Great 360 virtual tours are created in post-processing. While capturing bracketed exposures on site is essential, processing RAW DNG files in Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop is where you refine contrast, correct color temperature casts, recover blown-out window highlights, and clean up tripod nadir footprints. In this post-processing masterclass, we detail the complete editing workflow for professional 360 photos.
1. 1. The 4-Step Lightroom & Photoshop Editing Pipeline
- Lens Correction & Geometry: Apply camera profile lens corrections to fix chromatic aberration and purple fringing.
- White Balance Standardization: Sync Kelvin white balance across all project nodes so color tones remain identical when jumping between rooms.
- Shadow & Highlight Recovery: Boost Shadows (+30) and lower Highlights (-50) to balance room lighting and window views.
- Export 2:1 Equirectangular JPEG: Export full-resolution JPEGs (sRGB color space, 85% quality compression) for cloud publishing.
- Step 1: Lens correction and chromatic aberration removal.
- Step 2: White balance synchronization across all room nodes.
- Step 3: Shadow recovery and window highlight control.
- Step 4: Export 2:1 equirectangular sRGB JPEGs.
2. 2. Cloud Publishing via PanoPublish
Upload edited JPEGs to PanoPublish for cloud hosting, custom nadir logo disk overlays, white-label CNAME subdomains, and direct Google Maps Street View sync.
- 1-Click Nadir Logo Disk Overlays
- Direct OAuth2 API Google Maps Sync
- Zero Export Penalties via Flat INR Plans
Common Questions & Answers
What color space should be used for 360 web photos?
Always export JPEGs using the sRGB color space to ensure accurate color rendering across all web browsers and mobile screens.
Should I sharpen 360 photos in Lightroom before cloud upload?
Apply moderate sharpening (Amount: 40, Radius: 1.0, Masking: 50) in Lightroom to enhance architectural textures without creating edge noise.
