Creating a 360 Virtual Tour can be a bit intimidating. The first thing many people worry about is the cost of the camera. In this article we are comparing 360 camera performance. We think this 360 camera comparison will help you plan how to budget and use 360 images in your marketing.
The camera cost can vary widely from a few hundred dollars to many thousands of dollars. And this can have an enormous impact on the quality of the images that are taken and their resolution. However, depending on your specific needs you may not need, or even want, high resolution. So it is important to have a 360 camera comparison using some real world examples.
We are not trying to recommend any specific brand or model, just trying to give you a general feel for what the differences in performance might look like. So below we have two 360 images taken with an entry level 360 camera costing a few hundred dollars, and the same location scene with a 360 image taken with an 8K camera that cost thousands of dollars.
Both Images are being hosted on the Togotiki platform so they have undergone the exact same image optimization and processing.
360 Image Taken with an 8K Camera Costing almost $4,000.
360 Image Taken with an entry level camera costing a few hundred dollars.
We selected the above location because it allows you to observe items located up close with detail and far away. It is also an interior image which is very common for virtual tours.
When you compare the two images look at the following items to see specific differences:
- Sconce on bathroom wall. The High end camera has better light balancing.
- Panels on doors – you can more clearly see the beveled edges.
- Frame on mirror – detailed beading is crisp.
- Glass door at end of hallway – you can see the vase behind the door
Depending on your use case these difference may not warrant a high end camera.
Another difference to note is the tripod in the lower image is still visible if you look down. We removed the tripod in the upper image. With editing software like Photoshop you can also remove the tripod in the lower image – but it does require a bit of skill and extra software. Therefore we left it in the photo so you could see it, a professional photographer would remove these from the images.
Estimated Cost $5,000
Estimated Cost $400
