In a world where droves of people are paying a premium at the movie theater to wear funny looking glasses, the 3-D craze was bound to seep over into the world of television. That’s right; CaptionMax can add 3-D media to its long list of ‘things we’ve made accessible.’ And we’ve got the good folks at NASA to thank. NASA Launchpad, I see you–sorry, Avatar references are soooo last fall.
But back to the task at hand. What the heck do I do with snazzy 3-D video of cool NASA equipment when describing it for the blind and low vision?
Step one, of course, is to put my 3D glasses on and get blown away.
Step two, take a step back. Remember, I’m describing everything, not just what seems like it’s popping off the screen in 3-D. I’m describing things like the L.E.R., the Lunar Electric Rover—and I quote my description here–“with its rounded, window-lined front cabin resembling a gunner’s turret on the nose of a bomber.”
Step three, pepper in some of those snazzy 3-D effects: “As the vehicle travels, dust and rocks fly up and forward, popping off the screen in 3-D.”
Step four, ask the experts. I smell a focus group session coming on, Consumer Advisory Board!
I’ll post again with input from blind and low vision viewers.
For now, check out Desert Rats in 3D for yourself from the NASA eClips YouTube site. (This video is not posted with our audio description yet.)