer of the motion photo video object resulting from method  12  through wired or wireless communications from one device to another. 
     
     
         18 . the viewing of the motion photo video object resulting from method  12  on a display such as a television, digital frame, digital book, phone or personal computer display. 
     
     
         19 . a strategy for selling music that includes the provision of a visual template synchronized to a particular song that allows images to be imported by a user, where the synchronization is in the form of software that specifies inter-image and intra-image transition effects. 
     
     
         20 . a strategy for selling digital display devices for displaying the motion photo video object resulting from method  12  and where the display may include electronics that communicate with other electronic devices to receive the motion photo video object through a wired or wireless connection. 
     
     
         21 . a strategy for advertising products or services by displaying or broadcasting the motion photo video resulting from method  12 . 
     
     
         22 . the use of method  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10 ,  11 , or  12  to create an advertisement that may be co-sold or co-branded with a particular song or that may be related to a specific template. 
     
     
         23 . the method or  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10 , or  11  where one person creates the template specifying a sequence of visual effects and a second person utilizes the template to select images to which the visual effects are applied in order to generate a motion photo video resulting from method  12 . 
     
     
         24 . the method of  23  where a template may be created by one person, where the template may be modified by one or more additional persons, and where the images are selected by a third person, where the third person uses the modified template to select content to be placed into the template to create a motion photo video resulting from method  12 . 
     
     
         25 . the method of  23  or  24  where one person selects images to be placed into a template to generate a motion video resulting from method  12 , and where a second person may replace one or more images in the resulting template object, and where a new motion photo video is generated from new content in template object by the process described in method  12 . 
     
     
         26 . the use of methods  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10 , or  11  where an update is applied to a template which causes the initial motion photo video created by earlier versions of the populated template object to be updated with the changes to the template object, which may include changes to timing, inter-transition bins or their effects, or other visual effects, where the same content used by the person to generate the initial motion photo video in method  13 , along with the modified visual effects from the update, is used to generate the new motion photo video. 
     
     
         27 . the use of method  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10 , or  11  where the template is generated with the aid of a a visual representation of the music, such as a frequency transformation, energy or volume profiles at a particular frequency, lyrics in text form, amplitude or volume of a vocal track, which assist the user in determining bin properties, inter-bin transitions or intra-bin transitions with respect to the music. 
     
     
         28 . The use of a template software object that contains one or more bin software objects, each of which that has one or more child objects associated with it such as an image, inter-bin transitions, intra-bin transitions, speech annotations, background or text, where the bins are part of a template object which schedules the display of images with any visual effects associated with the bin at the time prescribed by the template software object or bin object, where the template object is used to create a motion photo video, and where images in bins may be determined by or replaced by users, manually or automatically, to alter how a template object is populated and generate new motion photo videos. 
     
     
         29 . The use of method  28  where the properties of the bin software object, such as intra-bin transition effects or timing of the bin, may be modified by a person so that a third person may populate, manually or automatically, the modified template object with images or additional audio to generate a new motion photo video. 
     
     
         30 . An apparatus, such as an accelerometer based device that aids the user in selecting visual effects such as intra-bin transitions or inter-bin transitions associated with the music as part of generating the template objects used in methods  23 ,  24 ,  25 ,  26 ,  27 ,  28 , or  29 . 
     
     
         31 . The licensing or selling of the template object created in methods  1 ,  2 ,  3 ,  4 ,  5 ,  6 ,  7 ,  8 ,  9 ,  10 ,  11 ,  26 ,  27 , or  28  by one person to another person.