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LMGI COMPASS
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Winter 2023
and videoconference features.
I just purchased a drone.
The heavy lifting in this
journey was 3D Vista's
software.
If there is a way to do
a computer function
incorrectly, I will find it.
The software doesn't come
with instructions. Back in
the good ol' days, we had
instructions. Now software
companies assume everyone
has learned coding since
grade school.
I had to gather bits of
instruction from the many
random tutorials, blog posts
and YouTube clips. I was an
early adopter and fortunate
to have received generous
tech support from the
company at that time. I still
had to resist throwing my
computer out the window
repeatedly.
360 had my head spinning.
I wanted to give up, but
compared to my new
"homeschooling" duties,
this was respite. Through
trial, error and dogged
persistence, my virtual tours
began to take shape.
Placing "hotspots" is an
important step in the magic.
Hotspots are the white
circles the viewer clicks to
move in different directions
within the virtual tours.
Hotspots are the portals
from image to image. Some
people think virtual tours are
video. They are not video.
They are interactive images
created with equirectangular
panoramas linked together
by hotspots
With a VR headset, virtual
tours are fully immersive and
should be experienced.
The photography portion
usually only takes 6-10
hours between the practical
shoot and post processing.
Creating the virtual tour,
however, swallows time.
"The 360 virtual tours
have been instrumental
in showcasing the city's
assets to potential
productions. We receive
hundreds of inquiries
from productions per
year and this has saved
us a lot of time as we can
reduce the number of
tours we give in person,"
–James Monk the Filming
Manager at the City of
Surrey, BC
White Rock Pier, BC
Tonya and Nathanial at
God's Chair, Greenwood
Park, BC
