360° video is growing by leaps and bounds. No doubt about it.
It’s fascinating to see all the different approaches to capturing 360° video. So I surveyed the current 360° video rigs being offered and then organized every serious option into this epic listing. The results are telling…
If you’re new to 360 video, then you have much to wrap your mind around. I suggest checking out my blog post: 360 Video Fundamentals. Or to gain a comprehensive understanding check out the Making360 open source book.
CATEGORIES
— Comparison of 360° Video Rig Categories
— 360° Map Projection
— 360° Video Rigs: Multi Camera
— 360° Video Rigs: Single Camera Body
— 360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
— 360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic / Single Camera Body
— 360° Video Rigs: Scuba
— 360° Video Rigs: Scuba Stereoscopic
— 360° Video Rigs: Invisible Drone
— 360° Video Rigs: First-Person POV
— 360° Camera Motion: Remote Control Cars
— 360° Camera Motion: Gyro Stabilization
— 360° Video Streaming Hardware
— Partial 360° Video Rigs
— Partial 360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
— Cylindrical Video Rigs
— Cylindrical Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
— Cylindrical Video Rigs: Parabolic Mirror
— 360° Light Field Rigs
— 360° Photography Rigs
— Fisheye Video Rigs
— Fisheye Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
— Fisheye Lens: GoPro or MFT Cameras
— 360° Video Rigs: Less than 30fps
— 360° Video Rigs: Wild and Unique
— 360° Video Rigs: DIY 3D Printing
— Unsuccessful Kickstarter Projects
— History of 360° Film
Updated with latest 360° cameras on March 5, 2017
Comparison of 360° Video Rig Categories
There are many different types of 360° video rigs, but not all of them capture the full 360×180° field of view (FOV). And so I’ve placed each rig into a specific category. Sometimes you don’t need to capture absolutely everything. It all depends on how you’re going to use the footage.
For instance, if you’re using a tripod then perhaps you could ignore that footage zone (partial 360°). Maybe the main focus is happening along the horizon, then you might not need to capture the sky and immediate ground (cylindrical). Or maybe you just need to capture the events happening directly in front of you (fisheye). Or maybe you want the big challenge, capturing 3D depth (stereoscopic).
Below I’ve outlined the typical FOV coverage of each rig category: 360°, partial 360°, cylindrical, and fisheye. But these are just averaged examples of each category, sometimes there are outliers which have much higher or lower FOV.
Source Image by Andrey Salnikov: “Climbing Volcano Teide”
360° Map Projection
Equirectangular, LatLong, Spherical, 360°… All of these terms refer to the same exact format: the Equidistant Cylindrical Projection. It is currently the most widely used format for stitched 360° video.
So how does it work? This is a precise geometric method for converting a sphere into a flat image with a 2:1 ratio. So this format can be seamlessly wrapped onto a sphere and back again.
360×180° is the standard for expressing a complete spherical capture. But why not 360×360°? Because we are measuring an arc for the latitude, not a complete circle.
360° Video Rigs: Multi Camera
These multi camera rigs capture monoscopic 360° video. A majority of producers are currently shooting with these type of rigs.
GoPro: Omni
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— genlocked
— Tutorial: the full workflow
Freedom360: Freedom360 Classic Mount
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
Freedom360: F360 Explorer
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— all weather
360Rize: Uni360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 cameras (compatible with: GoPro Hero2, Hero3, Hero4, Hero5 Black, Hero5 Session, YI 4K Action Camera)
— all weather
360Rize: 360H6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— all weather
WetHot360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro Hero Session cameras
— all weather
360Rize: PRO6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
Varavon: VR-GH6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 8 GoPro cameras
360Rize: PRO7
— full coverage: 360×180°, 7 GoPro cameras
360Rize: PRO10HD
— full coverage: 360×180°, 10 GoPro cameras
Varavon: VR-GH12
— full coverage: 360×180°, 16 GoPro cameras
SimplifyVR
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— all weather option
iZugar: Z2X
— full coverage: 360×180°, 2 GoPro cameras with custom 194° fisheye lens
iZugar: Z3X
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 GoPro cameras with custom 185° fisheye lens
Freedom360: Freedom360 Trio
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 GoPro cameras with Back-Bone Ribcage to allow for custom fisheye lens
Radiant Images: VR 360 GoPro Periscope
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 modified GoPro cameras with 220° fisheye lens
iZugar: Z4XC
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 GoPro cameras with custom 185° fisheye lens
iZugar: Z4XL
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 Z-Cam E1 cameras (with 220° fisheye lens)
Back-Bone: 360 VR Mounts
— full coverage: 360×180°, GoPro cameras with Back-Bone Ribcage to allow for custom fisheye lens
360 Designs: Mini EYE 4
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
360 Designs: Mini EYE 3
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
Radiant Images: Blackmagic Micro VR 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with fisheye lens)
360Rize: 360Helios 3
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with 190° fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
360Rize: 360Helios 6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with 190° fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
360Rize: 360Helios 7
— full coverage: 360×180°, 7 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with 190° fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
360Rize: 360Helios 8
— full coverage: 360×180°, 8 Blackmagic Micro Cinema cameras or Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with 190° fisheye lens)
— can be genlocked
Radiant Images: AXA 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 10 digital cinema cameras
Radiant Images: Sense 9
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 7 Canon C300 Mark II cameras (also supports many digital cinema cameras)
Mooovrig
— full coverage: 360×180°, 5 Canon mirrorless cameras (with 180° fisheye lens)
Rig 360 for A01
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 7 Olympus Air A01 cameras (with fisheye lens)
Bonsai 360° / Cutlass 360° / Excalibur 360°
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 DSLR or MILC cameras (with fisheye lens)
Kodak: PIXPRO SP360 4k – Dual Pro Pack
— full coverage: 360×180°, 2 Kodak PIXPRO SP360 4k cameras
Elmo: QBiC Panorama
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 Elmo QBiC MS-1 cameras
— all weather
Freedom360: Elmo360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 4 Elmo QBiC MS-1 cameras
— all weather
Casio: Exilim EX-FR200 – (using the 360 mount: EAM-8)
— full coverage: 360×180°, 2 detachable lens modules (185° fisheye lens)
— all weather
Embrace Cinema Gear: VR 360° Camera Rigs
— full coverage: 360×180°, various camera rigs
360° Video Rigs: Single Camera Body
These cameras capture monoscopic 360° video through the use of a single camera body with multiple sensors/lenses. Since it behaves as a single unit there are less problems that can arise. But they cannot currently obtain the same high resolution as a multi camera rig.
Sphericam 2
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 6 sensors
— global shutter, genlocked
Samsung: Gear 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (195° fisheye lens)
— underwater depth rating: 40m or 131ft (with case accessory)
Samsung: Gear 360 (2017)
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 9 sensors (fisheye lenses)
— 4k resolution limited to 24fps
Nikon: KeyMission 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
— 4k & 1080 resolutions limited to 24fps
— underwater depth rating: 30m or 100ft
Kodak: PIXPRO Orbit360 4k
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (with lens covers: 235° & 155° fisheye lenses / without lens covers: 244° & 163° fisheye lenses)
— 4k resolution limited to 24fps
GoPro: Fusion
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 2 sensors
Ricoh: Theta S
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
— teardown of camera
Ricoh: R Development Kit
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Ricoh: Theta SC
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
— limited to 5 minutes of video recording
LG: 360 Cam
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (200° fisheye lens)
Insta360: 4k
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (230° fisheye lens)
YI 360 VR Camera
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (220° fisheye lens)
Detu: Twin
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Idealoeye: C2
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Luna
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Indiecam: nakedEYE
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Zmer: Sports Camera
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Orah: 4i
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
— genlocked?
Bublcam
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Vantrix: PRO4-DUAL
—full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (182° panomorph lens)
GO6D: Trie
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 3 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Z-Cam S1
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Z-Cam S1 Pro
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (FOV of MFT fisheye lens unknown)
Idealoeye: C4
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (185° fisheye lens)
Detu: F4
— full coverage: 360×170°, single camera body with 4 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
Sphericam: Beast
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 4 sensors (190° fisheye lens)
— genlocked?
Absolute Zero
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 12 sensors
— genlocked
SoniCam
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 9 sensors (fisheye lenses)
Insta360: Air
— full coverage: 360×180°, Android attachment with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Insta360: Nano
— full coverage: 360×180°, iPhone attachment with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Giroptic: iO
— full coverage: 360×180°, iPhone attachment with 2 sensors (195° fisheye lens)
Dunkam
— full coverage: 360×180°, Android attachment with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Zmer: Live
— full coverage: 360×180°, Android attachment with 2 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
Stereoscopic rigs allow for 360° video to be captured for both your left and right eyes, so a true sense of depth can be achieved in VR. 360-3D is the ultimate dream, but there are many challenges that make it difficult to shoot in 360-3D and not give the viewer a very frustrating experience. (Example problems include: parallax error differences between eyes, exposure differences between eyes, genlocking cameras, getting complete stereo coverage without ignoring the poles, and such big headaches.) The terms stereoscopic, 3D, and S-3D can be used interchangeably.
Facebook: Surround 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 17 Point Grey cameras (one 185° fisheye lens facing up and two 185° fisheye lenses facing down)
— global shutter, genlocked
— open source stitching software – more info
Facebook: Surround 360 x24 / Surround 360 x6
—full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 6 or 24 sensors
360Rize: 360Orb
— full coverage: 360×180°, 24 GoPro cameras
360Rize: 3DPRO12
— full coverage: 360×180°, 12 GoPro cameras
360Rize: 3DPRO12H
— full coverage: 360×180°, 12 GoPro cameras
360Rize: 3DPRO14H
— full coverage: 360×180°, 14 GoPro cameras
iZugar: Z6X3D
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras with custom 194° fisheye lens
NextVR
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 6 EPIC-M RED Dragon cameras
— global shutter, can be genlocked
HypeVR
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 14 EPIC-M RED Dragon cameras
— collects LiDAR data with the Velodyne HDL-32E
— global shutter, can be genlocked
Cinegears: Hex VR Rig
— coverage: FOV varies based on setup, 6 to 14 digital cinema cameras
Radiant Images: Codex ActionCam VR 360 Blossom
— full coverage: 360×180°, 17 Codex ActionCam cameras
— global shutter, genlocked?
360 Designs: EYE
— full coverage: 360×180°, 8 to 42 cameras depending on configuration: Blackmagic Design Micro Cinema Camera (self-contained) or Blackmagic Design Micro Studio Camera 4k (wired operation)
— can be genlocked
WeMakeVR: Falcon VR Camera
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 14 sensors
Panocam3D: POD
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 18 sensors
360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic / Single Camera Body
These cameras capture stereoscopic 360° video through the use of a single camera body with multiple sensors/lenses. Since it behaves as a single unit there are less problems that can arise. Stereoscopic rigs allow for 360° video to be captured for both your left and right eyes, so a true sense of depth can be achieved in VR. 360-3D is the ultimate dream, but there are many challenges that make it difficult to shoot in 360-3D and not give the viewer a very frustrating experience. (Example problems include: parallax error differences between eyes, exposure differences between eyes, genlocking cameras, getting complete stereo coverage without ignoring the poles, and such big headaches.) The terms stereoscopic, 3D, and S-3D can be used interchangeably.
Jaunt: ONE – J1-24G
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 24 sensors
— 24G: global shutter, 24R: rolling shutter, genlocked
— The Cinematic VR Field Guide
Nokia: OZO+
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 8 sensors (195° fisheye lens)
— global shutter, genlocked
Insta360: Pro
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 6 sensors (200° fisheye lens)
Vuze
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 8 sensors
Samsung: Project Beyond
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 18 sensors
KanDao: Obsidian R / Obsidian S
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 6 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
— genlocked?
Live Planet: Explore
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 16 sensors (180° fisheye lens)
— genlocked
Hubblo
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 6 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Z-Cam V1 Pro
—full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 9 sensors
Idealoeye: P21
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 21 sensors
DKVision Aura
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with unknown amount of sensors
360° Video Rigs: Scuba
To take a 360° video rig underwater, you can’t simply put it within a glass box… The lens optics would be affected by the refraction of the water. So these rigs have built-in compensation and allow you to capture 360° without any problems.
360Rize: 360Abyss
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— underwater depth rating: 1000m or 3280ft, negative/positive/neutral buoyancy (anodized or poly carbonate versions)
— overview of the v4 redesign
Kolor: Abyss
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— underwater depth rating: 150m or 492ft
Varavon: VR-MARINE 6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras with Entaniya 220° fisheye lenses and Back-Bone Ribcage
— underwater depth rating: 300m or 984ft
360Rize: H3ScubaH6
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
— underwater depth rating: 61m or 200ft
360Rize: 360SeaDak
— full coverage: 360×180°, 2 Kodak PIXPRO SP360 4k cameras
— underwater depth rating: 130m or 426ft
Boxfish 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 Z-Cam E1 cameras (185° fisheye lens)
— underwater depth rating: 300m or 984ft
Varavon: VR-MARINE 3
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 GoPro cameras with Entaniya 220° fisheye lenses and Back-Bone Ribcage
— underwater depth rating: 300m or 984ft
360bubble
— polycarbonate globe for suitable for Ricoh Theta S, Samsung Gear 360, Nikon Keymission 360, LG 360 CA
— underwater depth rating varies based on model: 4m (13ft) / 10m (33ft)
360° Video Rigs: Scuba Stereoscopic
Taking a 360° video rig underwater is a serious endeavor. And shooting in stereoscopic makes it even more difficult.
VRTUL 1
— full coverage: 360×180°, 9 Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with fisheye lens)
— underwater depth rating: 30m or 100ft, slightly positive buoyancy
VRTUL: AquaTerra
— full coverage: 360×180°, 30 GoPro cameras
— underwater depth rating: 40m or 131ft, neutral buoyancy
360° Video Rigs: Invisible Drone
Attaching a 360° video rig to a drone is easy. But allowing the drone itself to be hidden within the shot is a special trick.
3DR Solo Drone Quadcopter: 360 Mount for the Kodak PIXPRO SP360 4k
— full coverage: 360×180°, 2 PIXPRO SP360 4k cameras
Drone Volt: Drone Janus 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 10 GoPro cameras
360Rize: 360 Orb
— full coverage: 360×180°, 12 GoPro cameras
Spherie
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
Queen B Robotics: Exo360
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 5 sensors (210° fisheye lens)
Flying EYE
— full coverage: 360×180°, 3 Blackmagic Micro Studio cameras (with fisheye lens)
Custom Drone Rigs
— Gimbal-Guard: Kodak 360 rig
— Fly 360°
— Helicopter 360 Rig
— Panono Drone
— Pictures Fabryc: Alta8 VR 360 Drone with stabilization
— NS VR Gimbal
— Ammergauer Alpen: 360 video drone – example footage
— Intel Realsense Drone
— VR-Eye Cam – Drone Camera
— Viooa – Drone Camera
— Thanics: Halo
— DJI Mavic Pro: Dual Gear 360 / DJI Mavic Pro: Gear 360 & Kodak SP360 4k
Stabilize 360 footage from a drone
— How to Stabilize 360 Drone Footage in After Effects using the SkyBox Studio plugin
360° Video Rigs: First-Person POV
To tell the story from a first-person point of view, you have to be within their head. These rigs allow you to see though the actors eyes and capture their body movements too.
Radiant Images: Mobius POV VR 360
— full coverage: 360×180°, 17 GoPro cameras
Varavon: VR Helmet
— full coverage: 360×180°, 17 GoPro cameras
ADAPA: Nimbus VR
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, amount of GoPro cameras unknown
ADAPA: Pulsar VR
— full coverage: 360×180°, 23 GoPro cameras
Panocam3D: HMC
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 24 sensors
— stereoscopic
Custom Helmet Rigs
— 360 Video Helmet Rig
— Homemade Helmet Rig
— Making a POV 360 Camera Rig
360° Camera Motion: Remote Control Cars
By using an R/C car, you can be hidden from the shot and also capture smooth motion. These options specifically include 360 video rigs.
— Motion Impossible: Mantis 360° – in the field photos
— VRoomCam
— Fly Through Films: Freefly Tero R/C Car – video of rig
— Miami 360 VR: Freefly Tero R/C Car – photo of rig
— 360 Virtual Tourist: HPI Savage Flux HP R/C Car – photo of rig
— 10 Camera Canon Vixia – Freefly Tero R/C Car
— Dolly360
— RigRover – photo of rig
360° Camera Motion: Gyro Stabilization
Relying on a gyroscopic stabilizer is the best way to capture smooth motion while walking, driving, or flying. These active and passive stabilizers are specifically designed for 360 video rigs.
— Kenyon Gyro Stabilizer
— WenPod Tarzan-G & Tarzan-A – electronic stabilization demo
— Varavon Birdycam VR 360
— TG20 360VR Stabilizer Gimbal
— OwlDolly: Guru Air 360° Camera Stabilizer
— OwlDolly: Guru 360° Camera Stabilizer
— FeiyuTech G360 Panoramic Camera Gimbal
— SkyEdge 360: active stabilization system
— Ricoh Theta S and The Beholder gimbal rig – example footage
— Polar Effect: Philon 360 stabilized camera rig (working prototype) – video
— Custom rig for skiing
— Kodak PIXPRO Orbit360 gimball rig (Prototype)
— Zhiyun Smooth-II hack
360° Video Streaming Hardware
Streaming live 360 video is a tricky challenge and requires special hardware to make it reliable. But with these specialized boxes you can easily monitor the video feeds, stitch, and stream to the web.
Teradek: Sphere
— Monitoring and streaming solution for up to 8 GoPro cameras
Partial 360° Video Rigs
These rigs are definitely thought of as 360° video because they capture the entire sky and horizon, but the ground isn’t captured (often the tripod).
Freedom360: F360 Broadcaster
— partial coverage: 360×140°, 6 GoPro cameras
360Rize: PRO6L
— partial coverage: 360×120°, 6 GoPro cameras
Radiant Images: Dark Corner
— partial coverage: 360×155°, 4 Sony A7S MKII cameras (180° fisheye lens)
Totavision: Fulldome Camera
— partial coverage: 360×110°, 11 Toshiba IK-HD1 cameras
— cameras are placed around a virtual center. This arrangement allows parallax-free image stitching of distances larger than ~3 meters.
Sphericam 1
— partial coverage: 360×138°, single camera body with 4 sensors (170° fisheye lens)
Immersive Media: Hex
— partial coverage: 360×144°, single camera body with 6 sensors
— 15fps at full resolution / 25fps at half resolution
Giroptic: 360cam
— partial coverage: 360×150°, single camera body with 3 sensors (185° fisheye lens)
PanoptikonVR
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 14 GoPro cameras
— stereoscopic
Partial 360° Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
These stereoscopic rigs are definitely thought of as 360° video because they capture the entire sky and horizon, but the ground isn’t captured (often the tripod).
YI HALO VR Camera
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 17 YI 4k+ Action cameras
Varavon: VR-GS3D
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 8 GoPro cameras
Cylindrical Video Rigs
These rigs only capture the horizon. So the sky and the ground are not captured. (But there are some tricks to fill in these empty areas, such as heavily blurring some of footage and stretching into this zone. Or taking a still photo prior to the shoot and patching it in later.)
360Rize: H3Pro7HD
— partial coverage: 360×120°, 7 GoPro cameras
Immersive Media: Quattro
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 4 sensors
— 15fps max
Fraunhofer HHI: OmniCam-360
— partial coverage: 360×60°, 10 Micro HD cameras
— global shutter, genlocked?
— cameras are placed around a virtual center. This arrangement allows parallax-free image stitching of distances larger than 1 meter.
Totavision: Cylindrical Camera
— partial coverage: 360×37°, 8 Toshiba IK-HD1 cameras
— cameras are placed around a virtual center. This arrangement allows parallax-free image stitching of distances larger than ~3 meters.
Palace of Versailles footage / making-of
Cylindrical Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
These rigs only capture the horizon in stereo. So the sky and the ground are not captured. This approach makes dealing with stereo challenges much easier to swallow.
GoPro: Odyssey / Google Jump
— partial coverage: 360×120°, 16 GoPro cameras
— genlocked
— custom stitching service in the Google cloud: The Assembler
Intel: Voke VR
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, 12 custom cameras
— global shutter? genlocked?
Fraunhofer HHI: 3D OmniCam-360
— partial coverage: 360×60°, 20 Micro HD cameras
— global shutter, genlocked?
— cameras are placed around a virtual center. This arrangement allows parallax-free image stitching of distances larger than 2 meters.
Cylindrical Video Rigs: Parabolic Mirror
This technique has been around for a while. Basically one camera is precisely aimed at a specially crafted parabolic mirror. And so the mirror warps the whole horizon into the camera lens. But the sky and the ground are not captured. Since it only uses one camera, your end resolution is limited… But you don’t have to do any stitching. (Other major problems include: dust magnet, mirror surface quality, irregularly warping of image, image sharpness, and flares.)
(sphere) Pro
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, lens for a digital cinema camera or DSLR
VSN Mobil: V.360
— partial coverage: 360×60°, single camera body with 1 sensor
Pano Pro MKII
— partial coverage: 360×120°, lens for a DSLR
0-360 Panoramic Optic
— partial coverage: 360×115°, lens for a DSLR
Eye Mirror
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, lens for a DSLR
GoPano: Plus
— partial coverage: 360×100°, lens for a DSLR
Eye Mirror: Wet Lens
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, lens for a DSLR
— underwater depth rating unknown
ActionCam360
— partial coverage: 360×90°, attachment for GoPro housing
— all weather
Eye Mirror: GP 360
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, attachment for GoPro housing
— can go underwater up to 50m or 165ft
Kogeto: Joey
— partial coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 1 sensor
Kogeto: Lucy
— partial coverage: 360×100°, single camera body with 1 sensor
— in-depth experimentation
Kogeto: Dot
— partial coverage: 360×63°, attachment for iPhone
BubbleScope
— partial coverage: 360×62°, attachment for iPhone
GoPano: Micro
— partial coverage: 360×82°, attachment for iPhone
Remote Reality: Hummingbird360
— partial coverage: 360×70°, attachment for PointGrey Flea3 or Grasshopper
Interesting Research
— Panoramic Stereo Videos Using a Single Camera and a 3D printed coffee-filter style mirror
360° Light Field Rigs
A 360° light field camera enables virtual views to be generated from any point, facing any direction, with any field of view. Meaning that you can experience Six Degrees of Freedom (6DoF), and you can actually lean into the shot and change your perspective. It is the holy grail of VR.
Lytro: Immerge
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, dense light field camera array
— presentation by Jon Karafin (Head of Light Field Video for Lytro)
Interesting Research
— OTOY 360 light field experiment
— Axial-Cones: Modeling Spherical Catadioptric Cameras for Wide-Angle Light Field Rendering
360° Photography Rigs
There are a bunch of techniques to capture a 360° photo. But here are some photography rigs which automate or simplify the process.
Panono
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 36 sensors
NCTech: LASiris VR
— full coverage: 360×150°, single camera body
— photo camera and LiDAR scanner
NCTech: iSTAR Fusion
— partial coverage: 360×137°, single camera body with 4 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
NCTech: iris360 Pro
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 4 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
NCTech: iris360
— partial coverage: 360×137.5°, single camera body with 4 sensors (FOV of fisheye lens unknown)
Tesseract: Methane
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 1 sensor
Ocam: Staro
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 17 sensors
PanoHero
— full coverage: 360×180°, 1 GoPro camera
— stereo version available
Squito
— coverage: exact FOV unknown, single camera body with 3 sensors
GigaPan: Epic
— motorized drive which automatically captures multi-gigapixel panoramas
Roundshot: VR Drive
— motorized drive which automatically captures multi-gigapixel panoramas
BubblePod
— motorized turntable for smartphones, optional clip-on 120° lens
Pivotsphere
— tripod mount for manually shooting 360 photos with smartphone
Lomography: Spinner 360° / Motorizer
— 35mm still film camera for slit-scan photography
Lomography: Fisheye One / Fisheye Submarine
— 35mm still film camera with built-in 170° fisheye lens (cropped fisheye image)
— underwater depth rating: 20m or 65ft
Fisheye lens attachments for iPhone/Android
— photo mode: partially cropped fisheye image
— video mode: mostly cropped fisheye image (video crop amount differs between iPhone & Android)
— lenses such as: Beastgrip, CamKix, iPro, iZZi Gadgets, Mobi-Lens, Olloclip, Optrix, Photojojo, Ztylus
And then there is this!
Fisheye Video Rigs
Shooting with a fisheye lens means that you’re capturing at least 180° and it’s being projected onto the camera sensor in a circular format. Fisheye footage can be projected directly into a dome and be instantly immersive. But the footage can easily be warped into the spherical format too.
Kodak: PIXPRO SP360 4k / PIXPRO SP360
— PIXPRO SP360 4k has built-in 235° fisheye lens
— PIXPRO SP360 has built-in 214° fisheye lens
— underwater depth rating: 60m or 197ft (with case accessory)
360Fly 4k / 360Fly HD
— camera with built-in 240° fisheye lens
— 360Fly 4k – underwater depth rating: 10m or 33ft
— 360Fly HD – underwater depth rating: 50m or 165ft
iZugar: Z-Cam E1 using MKX22 Lens
— Z-Cam E1 with a 220° fisheye lens
Vantrix: PRO25 / AQUA Horizontal / AQUA Vertical / PRO4
— camera with built-in 182° panomorph lens
— underwater version has depth rating: 100m or 328ft
Casio: Exilim EX-FR200
— camera with detachable 185° fisheye lens
— all weather
Dome3D: GP185
— GoPro camera with custom 185° fisheye lens
Beon
— camera with built-in fisheye lens (FOV unknown)
MySight360
— camera with built-in 240° fisheye lens
— all weather
CyclopsGear: Cyclops 360°
— camera with built-in 220° fisheye lens
— underwater depth rating: 50m or 165ft
Tamaggo
— camera with built-in 240° fisheye lens
Entaniya: Entapano C-01
— camera with built-in 183° fisheye lens
— all weather (with case accessory)
Entaniya: Entapano2
— camera with built-in 250° fisheye lens
Camorama
— camera with built-in 230° fisheye lens
Detu: Sphere S / Sphere 800
— camera with built-in 236° fisheye lens
Oncam Evolution-12 Outdoor
— camera with built-in 185° fisheye lens
— 12fps at 9.6MP / 30fps at 2MP
— all weather (typically used as a security camera)
Digital Cinema Camera Options
— RED Scarlet with fisheye lens experiments: Paul Bourke & Home Run Pictures
— below is a slide from the presentation: “Seeking the Ideal Fulldome Camera” by Jim Arthurs – (IMERSA Summit 2013)
Cheap but Unproven Fisheye Cameras
— Eken H8 – 170° fisheye lens
— AMKOV AMK-100S – 220° fisheye lens / underwater depth rating: 30m or 100ft
— CUBE360 GVT100M – 190° fisheye lens / max 28fps
— Sunchip Panorama XDV360 – 220° fisheye lens
— HDKing V1 Pro – 220° fisheye lens
— X360 camera – 190° fisheye lens
Fisheye Video Rigs: Stereoscopic
Shooting with a fisheye lens means that you’re capturing at least 180° and it’s being projected onto the camera sensor in a circular format. But if you shoot with fisheye lenses that are higher than 180°, then you will see the lens itself within the edges of the shots. There are tricks to deal with this, but it’s an interesting challenge.
TwoEyes VR
— single camera body with 4 sensors (180° fisheye lens)
— Kickstarter project
Lucid Cam
— single camera body with 2 sensors (180° fisheye lens)
— prototype adapter allows for 360° stereoscopic video
IX Image: Omnipolar Camera Rig
— 3 cameras with fisheye lens
— custom stitching solution to enable stereo stitching without pole region issues
— potential to create 360° video (3 cams facing up, 3 cams facing down)
Tutorial
— Building a 3D Camera: Wide-Angle Stereoscopic Video for Cinematic VR
Fisheye Lens: GoPro or MFT Cameras
360 video rigs can greatly benefit from using a fisheye lens to increase the amount of footage overlap, which allows the seams to be better hidden when stitched. A fisheye lens captures at least 180° and is projected onto the camera sensor in a circular format. Due to the necessary compact nature of 360 video rigs, only lenses which support GoPro cameras or MFT cameras (Micro Four Thirds) are listed below.
Entaniya: GoPro Fisheye Lenses
— 220°, 250°, 280° fisheye lenses for GoPro cameras using Back-Bone Ribcage
Entaniya: Fisheye HAL 250
— 250° fisheye lens for Micro Four Thirds cameras
iZugar: MKX22 Fisheye Lens for MFT Cameras
— 220° fisheye lens for Micro Four Thirds cameras
iZugar: Fisheye Lenses for GoPro Cameras
— MKX13: 185° fisheye lens
— MKX19: 194° fisheye lens
360° Video Rigs: Less than 30fps
For VR and domes, a capture rate of at least 30 frames per seconds is an absolute requirement. Anything less and it’s simply too hard of an experience for the viewer.
ALLie
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (188° fisheye lens)
— 20fps
Ricoh: Theta m15
— full coverage: 360×180°, single camera body with 2 sensors (180° fisheye lens)
— 15fps, 5 minutes max of video recording
— teardown of camera
Point Grey: Ladybug5
— partial coverage: 360×162°, single camera body with 6 sensors
— 5fps uncompressed / 10fps compressed
— global shutter, genlocked?
— in-depth experimentation
Point Grey: Ladybug3
— partial coverage: 360×144°, single camera body with 6 sensors
— 6.5fps uncompressed / 16fps compressed
— global shutter, genlocked?
Point Grey: Ladybug2
— partial coverage: 360×135°, single camera body with 6 sensors
— 15fps uncompressed / 30fps compressed
— global shutter, genlocked?
VideoPanoramas
— partial coverage: 360×162°, single camera body with 3 sensors
— 10 FPS at 5MP / 15 FPS at 3MP / 30 FPS at 1.3MP
360° Video Rigs: Wild and Unique
In my research I’ve stumbled across many unique camera systems. Many of which are fascinating but are either not being used anymore, defy categorization, currently a prototype, or perhaps was a singular creation.
— Immersive Media: Mapping Presentation 2012
— Immersive Media: Dodeca 2360 – more info
— The original cube from Freedom360
— Elphel Eyesis4Pi
— Canon Vixia / 24 camera rig
— Overview One
— Panoptic Camera
— FullView Camera Rig
— The Mill – Custom Red Dragon Camera Rig
— FascinatE’s Omnicam ARRI Alexa M Rig
— IC720
— Social Animal: SA9
— Sensocto
— IPIX Media360
— Occam Omni Stereo
— Panasonic Dive
— Pentax Prototype
— Live Capture Using Panoramic Photography with One Camera
— 6 GoPro Cameras with six Entaniya fisheye lenses
— 360 video using five Canon M cameras
— Calibration of Omnidirectional Cameras in Practice
— TENGO2VR Q-1 Mark II
— Pi Of Sauron – 3D Printed, Raspberry Pi 360 Video Rig
— Making VR Video with the Kodak PIXPRO SP360
— Spherecam
— GoPro Session Rig
— Aposematic Jacket
— Nodal Ninja Multi-Cam Pano bracket system
— 3D printed Xiaomi Yi Rig
— GoPro Session: 3D printed rig
— Shooting 360° Video in 48K Using 12 Sony Xperia Z5 Smartphones
— Nikon Multi-Ball (prototype)
— Custom 3D 360 Rig using 13 Xiaomi Cameras
— 360 rig using six Flare 4KSDI cameras
— Tripletcam
— ALLie Go
— Genlocked GoPro Rig – tested with fast moving footage
— GoPro Omni announcement
— Handmade 360 rig using SJ400 cameras (x13)
— Brahma 360
— Fisheye lens rig
— Quantum Leap Pro
— Shuoying PDV3600
— GO6D: nine new 360 cameras planned
— Insta360 Nano – 360 camera attachment
— Handmade 360VR 2D/3D Rig
— Condition One Reveal ‘Bison’ Cinematic VR Camera
— The Open 360 Camera Hardware Repository
— Ricoh WG-M1: 360 rig
— Prototype Back-Bone GoPro with sensor & fisheye lens attached via ribbon cable extension
— Prototype iZugar GoPro rig with sensors & fisheye lens attached via ribbon cable extensions
— Using the iPhone front and rear cameras to capture 360 video (with fisheye lenses) – example footage
— Yezz announces Sfera smartphone with a 360-degree camera
— Android phone owners can record 360-degree VR video with NeoEye
— Visual Effects Society: VR Post Production (includes camera discussions) – p1, p2, p3
— Open-Source Panoramic Video: Bloggie + OpenFrameworks & Processing
— LV2 rocket 360 camera
— Bivrost 360 rig
— SmartPano 360
— Water cooled GoPro blocks for battery compartment
— UCVR Eye: 3D 180 video or fold camera to capture 360 video
— I-mmersive VEYE
— Nico360
— Orb VR
— TwoEyes VR
— Back-Bone Modulus Sensor Housing – enables you to use a sensor extension ribbon and place the image sensor away from the camera body
— Canon 360 rig using five ME200S-SH super35mm CMOS cameras
— Alcatel 360
— Yi Jump rig
— UW Guerrilla: Rigs 1 & Rigs 2
— Kodak SP360 4k with Entaniya 280° lens installed
— Google Jump rig using Xiaomi cameras
— GoPro Omni teardown and used to create a genlocked custom rig
— Go!PanoS1
— Briskeye
— Panasonic Prototype 360 Camera Rig
— Aleta S2
— Kandao Obsidian
— 360 light stick concept
— DKvision Aura: Cinematic VR Camera
— Hacking Samsung Gear 360 for 8K 360 timelapse
— Cinegears: Helius 6 – Intervideo: Helius rigs
— Drexel Digital Media Department: 360° Studio Camera Rig
— GoXtreme WVR20, VR27, WVR21, VR40 Live
— GoPro is developing a consumer spherical camera
— VantaVR – Red Epic Dragon 360 rig
— XL Catlin Seaview SVII camera
— Boxfish 360 rig with clever underwater lighting system
— PMast – rig using spherical lens with fiber-optic strands – more info
— iZugar Z8XL prototype
— Iliad Syncbox Dual GoPro Fisheye Rig
— Interesting combinations of 360 video cameras to enable dailies previewing
— Polaroid R360
— Occly – wearable personal safety device
— Ebeeii PE-1 & Ebeeii ME-1
— TE720
— Custom GoPro with sensor extension, fisheye lens, aluminum cooling faceplate, and genlock box
— Custom GoPro rig with sensor extensions and fisheye lens
— Kodak SP360 4k with custom 280° fisheye lens
— FirstLook360 – rescue operations camera
— Leica BLK360 – 360 LiDAR scanner
— Lighting ring for ZCAM S-Series
— Drivers perspective 360 rig – extremely unwise and dangerous
— Digital Domain’s proprietary 360 camera
— VERD A7 – combining Sony alpha 7 MKII and Ricoh THETA in the blind spot for preview
360° Video Rigs: DIY 3D Printing
So 360° video isn’t hard enough for you? You want to 3D print your own rig too?
— YI Build VR Camera
— Purple Pill VR – 3D models for 360 mono, 360 stereo, Google Jump
— Thingiverse: Cylindrical Stereo Mobius Rig – in-depth experimentation
— Thingiverse: Collection of 360 video rigs
— Thingiverse: search for 360 video rigs
— Shapeways: search for 360 video rigs
— Sumo360 Rig
— SJ4000 360 Rig
— IncreDesigns
— Cardboard 360 video rig
— Mirrored light bulb for super cheap cylindrical video capture
Custom Mounting Base for the Kodak PIXPRO SP360 4k rig
— Stereoscopic 360 Mounting Base
— Dual mounting base & bracket (includes USB & HDMI access port)
— Dual mounting base (includes USB & HDMI access port, tripod mount)
— SP360 to GoPro mount converter
— 3 Camera Mount for Underwater Housings
Unsuccessful Kickstarter Projects
Sadly these Kickstarter projects weren’t funded since they didn’t reach their goal. But they are unique and deserve to be recognized.
Blocks Camera
— modular camera rig with 4 sensors
Centr Cam
— partial coverage: 360×56°, single camera body with 4 sensors
Shot
— iPhone attachment with dual 235° fisheye lenses
Occube
— full coverage: 360×180°, 6 GoPro cameras
Lensbaby Circular 180+ for GoPro camera
— GoPro housing attachment with 185° fisheye lens
— plug and play (no camera modding required)
History of 360° Film
The concept of capturing a huge panoramic perspective isn’t a new one. There are been some fascinating projects early in film history. And only now is that dream being fully realized.
Early Cylindrical Film History
— Cinéorama (1900 Paris Exposition)
— Lumière Photorama (1902)
— Circarama (Disneyland)
Early 360° Video
— Page of Omnidirectional Vision
— Dynamic Surround Video
— Shooting 360-degree video with four GoPro HD Hero cameras
— Canon 5D Mark II fisheye rig
The Fulldome Blog 
