Which cameras are compatible with Metareal Stage?
You can use any camera you like, whether that's a smartphone, DSLR, or 360 camera. Just make sure you're able to create 360 panoramas with it.
Just a few examples of the equipment you can use:
Nikon DSLR + panoramic head + tripod
Theta Z1 + tripod
Smartphone + Nodal view rotator
Smartphone + theVRkit rotator
Go Pro + panoramic head + tripod
Insta 360 + monopod
Qoocam + monopod
It depends on what you value most: quality, speed, or affordability.
We've found that using a DSLR produces the best quality panoramas, both in terms of image quality and measurement accuracy in Metareal tours.
360 cameras are more convenient to set up during your shoot and for processing your images after though, so get a 360 camera if speed & convenience is your goal. However the way of stitching panorama is not perfect in most of 360 Cameras, you can use it as is for Metareal Stage, but sometime you will encounter a small issue when creating a tour (objects are not aligned properly in all of panos, distortion in a pano, etc.).
Smartphones are the most affordable option, but the image quality won't be as good, and they can be quite clunky to set up.
Yes, you can use your Matterport camera to create a virtual tour on Metareal. However, it can be a time-consuming process, because you have to export each 360 pano from Matterport's system individually, and the panos you extract will have low resolution. We highly recommend using a different camera instead.
Not possible at the moment, though you can use an aerial image as your preview image.
The Leica is a LIDAR scanner, not really a 360 camera, so you can't produce 360 panoramas with it. There may be some workarounds you can take to extract 360 panoramas from a Leica, but we would recommend using a different camera instead.
Example equipment
Just a few examples of the equipment you can use:
Nikon DSLR + panoramic head + tripod
Theta Z1 + tripod
Smartphone + Nodal view rotator
Smartphone + theVRkit rotator
Go Pro + panoramic head + tripod
Insta 360 + monopod
Qoocam + monopod
Which type is best?
It depends on what you value most: quality, speed, or affordability.
We've found that using a DSLR produces the best quality panoramas, both in terms of image quality and measurement accuracy in Metareal tours.
360 cameras are more convenient to set up during your shoot and for processing your images after though, so get a 360 camera if speed & convenience is your goal. However the way of stitching panorama is not perfect in most of 360 Cameras, you can use it as is for Metareal Stage, but sometime you will encounter a small issue when creating a tour (objects are not aligned properly in all of panos, distortion in a pano, etc.).
Smartphones are the most affordable option, but the image quality won't be as good, and they can be quite clunky to set up.
Can I use a Matterport camera?
Yes, you can use your Matterport camera to create a virtual tour on Metareal. However, it can be a time-consuming process, because you have to export each 360 pano from Matterport's system individually, and the panos you extract will have low resolution. We highly recommend using a different camera instead.
Can I use a 360 drone?
Not possible at the moment, though you can use an aerial image as your preview image.
Can I use a Leica BLK360?
The Leica is a LIDAR scanner, not really a 360 camera, so you can't produce 360 panoramas with it. There may be some workarounds you can take to extract 360 panoramas from a Leica, but we would recommend using a different camera instead.
Updated on: 18/02/2021
Thank you!