[GM Notes] Interview with Unikornu, an Adventurer with a Good Eye!

GM Notes Jan 26, 2024, 18:44 (UTC) Interview with Unikornu, an Adventurer with a Good Eye!

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Captivating Memories!

Greetings, Adventurers!

We are back with a legendary adventurer from Europe!

GM Polly here! It has been a while since our last feature! In 2024, we are kicking off the new year with a new interview, one which I am sure will capture your attention hehe🤭. We started this series in 2023, a series that is meant to honor those among us who have had significant impact on the game or have exceled in particular areas of the game, and letting them tell you all about their exploits. It has been some time, but our last interview covered another EU Adventurer, Whiten, who is a SUPER lifeskiler. Today, we bring you the very first episode of 2024! Today's interviewee is someone who excels in a very particular field: Screenshots!
Let's find out more from this heralded adventurer, Unikornu, an adventurer with a proclivity to capture all the wonders of Black Desert, both serene and monstrous!

GM Polly

Hello, I am GM Polly, and today we have a very special guest! Would you please care to introduce yourself to our readers? 😊

Unikornu

Hello! I am Unikornu. A fellow BDO adventurer since 2021, and a screenshot hunter that is constantly looking for new subjects to take great pictures of!

GM Polly

A good screenshot hunter if i may say, I have had the pleasure to vote on your screenshots among others for a long while now. It is always nice to see them in the pool.

GM Polly

So, we know you enjoy taking screenshots in game, but does this mindset also apply to the real world? Do you enjoy taking photographs outside the game as well?

Unikornu

Actually this is the funniest part. A lot of people think I do photography in real life, but I have actually never taken a single picture with professional camera. The desire to do it in game is mostly because of how nice it is to actually, not only see the details of game that are so dynamic in BDO, but also capture memories of it to look back at in the future.

GM Polly

😯Oh! Is it because of the expensive nature of getting into the hobby? or does it just not really interest you?

Unikornu

It actually does not interest me. I think I prefer to just take everything in real time with my eyes and enjoy the moment. I never felt the need for it outside of the game. I might regret it though when I get old, I guess, when my memory won't be as sharp 😄

GM Polly

Yea, I am usually the same pretty much. I don't really care to take pictures, though I might just to show my mom if there is something super cool while traveling, I suppose.

Unikornu

Yes. Exactly this. Keeping it just for family. Let's not forget to take a lot of pictures of our dog! Never enough of those.

GM Polly

True! I'm a cat photo enjoyer though uwu

GM Polly

But what about in BDO? What is your favorite subject to capture in the game?

Unikornu

Currently, it's world bosses! And pretty much any monster in the world that looks dangerous, cool, and might as well kill me while attempting to capture them. I really enjoy taking screenshots of a chaotic environment as I cannot predict what happens and the results can be sometimes very surprising in a nice way. Also, I guess I really enjoy the challenge of it too. It is easy to take pictures in towns where everything is colorful and safe. If I manage to get through a fight and snap pictures at the same time, the satisfaction is just so big that it truly makes me happy.

GM Polly

Ah, a seeker of danger I see 😏 That's interesting, I wouldn't have guessed that!

Unikornu

No pain No gain!

GM Polly

I can kind of relate, I spent several days leading up to the release of LotML fighting the bosses while trying to capture screenshots for marketing purposes 🤣
It was very painful.

GM Polly

I suppose there were also screenshots of the landscape I got to take as well, which were a lot more peaceful!

Unikornu

Oh the moment they released LotML, I dreamed of taking pictures there, but then I realized we cannot turn off the UI and there went my excitiment. But I didn't give up! There're still plenty of other bosses!

Unikornu

Ahh yes, the landscapes. It was a great challenge for me as I realized that, among all my action screenshots, I lack scenery experience and, I gotta say, the Morning Light delivered me a great challenge indeed with astonishing results.

GM Polly

There are a lot of really nice landscapes in LotML for sure!

GM Polly

Aside from subject, what is the most important thing, in your opinion, when it comes to taking screenshots in game?

Unikornu

Three things actually: Patience, curiosity and luck. Without patience I wouldn't be able to sit for hours before we received the screenshot tools update and capture my very first action pictures. Curiosity because, without it, I wouldn't truly expand the topics of my pictures and would just do the same thing over and over again. And, lastly, luck because BDO is all about rng, even in screenshots :)). One blurred pixel or running adventurer might just ruin it all.

GM Polly

Ah we need that new smartphone technology where it gets rid of those pesky photobombers 😆

Unikornu

Exactly! To my own luck, at least, I have photoshop to deal with it at times :))

GM Polly

But yea, I think it is a very good thing to expand your subject area/focus so that you yourself don't get bored as well as providing something new for people to view.

Unikornu

Not just people, but for the GM's and CM's as well; to always provide them with all the material that might be needed. Or just to show off to friends how great BDO still looks as an MMO of already pretty old age. And I think its just great to stop at times and see everything close up, like our pets, for example. We never pay attenton to them when grinding and spinning in circles all day, yet they look so cute and beautiful when looked at in a different angle.

GM Polly

Thank you, I agree that BDO still holds up really well after all these years! And true! The pets deserve some attention too, they work pretty hard 😭

GM Polly

For some people, taking screenshots can be a little bit difficult, especially when trying to utilize the various tools provided in the UI. What is a piece of advice you would give to other players to instantly improve the quality of their screenshots?

Unikornu

I would say, take your time and experiment. Its not a race but something that everyone interested has to find his own style in. When you just follow rules or try to go with some screenshot formula/settings, you won't enjoy it as much unless realize what u like and expand on it further. My first screenshots were pretty simple, but on each attempt I tried something new to see if it makes my eyes happy and, overall, presents what I want to show. I think also one shouldn't schedule himself a screenshot session, but take in moments when, suddenly during their gameplay, they see something beautiful and worth capturing to them. So, quality I say grows itself as one takes more and more screenshots, but take them while enjoying the surroundings. They might even tell a story sometimes!

GM Polly

Hmm yea, I would agree experimentation is very important. When I paint, I like to experiment a lot actually; to some degree, if you were to watch me the whole time, you might think I have no idea what I am doing lol 😝

GM Polly

Also, I super agree with the enjoyment part, my enthusiasm for something directly affects how it turns out usually. Which is why I hated art school, I don't want to draw 30 staircases Mr. Teacher 😵

Unikornu

Hehe and that's why i don't think about what I want to take a picture of! It just happens as I play.

GM Polly

Yes, random inspiration can be really important for sure!

GM Polly

Well then, I don't think I have any other questions. Is there anything you want to say to our readers?

Unikornu

Yes! There is one last ingridient to add on top of everything in taking and enjoying pictures. Consider your BDO friends who can sometimes inspire you greatly and lend a hand in the matter. And with this ocassion, I wanted to give a shoutout to such a friend from EU: DaniRS, who has been my screenshot helper for the past 3 months and has added a lot to my motivation in the bad times I have been through. As for other screenshot enjoyers: never be afraid to leave the safety of town and go explore, as there are many great things to capture in this beautiful game. Get inspired and save the momeries of the place you spend so many virtual hours in, it might be nice to look back at them someday ❤️

A big thank you to everyone who enjoyed reading the interview,
and special thanks to Unikornu, who was willing to talk with us!

Unikornu

Hey wait! Polly asked me to share some of my favorite screenshots I have taken over the years, here are my top 6!

GM Polly

My favorite is the Kzarka one!

Unikornu

Thank you!!!!

To all those who are out there right now, take the time to take in the scenery, whether it be in BDO or outside and appreciate what you have!

Take care, everyone, and see you in the next interview!

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