I use the Pro camera for everything possible, including exteriors, which means scanning outside only during heavy cloud cover or before dawn, after sunset (as fast as you can, about 30-40 minutes usable).
The Pro camera aligns pretty dependably as it has depth data, though it won't work when you've ventured 3-4 meters beyond geometric objects. The IR generated mesh is way to coarse to understand leaves, trees and bushes. But there's a lot you can do in smaller yards, and sometimes adding geometric physical objects has gotten me through tough spots.
Where I pull out the Z1 is when there is too much foliage, and especially for pools, as the Pro camera's IR cannot read water. In dollhouse views, a pool becomes a black hole.
Problem is in getting the Z1 photos (converted to 3D via Cortex) to align with the good Pro scans. Best technique is to begin your first Z1 right on top of a previous Pro scan, to maximize the Cortex-simulated 3D data (AI guesswork) to hopefully find the same spot. There can be a lot of trial and error. False alignment, delete and try again. Very frustrating and time consuming.
When doing this, it is ESSENTIAL that you pay attention to the mini-map as each Z1 scan is aligned and appears. Many will be in the wrong place and must be immediately deleted lest you multiply errors by adding additional scans.
The sad part is this... There is a solution that Matterport could, but seemingly chooses not to, deliver.
In the Capture app, as each new Cortex scan is added to the minimap, the added ground area appears. If an outdoor scan by the pool shows up in the living room (let's call is scan #85), you suddenly see grass and the pool edge superimposed right by the couch, in a patch surrounding the 85 marker. Obvious error, and all you can do is delete and try again.
But imagine if you could Tap the 85 marker, and in addition to the option to delete it, there was an open to MOVE the scan, just as we can do with 360's used outside. So tap MOVE, and the new scan can be rotated and dragged across the model to the proper spot, in this case outside by the pool, and then tapped again to PLACE it, correcting the error. At that point the ground image created by 85 could be visually checked for alignment with the previous Pro camera scans, and, behind the scenes, both the visual and the Cortex-created AI-simulated depth data would be locked in this new, proper, position.
If this were added to the Matterport system, clearly doable as 360's can be moved at will, creation of MP spaces using non-depth-scanning cameras would be incredibly more powerful. You could "scan" to your heart's content in gardens, yards, anywhere.
The problem is one of will, and the way MP looks at MSPs, or should I use their later term, "scan technicians". Every decision of the company seems to be made to limit, to restrict, what Matterport creators can do. They want a system that functions like Uber. When you "uber" a car, you don't care who's driving as long as the car has gas and four wheels. This is how Matterport wants their system, and us, to function. That the skill level of every operator is the same, and is "good enough". They don't want a system where the skill level of the MSP matters, because then clients will NOT see us as all the same, interchangeable, which enables driving the labor price through the floor, just as Uber drivers struggle with.
But Matterport isn't fool-proof, and all MSPs are not the same. I don't have all the answers in scanning with MP, but I know I'm in the top 5% based on the scale and complexity of projects I've done (from 800 to 70,000 in a single model), and my clients know my models come out as perfect as the technology permits.
It's this striving for perfection that is to the benefit of MP, but nevertheless, they've chosen to restrict capabilities that would empower those of us who care, to push the platform forward.
Small example: GeoCV early on provided users with the ability to download a pano, retouch it in photoshop and re-load it. So it's a snap to fix little problems such as dog poop on the patio. The process is simple, just like you can download 360 panos in Matterport. They just won't let you re-upload them, because this level of MSP commitment would differentiate between creators. It's not "scalable" because humans are different.
Amir Frank, I would love your input on this conversation. On the web call two weeks ago someone asked about scanning outdoors. Your reply on screen was that MP only encourages the use of 360 (bubbles). But what about those of us who are committed to providing high-end customers with more than just 360 bubble images? It can be done. I attach a recent example I did all with Pro camera and added water to the dollhouse pool with the Z1. Help us do even better by empowering us with more control to make MP models even better... like repositioning mis-aligned scans.
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