If you’ve been using the Internet for any amount of time, you’ve likely heard of or used YouTube before. YouTube is a website that allows users to create their own online “channels” and upload videos for others to watch. There are millions of channels on YouTube, and the site attracts over 15 billion worldwide users every month. Many people have had success on YouTube, getting millions of people to watch their videos and “subscribe” to their channels.
Over the years that YouTube has been around, they have introduced tons of new, cool features. A lot of new technology has been released, and with that came higher quality cameras. YouTube has kept up with these advancements, allowing for high quality video uploads and playback, as well as the capability to upload and watch 3D videos and now 360-degree view videos. A lot of users love seeing their favorite channels post videos that take full advantage of all of the features YouTube has to offer. If you yourself are a YouTuber, you may want to consider investing in a 360 camera and uploading 360 videos to your channel – and we’re going to tell you why.
What is a 360 camera?
A 360 camera is an advanced type of camera that can take pictures and/or record videos with a 360-degree view. Its lens(es) captures everything in its surroundings, allowing a viewer to feel like they can look around the entire space the camera was in at the moment the photo/video was captured.
That covers what a 360 camera is, but why exactly would it be a good idea to invest in? Next, let’s go into a few of the reasons why video creators should use a 360 camera. After that, we’ll tell you about some great ways to use them, and which ones we’d recommend purchasing!
5 Ways a 360 camera will improve my videos
1. Makes your videos more captivating.
Watching a video in 360 can be much more engaging for a viewer than watching a normal video. The ability to see completely around a room may help to keep your viewers interested and stay for the entire video, rather than risking them getting bored and clicking away.
2. It offers the widest field of vision available on the market.
A 360 camera will allow you to capture the complete area around you when you’re filming a video – even the best of wide angle lenses can’t do that! Using one of these cameras is truly the best way to give your audience a full view.
3. Your viewers can participate as they’re watching.
As they watch your 360 video on YouTube, your viewers can virtually move around the area you captured on video. If they watch on a mobile device or tablet, they can physically tilt and turn their device to change the area they’re viewing. If they watch on a desktop computer, they can use arrow keys on their screen to move around while the video continues to play.
4. No moving parts when filming.
When filming a video with a 360 camera, you don’t have to worry about moving anything on the camera to make sure everything is captured. Due to the fact that the camera can simultaneously capture everything around itself, you can leave the camera in one place.
5. It’s the latest and greatest in YouTube – if you get on board, your fans will too!
YouTube viewers will be looking for their favorite channels to use the YouTube platform to its fullest potential. Your subscribers will be excited to see you using a new technology. In addition, other people may come across your video shot in 360, and choose to subscribe to your channel because of it. Keeping up with new technological advancements can attract new viewers and keep your current viewers coming back for more!
YouTube even has a channel for virtual reality and 360-degree video that you could get your video featured on!
Now that we’ve discussed what a 360 camera is, and some of the benefits of using one for your YouTube videos, you may be wondering what kinds of videos would be best to shoot using one of these cameras. Next, we’ll tell you about some of the best uses for 360 cameras.
Great ways to make use of a 360 camera
- Virtual tours of a space, especially for real estate purposes – allow potential buyers to get a full view of each room.
- Video of a landscape, offering panoramic views – capture and share the beauty of the outdoors.
- Filming live events – filming a concert, sports game, or other event has never been better!
- Gaming videos – if you’re a gaming YouTuber, use a 360 camera capture and show your screen, as well as yourself playing. This helps your audience feel like they’re sitting right there with you.
- As a security camera – whether you’re a YouTuber or not, a 360 camera is a great idea to use as a security device.
Those are some ways you can use a 360 camera. Now, we’ll tell you about the five best 360 cameras for YouTubers to use for their videos!
The best 360 cameras for you
1. 360Fly 4K Camera
This camera captures a 360 angle with high resolution 4K video quality. It can be controlled using an app on your smartphone. It has one fish-eye style lens, so you don’t have to worry about stitching together separate video clips after filming. It has a built-in memory of 64GB, and is even waterproof and shockproof.
Best Feature: Single lens
Cost: $$
2. Kodak PixPro SP360 4K
This Kodak camera has a single wide-angle lens and comes with a mobile app to control the camera and computer software to stitch video clips together to create a seamless 360 video. The body of the camera is also pretty heavy-duty, and can survive splashes from water, extreme temperatures, and being dropped on the ground.
Best Feature: Heavy duty exterior
Cost: $$$
3. Samsung Gear 360
Our next option is the Samsung Gear 360. This one has two fish-eye style lenses, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities, and built-in memory. However, to control the camera, you’ll need one of the higher-end Samsung smart phones. This is a downside if you have a different kind of smart phone, but being one of the less expensive 360 camera options, that’s not so bad!
Best Feature: Dual fish-eye lens
Cost: $
4. Insta360
The Insta360 camera is top-notch quality. Similar to the Samsung camera mentioned above, this camera has 2 wide-angle, fish-eye lenses. With this option, you don’t have to worry about stitching video clips from the two lenses together post-filming, because the camera does the stitching for itself! To control this one, all you need is to download the mobile app for your phone.
Best Feature: Automatic video clip stitching
Cost: $$$
5. LG360 Cam
This 360 camera by LG is the least expensive out of the 5 options we’re mentioning in this article. It has two 200 degree lenses to fully capture all the way around itself. It doesn’t have as high of a resolution (aka slightly lower video quality), but at a lower price point that is to be expected. This one is also controlled via smartphone app, and is compatible with all popular smart phones.
Best Feature: Compatible with most smartphones.
Cost: $
Those are our top recommendations for the best 360 cameras for video creators to purchase. Keep in mind that even if you get a high-quality 360 video camera, YouTube may compress the files when you upload them and they could appear slightly lower quality than the original video. Have you tried any of these cameras before? Give us a review in the comment section! And if you’d like to learn more about YouTube, check out our free course with step-by-step tutorials here.
