technology’s specifications to large media companies to equip their cameras to shoot video in the new format. “We want to establish immersive video in news, sports, travel, fashion, and advertising,” Dennis says. The company is working with some NBA teams to help them capture the courtside experience during games. The technology can also be used, according to Dennis, to offer a front-row experience at concerts.
Live streaming of such immersive footage is also under development, he says, and may be ready by year’s end. He believes that by showing the world what professionals can do with his technology, it will drive demand among consumers who take their video shoots seriously. “We still have to develop some new technology to allow an efficient workflow for the consumer to be able to do this,” he says.
Just a few weeks after demoing his technology at TechStars, Dennis is now busy establishing a west coast office for Condition One in Palo Alto. The company is looking to hire 3D graphics engineers and other technical staff in California but will maintain its east coast operations. “Most of our business development, sales, and partners are in New York,” Dennis says.
He will have the chance to show off Condition One’s technology in an even bigger arena the International Consumer Electronics Show in January. Dennis pitched his company’s technology last month at the NY Tech Start-Up Classic competition during CE Week in New York and won exhibit space at the huge consumer electronics conference, which is held every year in Las Vegas.
Some business owners speak allegorically about being in the trenches as they fight to build their companies. Dennis, a combat photographer and videographer, has seen the grim reality of war firsthand. He shot the film Hell and Back Again, nominated for the 2012 Academy Award for best documentary, while embedded with U.S. Marines in Afghanistan. The film won the grand jury prize and the cinematography prize at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. His photos of military action in Afghanistan and Iraq have also appeared in Time, Newsweek, and The New York Times.
Dennis says the idea for Condition One emerged while he shot footage that would be used in Hell and Back Again. Wanting to capture the experience of Marines who go to war and then face challenges after they return home, he was frustrated by the limits of traditional technology and platforms. Though photos can convey strong messages, Dennis says he thought something was being lost. “After having my images published for some time, I felt they were losing their impact,” he says. In fall 2010, he assembled engineers and designers to develop Condition One.
As more mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones are used to play back video, Dennis says, he sees a growing opportunity to bring a new perspective to the medium. “We’re really not pushing the capabilities yet,” he says. “We’re just scratching the surface of what video and communication will become.”
