Choose how a Surface Media image or video fits its box
Media Fit sets whether a Surface Media image or video file shows whole, cropped to fill its box or stretched. It does nothing for YouTube, Vimeo or web pages.
Guide3 min read Updated
The short answer
Media Fit decides how an image or a video file sits inside the box of a Surface Media hotspot. It has three choices: Contain (Keep Aspect Ratio) (the default), Cover (Crop to Fill) and Fill (Stretch). The list is on screen for every Content Type, but it only changes an Image or a Video that is a file. It does nothing for a YouTube or Vimeo video, an iFrame / Website or Rich Text.
What each choice does
| Choice | What visitors see |
|---|---|
| Contain (Keep Aspect Ratio) | The whole picture or video, never cropped or stretched. If the box has a different shape, there is empty space at the sides or above and below. |
| Cover (Crop to Fill) | The box is filled and the proportions are kept, so whatever does not fit is cropped. |
| Fill (Stretch) | The media is stretched to the box in both directions, so it can look squashed or stretched. |
If the box has the same shape as the picture, the three choices look the same. Dimensions (px) sets the box: the W and H sliders run from 50 to 2000 pixels. Switch on the link icon beside the label to keep the box's proportions while you move one slider.
Change it
Who can do it: the owner, and Editors and Admins by default. They need the Hotspots tab and the Panoramrs tab, because saving goes through the panorama.
- Open the Hotspots tab, choose the scene and click the Surface Media hotspot. To make one, click Add Surface Media (in the Advanced view) and then click the picture (Surface Media has the rest).
- In Hotspot Properties, check Content Type: Image, or Video with a video file. Click Browse to pick a file from your Asset Library, or type an address in Media Source: a recognized address sets the type for you.
- Choose a setting in Media Fit, below Dimensions (px).
There is no Save button. The change is saved half a second later and, unless Draft Workflows is on, it refreshes the stored copy that visitors get (my changes do not show).
Troubleshooting
Media Fit does nothing. Content Type is iFrame / Website or Rich Text, or the Video address is a YouTube or Vimeo link. Panoramr shows a frame for any video address that contains youtube, youtu.be or vimeo, and sizes the frame to the box. To use Media Fit, use a video file instead: an .mp4 in your Asset Library, picked with Browse.
There are empty bars around my picture. That is Contain. Change Dimensions (px) to the picture's shape, or choose Cover (Crop to Fill).
Part of my picture is cut off. That is Cover. Choose Contain (Keep Aspect Ratio), or change Dimensions (px) to the picture's shape.
My picture looks squashed. That is Fill. Choose Contain (Keep Aspect Ratio) or Cover (Crop to Fill).
Next steps
Was this article helpful?