We have been overwhelmed by the response to our recent Hyper Definition Image of Cape Town and appreciate so many people taking the time to write comments and send us mails.
As a show of our appreciation, we’ve dusted off another Hyper Definition Image we took from Signal Hill earlier this year and converted it to our new (slicker) viewing format.
It’s technically less impressive (2 gigapixels vs the 9 gigapixels of the more recent image), but I still like it more…….even though the stadium wasn’t done yet.
Remember: for the full experience, click on the full screen button (bottom right) and ZOOM !!!
Also, follow us on twitter @Daily_360 for updated on our next Hyper Definition Image – we’re working on another 4!!.
When you work in the virtual tour business, you have the privilege to witness technological advances almost daily.
But every once in a while these changes combine to create an effect that can only be described as a Game Changer.
Today we are proud to share such an culmination of technological advances.
For a lack of a better word: we’ll call it a Hyper Definition Virtual Tour , but before we get to the technical details, have a look at it:
Virtual Africa presents: Thehighest definition picture ever taken of Cape Town.
It might not look like much on first glance, but try the following and be ready to be blown away: click on the full screen button (bottom right) and then ZOOM !!
Some details as to the size of this image:
It was created by stitching 1850,fully zoomed (x 20 optical zoom), 10 MegaPixel images together.
The time it took from the first shot (top left) and last shot (lower right) being taken, was about 3 hours.
It’s 205 000 pixels wide.
That equates to a printout of about 90 m x 15 m!
The end result was a 25 GigaBytes RAW file which takes about an hour to open on my Macbook Pro.
Despite the size of the image, you can view it here because of a method called ’tiling’.
It works exactly the same way as mapping platforms such as Google Maps.
for example: When you view the whole of South Africa in Google Maps, the image obviously does not contain the high detail imagery of every roof top in the country. It’s only when you start zooming in, that Google Maps loads the relevant information.
The same happens here. We’ve taken our very big picture and created hundreds of thousand lower definition pictures (or tiles) from it. As you zoom into the picture, the only the appropriate tiles are loaded and this allows you to explore a very large image on a relatively slow internet connection. Simple, but smart.
In the coming months we hope to use images like these to organize data, visually.
Once again, similar to Google Maps, we can overlay information on top of this image to further enhance your exploration of Cape Town and the good news is that we are currently working on a few projects which will allow us to do just that.
In the mean time, we would love to hear your suggestions as to what we should call this kind of image/virtual tour…..
Took a lovely hike up Lions Head yesterday.
If you haven’t done it before – it’s a brilliantly beautiful walk with views all around.
And the view from the top ….. well, you can judge for yourself:
Remember to click on the full screen icon – top right.
Now this is REALLY cool – even if I have to say so myself.
We recently took and compiled the biggest (highest definition) picture ever taken of Cape Town.
For those curious as to how we did it, I will post a ” How we did it” later in the week – so drop your email in the subscribtion box to the right if you want to get an email notification.
We will also have some very exciting news about how this picture can help you win a week for two in the fabulous Thornybush Game Reserve…… exciting !! {update: go here for more info on the competition}
But before we get to that, we know you’d like some time to explore.
Zoom your heart out!!!
If you need some more space to explore – we created a dedicated page just for you.
Table Mountain has been nominated to become one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and the World (that’s us) has until 7 July 2009 to cast their votes.
Unlike party political elections, voter intimidation is totally acceptable when it comes to the Wonders – and we’re getting into the act.
So, here’s how it’s going to go down:
If you’ve been to Table Mountain before, it’s a bit of a no-brainer and no intimidation will be necessary, simply click here to vote and then enjoy the virtual tour of the mountain below.
If you confirm that you’ve done so in the comment section, we’ll send you on a 5 star holiday to an island paradise.(**There are some Terms and conditions to this prize, but you really don’t need to scroll down to read it. Do that after you’ve voted.)
If you haven’t been to Table Mountain before, read the rest of this post, explore the virtual tour and then vote.
The virtual tour is fully interactive and has numerous informative video’s for your enjoyment.
Off course Table Mountain should be one of the New 7 Natural Wonders of the world! As a matter of fact, they should have called the competition the 6 New Natural Wonders of the World, seeing that the number 1 spot is such a sure thing.
That would have allowed other mountains like Everest and Kilimanjaro to say “Well, they’ve made up there minds – we’re not even going to take part in this”, and spared them the embarrassment of being whipped by a stocky city dweller who has her head in the clouds most of the time.
Let’s get the most obvious reasons out of the way then:
Number 1: Table Mountain is MAGNIFICENT!I mean look at it!
Number 2: Table Mountain is Accessible.
Not only is it beautiful and unique, but quite a few people get to enjoy its beauty every day.
What’s the point in making Aldabera Atoll in the Seychelles a Natural Wonder if only 0.00000000000000001 % of the world population will ever be able to enjoy it?
Don’t get me wrong, it’s on my list of places to visit before I die, but I’ll be one of only a few people who would have had the privilege to visit this island paradise in the middle of nowhere.
Table Mountain, on the other hand, receives more than 800 000 visitors a year, via the Cable Car alone – not to mention the millions of people enjoying the view from every part of Cape Town, every day.
Number 3: Table Mountain has some SERIOUS eco-credentials
It is part of the Cape Floral Kingdom (read more on this) – which is a World Heritage Site. That’s right, you heard it: WORLD Heritage Site , like in 7 New wonders of the WORLD.
It has more floral species than the whole of Britain!
(Loch Ness , cry your heart out.)
Number 4: It’s the mother of all lungs. New Yorkers are always going on about how Central Park forms the ‘lungs’ of their city – and you have to give it to them, it is a great spot. It really is.You can just escape the the chaos of the city: sit on a park bench and watch the people walk by, go to a concert, go ice skating in winter or visit the animals in the New York Zoo.
But the reality is that Central Park has a bumper sticker somewhere on the upper West side, which reads:
“When I grow up I want to be Table Mountain”.
Table Mountain is the mother of all ‘urban lungs’.
I know of spots you can reach within 15 minutes of the City Centre, where you can’t see a building or hear a car. Honestly: 15 minutes from the city centre and you can drink cold water from a mountain stream.
Brilliant!!
Bottom line: New York got Frederick Law Olmsted to design their lung. Cape Town got God to do the job!
(I know Central Park is not in the running – the point is not that Table Mountain is better than Central Park, it’s that Central Park is great!! And Table Mountain is UNBELIEVABLE.A Natural Wonder ‘co-existing’ with an urban community!!One of a kind! Truly unique. Deserves your vote. If you phone now ……..got it?)
OK, with that settled then, there are just two things left to do :
Go here to vote for Table Mountain as one of the 7 New Wonders of the World.
Go here to explore the fullscreen virtual tour of the mountain.
We created the virtual tour with embedded video on request from the guys at SmartGuide.
We used our pictures and embedded their videos to create a complete ‘users guide to Table Mountain’. Check it out – and explore the mountain like never before.
Also, if you know a teacher – send them the link, it’s a great tool to show kids what the mountain is about. (and kids can vote too ….. nudge-nudge-wink-wink)
@Daily_360 and @tinusleroux 