Use any camera you want when making 3D virtual tours
If you’re looking for the right software to build your 3D virtual tours, you have your pick of options. There’s Matterport, Metareal, Cupix, Everpano…
All of them come with their own sets of pros and cons. But whatever software you choose, one of the most important considerations to keep in mind is that you need to be sure your virtual tour builder will let you use whatever camera you want.
As long as your software gives you that option, then you can expect to:
Own your photos
Do you need to buy the company’s proprietary camera just to shoot your virtual tours? If yes, then you should know that any photos you take using that camera likely won’t be owned by you.
No matter how beautiful your photos are, if you don’t own them, they can be taken away anytime.
Because the company owns your photos, you’ll have no choice but to keep using their software to access all your past projects, no matter how high their subscription rates or predatory their practices become.
Save time
Many proprietary virtual tour cameras aren’t really cameras. It’s more accurate to call them infrared or laser scanners. And if you want your location to be captured correctly, you’ll need to scan every few feet when using these devices.
That’s manageable if you want to shoot someplace small, like a cozy restaurant. But what about those high end apartments that span five whole floors? — You can expect to be on-site for many hours, even days.
On the optimistic side, it will likely take you a few hours to scan such locations.
But what if you’re not that lucky?
Your device could take hours before it’s done processing your scans. You probably won’t know that your tour is wonky until after you’ve already left the site.
Then you’d have to schedule another shoot, and pray that this time there’s no more errors. By the time you’re done, your deadline is past, and your clients are breathing down your neck. There goes the profit margin.
But if you’re able to use your own camera?
Then you can take as many or as few photos as you want, at whatever distances you need**.
And if you end up taking flukes (which is less likely, since you’ll be using a camera you’re already familiar with), you’ll see it instantly. Then it’s as easy as simply retaking that shot before wrapping for the day.
Optimize quality
Ever tried capturing bright sunlit spaces with infrared and shiny or black surfaces with laser light scanners? If you have, then you know those surfaces can give you some very interesting results.
And it’s not just about the photo quality while shooting. With scanners, you can’t really touch up your photos before turning them into tours. No way to edit brightness, contrast, exposure, or any other important setting.
If you use your own camera though?
During shoots, you’ll know how to best adjust your camera settings to your lighting. And afterwards, you can polish your photos in Lightroom or Photoshop before turning them into tours.
Keep your tours affordable
Let’s start with the obvious: you don’t have to buy another expensive camera that isn’t good for anything besides capturing virtual tours. That alone should cut down on your costs.
Now consider the freedom being able to use any camera you want gives you to customize your services.
Does someone want just a quick and affordable virtual tour? Then just shoot one panorama per room, give the photos a quick touch up, and speed build the tour.
Did an agent hire you to build virtual tours for their high-end clientele? Then pull out all the stops: shoot from every important vantage point, give your photos top-notch editing, meticulously trace each object and room in your tour, and voila.
The amount of time and effort you put into your tours is completely up to you, so you can offer custom packages to scale.
When it comes down it, there’s no good reason to pick a 3D virtual tour builder that won’t let you use any camera you like, whether that’s a 360 camera, a DSLR, or even a smartphone.
Now that you know all this, you’ll hopefully find it much easier to decide what software to go with.
** Not every virtual tour solution out there will let you shoot photos at whatever distance you want though, so make sure to watch out for that too.
