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With a VR camera, you can capture your surroundings in full 360-degree views. VR filmmaking is undergoing a major shift, and a large number of 360-degree cameras have appeared on the market, spanning consumer to high-end professional products. This article explains how to choose a camera that fits your needs.
Aaron is an in-house filmmaker and executive producer. As an experienced producer, he has also worked as a director, visual effects supervisor, senior colorist, and editor at firms such as Emotion Studios, Evil Eye Pictures, Spy Post, and The Orphanage. He is a board member of the Visual Effects Society. His creative work has been used on films including The Avengers, Iron Man, the Harry Potter series, and the Pirates of the Caribbean series.
At Pixvana, teams continually test new cameras, including custom camera rigs, to determine which VR systems work best for different projects. There is no single best VR camera in this article—only the camera that best matches your requirements.
Before shooting VR video, ask yourself: Does this piece need to be fully immersive? How will viewers watch it? What are my budget and production constraints? These questions help narrow your choices. Generally, off-the-shelf non-custom camera rigs simplify postproduction, while custom rigs can benefit filmmakers with very specific needs. The options below cover most use cases.
Entry-level choices
For entry-level products, I recommend Samsung Gear 360 or the Ricoh Theta S; both cost under $400. They are simple to use, compact and portable, and can connect to smartphones for quick playback. The Ricoh Theta S also supports live streaming.
These devices capture video at relatively low resolution. If you are a casual consumer or a professional trying VR for the first time, they are affordable choices before investing in higher-end gear. Even experienced professionals should not dismiss these cameras for proofs of concept or test shoots.
Mid-range options
For mid-range setups, the GoPro Omni, priced around $5,000, is a strongly recommended off-the-shelf option. It mounts six HERO4 Black cameras in a portable sphere and can capture video intended for 8K output. The GoPro Kolor software suite provides tools for exporting, editing, previewing, and producing stitched footage.
Omni has notable drawbacks, such as the lack of real-time preview or live stitching. Paired with a Ricoh Theta S or Samsung Gear 360 you can still preview footage quickly. I favor Omni at this price point because it offers a one-stop solution for shooting and processing high-resolution material. Its compact, small-sphere form factor gives filmmakers greater flexibility and easier setup than many large custom rigs. If you need high-resolution capture without an excessive budget, this is a strong market option.
High-end option
For professional production, the Nokia OZO is a capable choice. Designed for professional VR filmmaking, the OZO is a spherical camera with eight synchronized sensors and an integrated computer that coordinates with OZO software for real-time stitching and preview. It also offers high-fidelity spatial audio, localized stereo options, and HD livestreaming capabilities, with capture workflows targeting up to 6K-class resolutions.
Note that the OZO was sold at about $45,000, with rental rates around $3,000 per day, but it provides a robust feature set and a well-designed capture-to-edit workflow. For professionals who need a complete, stable production tool or high-resolution livestream capabilities, OZO can be appropriate.
Custom rigs: trade-offs
Custom camera rigs can provide advantages that off-the-shelf systems cannot. On a recent shoot I used a custom rig built from five RED Weapon cameras to capture 10K resolution at 60 fps. When selecting a camera system, remember that higher resolution yields better results inside VR headsets. With a custom rig I could fully control exposure, change lenses, and perform other adjustments to meet the shooting requirements.
However, custom rigs are heavy, difficult to move and set up, and more complex to operate than typical VR cameras. Even experienced crews should ensure their production plan is complete and that operators have the necessary skills before using custom equipment.
Once you choose a camera, you can begin shooting. As VR technology progresses, higher resolutions and simpler workflows are likely to become the industry standard.
Adapted from RoadToVR.
