Construction professionals increasingly rely on 360 photo documentation to capture detailed insights and maintain transparency throughout the building process.
But while this form of documentation is now commonplace on construction sites, it’s not always easy to know if you’re getting the most out of your reality capture data.
If your construction site already uses 360-degree photos, are you maximizing their potential? And should your project rely on professional documentation services, or would a self-capture approach work for you?
360 PHOTOS ON CONSTRUCTION SITES: SELF-CAPTURE OR HIRE PROFESSIONALS?
Choosing between documenting your construction site internally or outsourcing to professionals depends on many factors, including:
- Budget — Professional reality capture services may seem more costly at first, but their efficiency and expertise often pay for themselves over time. In-house capture often requires upfront costs like purchasing 360 photo equipment and licensing for reality capture software.
- Resources — Do you have team members available to document the site regularly, or would leveraging those internal resources impact project efficiency?
- Project control — Self-capture allows greater flexibility in when and how you document the site, while outsourcing shifts control to a professional team.
- Project requirements — Some projects demand specific expertise or equipment that professionals are better equipped to handle.
Overall, self-capture offers flexibility and control, allowing teams to document site conditions on their schedule without reliance on external support. This approach can also be cost-effective, with tools like Hexagon’s GoCapture App enabling quick and accessible data collection.
However, self-capture requires a significant commitment of time and resources, including staff training, QA, and ongoing management. You’re also responsible for photo storage and the accessibility of reality capture data.
Professional 360 photo capture delivers high-quality, consistent results through the expertise and specialized equipment of third-party providers. This option reduces the burden on your in-house teams, freeing them to focus on other priorities.
Additionally, some providers offer AI-powered analysis solutions such as Hexagon’s Progress Reporting and Multivista’s Firestopping Assessment. These solutions make the photos more useful and insightful for stakeholders.
HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR CONSTRUCTION SITE 360 PHOTOS
Regardless of who captures your photos, taking the following steps will help you maximize the value of your 360-degree images:
Track milestone progression with AI technology.
Accurate reporting from 360 photos combined with AI-powered tools can help you identify risks and rework issues earlier, review and complete payment applications more efficiently, and create detailed records of progress over time.
Enhance the level of accuracy with 3D Laser Scanning.
Capturing your site with powerful 3D laser scanners creates precise point cloud data that allows you to take highly accurate measurements — down to the millimeter. This creates the ability to compare scans against the original designs to detect deviations, while also optimizing workflows for inspections, retrofits, remodeling, and BIM creation. Additionally, use point cloud data to generate viewable 360 photo images of the site.
Ensure accessibility.
360 photos provide vital insights from the field that all team members can use confidently to make informed decisions based on the latest project updates — so when 360 photos are difficult to access, you lose out on critical collaboration opportunities.
Rather than requiring specific software to store your project information, consider hosting your 360 photos and other project reality capture data on a cloud based platform where team members and stakeholders can access through any device with an internet connection. Accessibility to a single source of truth can help strengthen collaboration, improve workflows efficiency and optimize planning.
Combine 360 photos with AI technology for advanced insights.
Integrating AI with 360 photos unlocks actionable intelligence about your project, allowing you to:
- Flag potential project delays or risks before they escalate.
- Analyze data by trade or floor to improve subtrade coordination and productivity.
- Use photo annotations to facilitate QA/QC processes, verify completed work, and prevent rework.
- Create accurate schedules based on site reality capture data.
Respond to RFIs and change orders quickly.
RFIs can hold up schedules and lead to unnecessary costs if they end up blocking progress.
360 photos can be used to quickly address change orders and RFIs by providing accurate, up-to-date information. Especially if you take photos frequently and keep your reality capture data well-organized, you can easily verify work completed remotely to resolve disputes, clarify issues, or answer questions.
Effectively organize.
Organization is a key part of what makes 360 photos so powerful — don’t waste time searching through endless file folders or multiple devices for archived reality capture data.
By tagging 360 photos with time, date, and location stamps, and keeping them consistently named and organized, you’ll ensure they’re easy to locate and retrieve whenever they’re needed. Take it a step further by using a cloud-based platform from a provider like Multivista to streamline this process and view photos mapped out on project floorplans while maintaining a centralized, organized system.
Utilize UAV/Drones to expand your perspectives.
360 photos can be even more powerful when you have more angles available to view your site. Pairing 360 photos with UAV/Drone services can help you get the full picture of your construction site and even help you reach areas that may be hazardous or difficult to reach by traditional means.
GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR CONSTRUCTION SITE 360 PHOTOS WITH MULTIVISTA
Whether your team self-captures your construction site or our trained documentation specialists step in to assist, Multivista is here to help you maximize the value of your 360 photos.
With two decades of experience in the construction documentation industry, we can combine your 360 photos with numerous other solutions and services to get the most out of your construction reality capture data.
From UAVs/Drones to 3D laser scanning to AI-powered progress reporting, we’ll help you get the vital insights you need — and access them anytime, anywhere from a secure, single source of truth that also allows for you to upload your own photos and data at any time.
Want to get more from your 360 photos? Request a demo here.
