Best Images for Dome Mapping

[BigAl3D]

I wanted to try some dome mapping before setting up an actual street scene. I'm trying all sorts of HDRIs with equirectanglar distortion. Some look okay, but most are just impossible to work with.

What should I be looking for when choosing images for dome mapping? I assume equirectangular, but not 100% sure. I'm placing a car and want a big city street scene. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[Beanzvision]

Hi there, sorry for the delay. I'll start by sharing our YT vids on this feature.

3ds Max (Same principle applies to Cinema 4D):

C4D:

Firstly, dome mapping isn't 100% magic and some tweaking maybe be needed. It will work best for outdoor scenes rather indoor as objects are generally closer to the camera and can appear distorted. I would go with vast open spaces where the objects are far away or not too close to the camera. Knowing the camera height of the original HDRI is a big help but can also be used without knowing it and you will have to ''eyeball'' the results until you're happy. Aside from that, use high-quality images with decent dynamic range. HDRI Haven (https://polyhaven.com/hdris) have always had some great HDRI's. I hope this helps.

[BigAl3D]

Thanks for the info. Yes, I did discover the indoor close-to-the-camera issue with Dome mapping. Recently, I had to show some 3D capabilities and didn't have much time, so I tried the dome mapping feature. Once you figure out the scale and height, it was pretty quick to set up a shot. I was also impressed how good it looked when I did a simple orbit camera move. Really sold the idea of a 3D space.

[Ealexander]

Not sure this helps, but I've used this one with Dome very successfully.

https://www.jorgenhdri.com/michael-street

In general, the higher quality ones I've used tend to be better, I know that's not solid advice.