What is an Panorama?
A panorama is typically a picture that shows more than a single photograph can do. Commonly, a panorama is associated with a very wide picture that is very narrow in height. It shows a large part or all of what a beholder would see, if he or she would turn around his or her own axis. Such panoramas are called cylindrical panoramas and they cover a field of view of about 120° to full circle 360°.
Pictures that feature a wide field of view in the vertical direction can be considered as panoramas as well. They are very high but narrow pictures that show a high building — a tower, perhaps, or a hight tree. A vertical cylindrical panorama can cover a vertical field of view of up to 180°: from nadir to zenith.
Dome-like panoramas contain the environment around the spectator in the horizontal direction and additionally the skydome from the zenith down to the horizon: 90°.
Spherical panoramas show the scenery in full horizontal and vertical swing — 360° horizontal: all around; and 180° vertical from floor to sky. The observer is in the centre of a sphere. Photographing and assembling a spherical panorama is very elaborate and time-consuming and displaying the result difficult.
Wrapped up:
- Horizontal cylindrical panorama: maximal 360° wide, about 30° to 45° high.
- Vertikal cylindrical panorama: about 30° to 45° wide, maximal 180° high.
- Dome or skydome panorama: 360° wide; 90° high.
- Spherical panorama: 360° wide; 180° high.
This is not an official classification.