How do I order a virtual tour of my real estate listing?
Just call 808.672.0601 and set up an appointment. Or you can email us
here with your request.
How should I prepare for a virtual tour of my home or real estate listng?
There is a printable pre-shoot checklist here. (opens in new window)
How long does it take for a real estate virtual home tour to be completed?
When your order your Panaviz virtual tour, we will arrange a time to meet you at the location. Onsite shooting usually takes about an hour. Most of our time is spent finding and positioning the camera in exactly the right spot & ensuring proper lighting for optimum results. Optional computer manipulation usually takes about an hour per image.
How long will my virtual tour be online?
All our real estate virtual tours are hosted free for six months, $10 per month thereafter until listing is sold.
What does Panaviz give the client at the end of the process?
We place your virtual tour, ready to view on the web, on our server. We provide you & your webmaster a specific link to the tour. You can also download your images from us in high-resolution format, suitable for brochures, static display on your website, etc.
Can you digitally edit the images to correct problems due to either lighting or subject matter?
Yes. We can typically enhance the images in many ways using Adobe Photoshop. For instance, we can markedly enhance views out of windows by actually shooting two separate panoramas, one set to properly expose the interior, the other set to properly expose the exterior views. In instances where a property has a great view, we ensure it is captured.
How is a full-screen virtual tour different from dial-up virtual tours?
Unlike a television, where everyone sees the same thing regardless of the physical screen size, a computer monitor allows the user to control how much is seen on the screen. Current statistics show that over 90% of computer users have their monitors set at either 800 X 600 pixels, or 1024 X 768 pixels. Here's how our virtual tours appear at different resolutions:
Dialup Virtual Tour |
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Broadband (fullscreen) Virtual Tour |
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PanaViz dialup tour on a 800 X 600 screen |
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PanaViz fullscreen tour on a 800 X 600 screen |
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PanaViz dialup tour on a 1024 X 768 screen |
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PanaViz fullscreen tour on a 1024 X 768 screen |
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PanaViz dialup tour on a 1600 X 1200 screen
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PanaViz fullscreen tour on a 1600 X 1200 screen |
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Why should we choose fullscreen virtual tours
Broadband (high speed) Internet is capable of delivering large, high-resolution panoramic images, making for a very compelling virtual tour. And while it is important to include dialup virtual tours, it is also becoming increasingly important to cater to users of broadband internet connections.
Broadband Growth
As of August 2005 broadband use in US homes surpassed 60%. The chart below demonstrates this trend.
Corporate networks almost exclusively have broadband connections. People planning their next vacation are increasingly looking at hotels online and demand rich media to reach their decisions.
What about dial-up users?
All PanaViz virtual tours come with a dial-up virtual tour component which is automatically delivered to computers with slower connections.
What kind of equipment does Panaviz use?
Our images are shot with a high-end Canon digital camera, whereas other panoramic tours are often filmed with a video camera. Video cameras are no match for digital still cameras in picture quality. We use professional-quality tripod with a special panoramic head which allows us to take 10-12 sequential images per panorama. The images are later "stitched" using special software. Panaviz's Virtual Tours stand out from the competitions.
How big in file size are the Panaviz images (i.e., how fast will they download)?
Panaviz combines image optimization & fast internet server equipment which allows our images download extremely fast for what they are -- complete 360° panoramic images are ±90k. With a 56K modem, customers typically see the images within 10 seconds. With "broadband" connections (typically cable or dsl), the images appear in seconds.
Some virtual tours I have seen show panoramic images that are fuzzy, or load slowly, or don't move smoothly. Why is this?
There may be a number of reasons for this. Many "cylindrical" or "spherical" panoramic images which attempt to compensate for image distortion when the user pans the image. However, thes images shimmer when moving. The result is less than ideal clarity & smoothness. Panaviz tours utilize very sophisticated panoramic viewing technology that results in high definintion, high quality images and faster performance. Other factors that create poor panoramas are bad photography techniques and overly aggressive image compression (again, a compromise between image quality & file size that results in fuzzy images). Finally, panoramic images that load slowly (very frustrating to the user), can be blamed on a poor performing server. Panaviz uses one of the fastest servers available, consistently outperforming competitive servers, allowing us to show bigger, higher-quality images that load more quickly.
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