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Matterport Versus 360º Spherical Photography1688

carissa0316 private msg quote post Address this user
Help if you can. What would you say are the advantages of using a matterport camera versus the traditional way of doing it (trusty DSLR and stitch the photos into 360)because it is hard to work around the whole subscription issues, the non-availability of the interactive offline version for use on a non-iOs platform, add to that the conversion to VR gear content being ridiculously expensive.
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Hartland, Wisconsin
htimsabbub23 private msg quote post Address this user
The huge difference I noticed right away is the depth of field you get with matterport. The video game effect I call it so clients understand. Everything has dimension and is t flat..

I'm sure more in depth answers to come from other members.
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wiliamtel private msg quote post Address this user
I was wondering the same thing.
I have been a 360 Panoramic photographer for over 10 years and the Matterport peaked my attention. It sounds fast, easy, 3d, auto floor plan, etc. I see some advantages, but also the quality doesnt seem quite there compared to high quality traditional 360 tours and of course the hosting and processing costs seems out of line IMHO.

The other challenge Ive found is its difficult to find clients willing to pay much for 360 Virtual tours even when they are offered at bargain prices. Given the cost of the camera and the hosting it doesnt seem to pencil out for me.

Is there really some selling advantage with the Matterport over conventional 360 methods?

Here is an example of a tour I did to show the quality difference (maybe I'm bias?).
360 Virtual tour
Can we expect a higher quality output for the next gen of Matterport and maybe some more control of the process and hosting?
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GarySnyder private msg quote post Address this user
William I have to say that your 360 tour has stunning image quality and the transitions between pano's are very good. The 360 technology has come a long way. If someone was looking for straight forward less complex 360/VT solution it's hard not to consider what your showing us here.

Granted it's not as immersive as a MP VT and as VR becomes more in fashion the advantages of shooting a MP VT/VR will become more apparent as you move fluidly around a space. But for someone who is looking at dipping their toe into producing a 360/VT it would be very hard not to consider your solution.

The cost of entry is far less as well, all you need is a good quality DSLR, a pano head like one from 360Precision (my choice) ,8mm lens (Sigma), decent tripod (Giotto) and the software to stitch it together. As you said the other very big advantage is you host your own content which is a massive savings.

For those of us that need to provide the next level of Immersive VT experiences as well who are looking to the future to include producing VR content MP still rules but it comes at a price.

These are just my thoughts but for all those fence sitters it's certainly something to consider.
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360Verbeelding private msg quote post Address this user
Hi, looks fantastic. 360 Photagraphy becomes better and better.I mean the software. The great photographer you are gets the most advantage out of the software. You realy know what you are doing. As for the investment in a MP cam. Its not all dat expencive considering what you get. Buying a good DSLR with a good lens will also set you back a couple of bucks. Getting into 360 video the new hipe cost a ton of money. Cameratechnic wise you can train a monkey to work with a MP cam. I use one myself so dond't start shouting. Its simple, no adjustments to make, can't change anything, wish we could, press a button and thats it. No more no less. I don't think of myself as a photographer using the MP Cam. Its a great tool. The worst thing with MP is that you don't own your creations or can't change them in any way. That has to change. Competition is getting closer and closer. I lose clients at governement level because we need to host all our footage at MP. And they can do with it what they want if the like. Thats a bad thing. Its a great business model for MP not so much for us. I think their is room for different ways to make impressive pictures with more then only a DSLR or MP.
In three years time we are all doing this with our phone and then someone else comes with a fantastic new way of making pictures. Can't wait.

Grtz Rene.
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suncoastskyview private msg quote post Address this user
Your photo quality looks excellent. I'm thinking that the gear you are using costs a lot less than Matterport and probably does not require the huge fees and startup expenses.

Matterport management should take notice that the competition is catching up and perhaps they should re-evaluate their business model.

Thanks for sharing.
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wiliamtel private msg quote post Address this user
Thanks for the kind words on my virtual tour quality.

I know its early and maybe they will open up more control of the process, but I like being able to have control over the final product (double exposing and inserting properly exposed windows, as one example). I do agree that traditional production is more work and likely a larger learning curve. I think that its a good point that MP process is fairly easy to create the content with the MP system and I do like the doll house effect, a lot.

I just was reading an article on the Lytro camera and there seemed to be some potential parallels with their company and MP. I think the Lytro camera system failure may have been partly because of how proprietary their system was as well (they have since abandoned consumer cameras for VR 360 professional creation solutions). With their system you had to host your images on their site exclusively and I believe you had to upload to their system for processing (sound familiar?).

I think too tight of a grip really limits the product appeal (MP) and adoption for many. Perhaps that system would work (for me) if the cameras were heavily subsidized, but they are not. In fairness, I have seen a lot more real world use of the MP system then I did for the Lytro cameras, so it may not be a just comparison.

Anyway, thanks for the insights and conversations. I may just stick with my process until MP gets closer to what Im looking for or other competitors enter the space.
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Noel private msg quote post Address this user
for me the time factor was a consideration. Taking photos with DSLR, stitch, work out your flow, and upload. Grant it the MP solution might take just as long to capture the images, but I feel the time to stitch and create the flow is the winner. From being a Google Business View photographer, you do get your speed of capturing images really quick. But I found the delay time for Google to process the images the hardest part. sometimes taking 4 days. Then I had to create the flow path. In all via MP I might take say 2 hours to scan a 3 bedroom home, with two bathrooms. But I have found the processing time in the cloud to be 2 to 6 hours. This works for me due to time zones. Then I might spend another hour creating walk through and single snapshots. If I have to do a floor plan then I send that off as soon as the Cloud processing is complete. In all I have the final product back to the Agent and Vendor in 24 hours from Scan. I also have time to enjoy my family, and to sleep. If I was capturing a Golf Course or an Tourist park Then yes it would be DSLR as MP does not like the outside sun light. It is really looking at the task requirements and tools you have to complete the task.
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wiliamtel private msg quote post Address this user
Quote:
Originally Posted by Noel
It is really looking at the task requirements and tools you have to complete the task.


I can totally see that. I mainly produce the content for my listings and for a few brokers in the area that appreciate full 360 virtual tours. Bend is a smaller market and the demand and appreciation for high quality property experiences is pretty low. Realtors can frequently be really cheap. I'm a Realtor so I can say that, right? If I was doing them all of the time the MP offering would likley be something I could justify.

I'm a big VR (Virtual Reality) enthusiast and I can definitely see the market demanding these types of services in the near future for full VR immersion. I guess my hope is that there will be more players, with more options and more control of the process and end product by then. If not, I'll likely be picking up MP's solution.

Thanks for your insights.
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DanSmigrod private msg quote post Address this user
Moving this topic to the top of the MUG Forum since it is a frequent discussion topic.

Best,

Dan
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