Splat Journal

Algorithmic imprints of disappearing spaces

Tag: media archaeology

  • French Alps — Ghost artifacts on the ski trail

    French Alps — Ghost artifacts on the ski trail

    Field notes — Orcières Merlette, Hautes-Alpes, French Alps

    → English below

    Les skieurs qui avancent sur la piste créent des artefacts qui révèlent les limites de ce que l’algorithme peut reconstruire à partir d’éléments en mouvement dans le dataset. Capture réalisée à ski, caméra sur perche balancée de gauche à droite, un geste pour élargir le point de vue. Ce mouvement pendulaire introduit une variation latérale dans le dataset, mais aussi une instabilité propre au dispositif : flou de mouvement, changements d’angle rapides, reconstruction partielle des alentours.

    Ghost-like traces in the reconstructed scene. Skiers moving ahead on the trail create artifacts that reveal the limits of what the algorithm can reconstruct from moving elements in the dataset. Single-path capture on skis, camera swung left to right on a pole, a gesture to broaden the viewpoint. This pendular motion introduces lateral variation into the dataset, but also instability inherent to the device: motion blur, rapid angle changes, partial reconstruction of the surroundings.

    1 — Interactive 3D viewer

    Gaussian Splatting — navigable scene (SuperSplat viewer)

    2 — Training timelapse

    Gaussian Splatting training — 48k iterations (PostShot, × 20 timelapse)

    3 — Traveling through the reconstructed scene

    Traveling through the reconstructed environment — Unreal Engine, XV3DGS plugin

    Training

    Method: Gaussian Splatting (PostShot)
    Images: 962
    Splats: 1.6M
    Iterations: 48k
    Alignment: RealityCapture — 898 aligned images

    Processing

    Post-clean: none

    Capture

    Camera: Insta360 X4
    Projection: equirectangular
    Capture duration: 2:00 min
    Location: Orcières Merlette, Hautes-Alpes, French Alps — outdoor / ski resort

    4 — 360° capture excerpt

    Source footage — Insta360 X4, equirectangular projection, swing motion, 2:00 min

    5 — Scene captures

    Ghost artifacts — skiers ahead on the trail | viewpoint-dependent reconstruction
    Distant valley — reconstruction instability | out of focus
    Radiance field frontier — lateral view
    Radiance field — top view, abstract capture

    Part of an ongoing research on reconstruction instabilities and viewpoint-dependent artifacts in Gaussian Splatting.

    Nicolas Mimault, Bagnolet / Paris · nmimault@gmail.com

  • French Alps — Avatar gameplay & Single-Path Scene Reconstruction

    French Alps — Avatar gameplay & Single-Path Scene Reconstruction

    Field notes — Orcières Merlette, Hautes-Alpes, French Alps

    → English below

    En se déplaçant dans la scène, l’avatar fait apparaître la structure même de l’archive : les splats se dispersent à son passage, révélant la nature instable et construite de la reconstruction volumétrique, proche d’un souvenir qu’on peine à saisir. Capture réalisée à ski dans un paysage de montagne ouvert, caméra sur perche balancée de gauche à droite — la reconstruction ne capte que ce qu’un seul passage avec la camera 360 en mouvement peut voir.

    —

    As the avatar moves through the scene, it reveals the very structure of the archive: splats scatter at its passage, exposing the unstable and constructed nature of volumetric reconstruction, like a memory we struggle to hold onto. Skiing through an open mountain landscape, camera swung left to right on a pole, the reconstruction captures only what a single moving path can see with a 360 camera.

    1 — Avatar interaction & particle forces

    Avatar interaction & particle forces — Unreal Engine / TouchDesigner
    Music: John Lemke — Vessel

    Interaction

    Player interaction: Unreal Engine — XV3DGS plugin
    Particle system forces controlled via TouchDesigner — MIDI to OSC

    Training

    Method: Gaussian Splatting (PostShot)
    Images: 962
    Splats: 1.6M
    Training iterations: 48k steps
    Alignment: RealityCapture — 898 aligned images

    Processing

    Post-clean: none

    Capture

    Camera: Insta360 X4
    Projection 360: equirectangular
    Capture duration: 2:00 min
    Location: Orcières Merlette, Hautes-Alpes, French Alps — outdoor / ski resort

    A terrain experiment extending the volumetric research beyond urban spaces — into open mountain landscapes.

    Nicolas Mimault, Bagnolet / Paris · nmimault@gmail.com

  • Morocco — Reconstruction instabilities & accidental autoportrait

    Morocco — Reconstruction instabilities & accidental autoportrait

    Field notes — Drâa Valley, Morocco

    → English below

    Pour ce rendu, la capture a été limitée à un seul aller-retour dans une ruelle étroite de la Kasbah. Cette contrainte met en évidence les instabilités de reconstruction liées à la qualité de la captation et du choix du dataset. Les artefacts algorithmiques qui apparaissent dépendent du point de vue de l’observateur. Ici, un autoportrait involontaire est reproduit : mon visage émerge dans la scène selon la position de la caméra.

    —

    For this render, the capture was limited to a single back-and-forth path within a narrow Kasbah alley. This constraint highlights reconstruction instabilities linked to capture quality and dataset selection. The algorithmic artifacts that appear are viewpoint-dependent. Here, an unintended self-portrait is reproduced: my face emerges within the scene geometry depending on camera position.

    1 — Interactive scene

    Gaussian Splatting — navigable scene (SuperSplat viewer)

    2 — Traveling environment

    Traveling through the reconstructed environment — Unreal Engine

    Training

    Method: Gaussian Splatting (PostShot)
    Images: 597
    Splats: 2.0M
    Iterations: 60k
    Alignment: RealityCapture — 572 aligned images

    Processing

    Post-clean: none

    Capture

    Camera: Insta360 X4
    Projection: equirectangular
    Capture duration: 1:06 min
    Location: Kasbah Oulad Othmane, Drâa Valley, Morocco — outdoor / desert

    3 — Gaussian Splatting training

    Gaussian Splatting training — 60k iterations | Images: 597 | Splats: 2.0M (PostShot)

    4 — Raw 360° capture

    Source footage — Insta360 X4, equirectangular projection, 1:06 min

    5 — Scene captures

    Gaussian Splatting Kasbah - A blurred landscape featuring a path leading through rugged terrain under a blue sky.
    radiance field frontier
    Gaussian Splatting Kasbah - A person standing in a narrow, rocky pathway surrounded by blurred earthy tones.
    accidental autoportrait
    Gaussian Splatting Kasbah - An abstract representation featuring a blurred blend of blue sky, rocky terrain, and natural elements, creating an impressionistic landscape.
    abstract captures top/bottom view
    Gaussian Splatting Kasbah - Narrow dirt pathway between traditional adobe buildings under a clear blue sky.
    Potshot training capture

    Part of an ongoing research on algorithmic artifacts and the limits of volumetric reproduction.

    Nicolas Mimault, Bagnolet / Paris · nmimault@gmail.com

  • Petite Ceinture — Avatar interaction & local field deformation

    Petite Ceinture — Avatar interaction & local field deformation

    Field notes — Petite Ceinture & Bridge, January 2026
    Paris, 12e arrondissement — 06.01.2026

    → English below

    Tests d’interaction en vue à la troisième personne dans deux environnements Gaussian Splatting reconstruits sous Unreal Engine : la voie ferrée de la Petite Ceinture et le pont adjacent. L’avatar se déplace dans le radiance field — l’espace réagit localement à son passage, produisant des déformations spatiales le long du trajet. Exploration des comportements de forces de particules appliquées à la navigation dans des espaces réels reconstruits.

    —

    Third-person interaction tests inside two Gaussian Splatting reconstructions in Unreal Engine: the Petite Ceinture railway and the adjacent bridge. The avatar navigates through the radiance field — the environment reacts locally to the player’s movement, producing spatial deformations along the path. Particle force behaviors applied to navigation in reconstructed real-world spaces.

    1 — Third-person avatar interaction

    Avatar interaction & local radiance field deformation — Unreal Engine
    Petite Ceinture & Bridge, Paris 12e

    Training

    Method: Gaussian Splatting (PostShot)
    Images: 938 + 625
    Splats: 2.0M
    Iterations: 150k
    Alignment: RealityCapture — 850 + 572 aligned images

    Processing

    Post-clean: none

    Capture

    Camera: Insta360 X4
    Projection: equirectangular
    Location: Petite Ceinture & Bridge, Paris 12e — outdoor / snow

    2 — Particle dispersion on avatar passage

    Splat dispersion along avatar path — Unreal Engine

    3 — Particle dispersion on avatar passage

    Splat dispersion along avatar path — Unreal Engine

    4 — Particle dispersion on avatar passage

    Splat dispersion along avatar path — Unreal Engine

    Exploring interactive navigation within the SAMPLE(S) volumetric archive.

    Nicolas Mimault, Bagnolet / Paris · nmimault@gmail.com