Invisible selfie stick
Also known as: invisible selfie stick effect, invisible stick
A thin pole that vanishes from 360 footage because it sits in the blind spot between the two lenses, so the shot looks like a hovering drone.
Updated
What it means
A 360 camera has two back-to-back fisheye lenses, and the software blends their images along a stitch line. A thin pole held exactly in line with the camera body falls into the narrow zone that neither lens fully sees, so after stitching it simply disappears. Insta360 made the effect famous, but GoPro MAX and other dual-lens cameras behave the same way.
The payoff is a third-person shot of yourself with no visible operator - the camera seems to float beside you. Combined with reframing, one take on a long stick can be turned into a chase angle, an orbit and a top-down view in the edit.
How it works in practice
The trick only works when the stick is coaxial with the camera: screw it straight into the bottom thread, keep the pole thinner than the camera body, and skip chunky ball-heads or clamps. Lengths from about 70 cm to 3 m are common; longer poles give more of the drone look but are harder to hold steady.
Keep the pole and your hand on one straight line under the camera - any angle pushes the stick out of the blind spot. Let FlowState and horizon leveling smooth out the swing. Skiers and riders also fix a selfie stick to a backpack so it trails behind them, creating a classic follow cam angle without a second person.
What to watch out for
The stick disappears, but its shadow does not. In low sun a long dark line can stretch across the snow or water beneath you, so check where the sun sits and avoid framing toward the shadow. Gloves, straps and tangled cables near the camera also leave smudges along the seam.
A long pole is a lever. In wind or at speed it bends, wobbles and puts real strain on the thread, so use a tether and check the joints before every run. If you only need a steady flat shot, a Gimbal or a regular action camera is often simpler. Some resorts and trails restrict long poles in crowded areas, so check local rules.
How RawClip handles it
Invisible selfie stick shots are recorded as 360 files, which RawClip does not read directly. Reframe them in the Insta360 app or Insta360 Studio and export flat MP4s first; the AI can then pick the best moments from those exports together with your regular action-camera clips.