Matterport: What Is It?

Planning is the most important part of capturing a great virtual tour. "The initial step is prepping the house," explains Marketing Manager Jennifer Blevins, who was instrumental in implementing the Matterport system at Dixon. "We do a walk-through to create a plan for how the home will be scanned, and then make sure everything, from furniture to accessories, is just the way we want it." That means opening all window coverings, opening the doors of rooms and closets that will be scanned, and making sure all lights are on to creating consistent lighting throughout the tour.

Once the property is prepped and ready, the tripod and camera are set up and connected to an iPad which controls the entire scanning process. The photographer presses a button on the iPad and the camera begins capturing a 3D image of each room. The scan is then rendered in a low-res version on the iPad screen which allows the user to see what areas remain to be scanned. As rooms are photographed, windows and mirrors are indicated on the iPad screen which aids in the stitching together of the scans later in the process.

The process is repeated around the room and throughout the property as much as possible to create a complete and detailed scan. As the camera is moved from floor to floor, tags are added that enable the system to render floorplans of each level as well as a dollhouse view of the entire property.

Once the entire home is captured with the Matterport camera — a process that can take up to four hours in a large brownstone — the scans are uploaded to Dixon's Matterport cloud account where they're processed and stitched together to create a seamless three-dimensional virtual tour. At this stage, the user can add additional details including tagging special features with comments and captions.

To take this already immersive experience to the next level, Matterport renderings are fully compatible with virtual reality technology. All viewers have to do is add a pair of virtual reality goggles to their smartphones, and they can enjoy Dixon Leasing homes as if they were onsite.

Not only are the Matterport virtual tours incredibly advantageous to potential tenants, but they also provide great benefits for Dixon team members as well. "We can't always get out of the office to go see every property, but with Matterport, we can look at homes we might want to use for a photoshoot or private event and see if the space is suitable," explains Jennifer. "Plus, new leasing managers and potential new employees can quickly come up to speed on our inventory and really see how beautifully done each Dixon home is."

Look for Matterport 3D walkthroughs on the Photos tab of Dixon Leasing's online listings or in the Virtual Tour Gallery.