With the rise of 360 real estate photography, buyers now have a fuller picture of the homes they’d like to purchase. This is useful in a post-pandemic world, giving potential buyers the option of a 360 virtual tour rather than in-person open houses.
Now that there are new and improved 360 virtual tours popping up in the best real estate listings, it makes you wonder, what is 360 real estate photography anyway? What’s the deal with this decade’s old service that has suddenly become all the rage, increasing in both volume and popularity over recent years?
What is 360 Real Estate Photography?
360 real estate photography is a method of combining digital images to create an immersive and fully interactive experience of a particular space that can be viewed on a computer or mobile device. It’s become one of the most effective ways of presenting a property for sale or rent online without actually seeing it in person.
With 360 real estate photography, the digital space is created by taking multiple shots from every angle around the room, then stitching the photos together to create one seamless image. This allows viewers to see all four walls in the space, as well as the ceiling and floor. Viewers can also move through the space virtually (as if they were actually standing there) by clicking on different sections of the image.
In essence, 360 real estate photography is a great way of using interactive images to allow viewers access to a virtual space that they may not otherwise be able to see in person.
The Rise of 360 Real Estate Photography
The global pandemic has accelerated changes in homebuyers’ behaviors, according to the National Association of Realtor’s 2020 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Throughout the pandemic, some real estate companies reported a 278% increase in the demand for 360 virtual tours. And industry experts believe that this overwhelming demand for 360 real estate photography is here to stay.
So, why has 360 photography become all the rage (besides the obvious answer to COVID)?
Well, it’s largely due to three areas where 360 real estate photography has seen significant improvements:
- Image Quality
- Immersion
- Floor Plan
To better understand the rise of 360 real estate photography, let’s take a quick look at each improvement.
Image Quality: 360 Photography Makes a Big Splash
One of the main reasons for 360 real estate photography’s big boost in demand is its remarkable increase in image quality.
Before 360 photography came along, most sellers and renters were content with standard photography in which a real estate agent took a single shot of the room and that was it. But this type of photography fell short of offering viewers an immersive experience of the space. As a result, buyers and sellers weren’t always sure what they were looking at.
By contrast, today’s 360 real estate photography is top-grade thanks to advances in technology. And with a variety of 360-degree cameras available, virtual tours of all kinds can now be created with high-end resolution and improved clarity. This is great news for sellers and agents who now have the benefit of 360 real estate photography to showcase their spaces from every angle by stitching together multiple, high-quality images.
Immersion: 360 Photography Allows Viewers to “Step Inside”
Thanks to 360 real estate photography, potential buyers now have the ability to step inside a virtual space and explore it with ease.
The tech has gotten so good that potential buyers can now walk through their favorite home listings virtually as if they were actually there — all thanks to 360-degree cameras that allow the viewer to see all four walls in the space, as well as the ceiling and floor.
Toss in a wide range of 360 cameras to choose from, plus new editing platforms that deliver a flawless, interactive experience of the home, and 360 photography is real estate marketing’s biggest game changer yet.
Floor Plan: 360 Photography Provides An Accurate Layout of the Home
360 real estate photography adds value beyond image quality and immersion by providing an accurate floor plan of the home. This is achieved in post-production at a minimal cost (if any) and with the right editing software.
An accurate floor plan is a boon to any professional real estate listing. Some viewers will even speed through slideshows of the property just to get the last image, which is often a picture of the home’s floor plan. Sometimes, the floor plan will include the dimensions of each room.
Lastly, an accurate floor plan can entice potential buyers to browse the listing further by clicking through a virtual tour of the space, especially when the floor plan dimensions look promising enough to fit the buyer’s furniture. In turn, this helps potential buyers envision themselves living there.
The Bottom Line of 360 Real Estate Photography
Since 360 photography made a splash in the real estate industry, the time and resources it took to complete today’s virtual tours have cut down dramatically.
Gone are the days of lugging around a huge CPU tower, which was required to scan every five feet of the space. Today, 360 real estate cameras are lightweight, compact, and easily portable. What’s more, they’re highly efficient. They can capture an entire room with a single shot.
Plus, the imagery is pliable among multiple camera options and post-production platforms. In other words, real estate agents now have the option to work with more than one listings platform rather than just one company. As a result, agents retain more control of their digital content.
In short, today’s 360 real estate cameras are just better — they’re much faster, more efficient, and more affordable.
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