Nothing beats seeing a concert in person, but YouTube is trying to make the experience as close as possible by experimenting with different camera angles of the same video, which it calls Choose Your View.
YouTube has a video sampling the new feature of a live show by artist Madilyn Bailey performing for YouTube’s Music Night. The different camera angles show up on the right side of the video, and users can press the corresponding number of the left and right arrow keys to switch between camera views. The current video showed four different angles of the concert. However, each camera isn’t in a fixed position, so the different views are not static.
The effect isn’t exactly seamless. Switching to a new angle makes it seem like the singer is stuttering the last half- to one second before the video resumes normal playback. Then again, YouTube is still experimenting with the feature, so there’s room for improvement in the future.
Now this type of feature is best suited for concerts, but considering the vast amount of content available on YouTube, the multi-angle feature might be hit-or-miss. Watching your favorite YouTube personality in different angles doesn’t improve the experience necessarily, but on the other hand, product reviews or tutorials of any kind could benefit from the new tool.
Those who want to try out the feature for their YouTube channels can sign up for the program and see if it enhances the experience or is an unnecessary feature.
