What does a shoot consist of ?

Creating your virtual tour consists of the actual shoot, where I come to your business and shoot a number of 360 panoramas or
"photo spheres", as Google likes to call them. These are shot using Google recommended equipment and procedures in order to ensure not only quality but also for the tour to link and integrate properly with the Google map.

As well as the photography the panoramas have to be retouched where necessary, uploaded to the Google servers, placed on the map and linked to each other as well as the map.

 

Photosphere ? ( Panorama )

A series of 4 HDR images, shot at 90 apart, ie north south east and west, with an 8mm fisheye lens.
Using dedicated stitching software, these images are then de-fished, blended and stitched together to form a single hires image that is now suitable to wrap around a sphere or globe, just like a map of the world.

If you can now imagine yourself in the centre of such a globe looking out at the image, then that’s pretty much how it works. One of these photo spheres is shot at various points within your business in order to create the feel of a walk-thru type experience for the viewer. Its the next best thing to being there.

 

HDR Photography ?

HDR or High Dynamic Range photography is just a simple method of capturing the full range of light within a scene, in practice this means taking at least 3 images of the same scene, one regular exposure, one for the brightest parts and one for the darkest parts. These 3 images are then blended together in order to show a full range of tones throughout the whole image.

 

How long does it take ?

A lot depends on the size of the business, how busy it might be on the day, weather or not its a tricky layout or lighting but generally its a pretty quick process and a small business can be done in 1-2 hrs.
For something with 20+ photospheres I would normally do a recce and have a shooting plan to estimate the actual time.

 

Preparing for your shoot

The only thing you really have to do is make sure everything is looking good at your business and is representative of how you would like your customers to see you. Remembering all the time that the shoot will capture everything in the room, from ceiling to floor and all the way around.

 

Bespoke tour vs Google tour ?

The Google platform, has certain requirements and limitations that may not be suitable for your needs or you might like a tour but not want to be on Google. There are many reasons why a bespoke tour might be best for you. Check out my Bespoke page for more of the differences and further details of what a bespoke tour can offer.

 

Costs

The only costs are that which you pay for the shoot, there are no costs from Google for hosting the tour or listing your business. There are no yearly or ongoing costs, just the one off payment to Paradoks360 for producing the tour.

 

SVT and Google certified ?

Street View Trusted is Googles program for registering photographers and giving them certification as long as some minimum quality standards and rules are adhered to. In practice this means a photographer has to register and produce a minimum of 10 tours every 150 days, which have to pass quality control. At this point you are provided with some official Google branding material and added to their list of Global SVT photographers. I expect to be fully certified by March or April, in the meantime this has no effect on my ability to provide your tour.

 

Call

If there is anything else you would like to know, please give me a call or email, I will be more than happy to answer any questions.

What is a Bespoke tour ?

Well its exactly that, a virtual tour tailored to your specific needs and requirements that is not hosted by Google but on your own website. I use the industry leading software, Kolor Panotour Pro for this task which not only links the panoramas together but also gives the ability to add overlays and pop ups, embedded video sequences into the tour and create an automated walk though and many other custom features not available in Google which add to the immersive experience.

 

I will outline some of the Google requirements below which will give you an idea of why a bespoke tour may be more suitable for your business.

Google tour requirements / recommendations

• Panoramas to be shot between 3 and 10 feet apart and 5 feet off the ground.

• Shot required 3ft either side of a door. As well as two shots outside the premises.

• Faces and some other details need to be blurred.

• See inside is not available for certain business types.

• No overlays or custom interfaces without a subscription service such as Walkinto

  or Tourdash

Bespoke advantages

• Your bespoke tour can still be available on the internet but is not linked to the

  Google system.

• Ability to jump directly from one location to another with no restrictions on

  distances or heights of panoramas.

• Custom interfaces and overlays, maps and floorplans, pop ups and logos are all

  possible.

• As well as those mentioned above bespoke also has the advantage of being a

  standalone product, this means it doesn't need an internet connection and could

  be used in a standalone kiosk or an installation, or even sent out on DVD.

 

I hope to have examples here for you in the near future.

 

 

 

£140 basic costs + £15 per panorama

My fee consists of a basic price of £140 which includes the two panoramas outside your premises that are required to connect you to the map. I then charge £15 per  panorama that  agree to shoot inside.

The cost of your tour depends largely on the size of your business. The layout can sometimes play a part and also any particular points of interest you may wish to feature can effect the final number of panoramas to shoot.

Price also includes some regular stills, usually 8-12 images that you can use to populate your "Google my business" page as well as any other use that you see fit in your promotions.

Some examples...

• Tiny business 3 panoramas = £185 + VAT
• Small business 6 panoramas = £230 + VAT
• Medium business 10 panoramas = £290 + VAT
• Larger business 20 panoramas = £440 + VAT
• Discounts available for shoots with 25 plus panoramas

How many panoramas do you need ?

The idea is to shoot enough locations to get a good view of your business and provide a virtual experience that would be very similar to actually being there from a visual point of view. However you are not obliged to show the whole premises, its up to you.

For a rough guide you can pace out your business and allow 1 panorama for every 3-4 steps, starting from just inside your main entrance, try not to exceed 5 steps or about 10 feet. You can also place them more frequently for an even more detailed view, Google recommends 3 feet.

Usually I will come to to your premises before the day of the shoot and we can agree on panorama positions and the number required for proper coverage.

For any other pricing enquires please give me a call.