Changing the background (skybox)

PhotoDome surrounds you with an immersive 360° background — also called a skybox. You can swap it for one of the built-in scenes, turn one of your own photos into the background, or simply show, hide, and reset it. There are three ways, and they all start from the same place.

The numbered arrows in the screenshot match the controls used in the steps below.

Background button

Tap the mountain icon in the floating toolbar to open the Background panel.

Floating toolbar

Use this toolbar as your starting point. The chevron collapses or expands it when you need more room.

Background thumbnails

Choose a built-in scene on the left or pick from saved custom backgrounds across the top.

Quick controls

Use the options strip for Show, Hide, Set to Photo, and Reset. Use the panel slider to rotate the scene.

Start at 1 Background Tap the Background button in the floating toolbar to open the panel.

Way 1

Pick a built-in scene

Use the thumbnail area shown by 3. In the Builtin Backgrounds grid, tap any thumbnail to switch instantly. The scene cross-fades in, and the active one is outlined in blue. PhotoDome ships with eight scenes:

Clouds

Forest Trail

Milkyway

Sandstone

Sunrise Beach

Sunset Beach

Thai

Winter Lake

Use the Rotate Background slider on the right of the panel to spin the scene so the part you like best lines up with your view.

Way 2

Use one of your own photos

Turn any photo floating in the dome into the 360° background.

In the Background Options picker shown by 4, tap Set to Photo. The hint “Tap any photo to set as the background” appears — then tap any photo tile, and it cross-fades in as your new background.

Keep it. A tapped-photo background is temporary until you save it. In the Custom Background row, tap Save 1 (or 2, 3, …) to store it as a reusable thumbnail. Remove a saved one with its trash button .

To make the current background open automatically with an album, use Make Default for This Album in the Album Default Skybox section.

Way 3

Show, hide, or reset

The Background Options picker shown by 4 also toggles the background on and off, or returns it to the default:

Show

Hide

Set to Photo

Reset

Control	What it does
Show	Displays the background scene
Hide	Hides the background so you see your real room (passthrough)
Set to Photo	Enter photo-picking mode (see Way 2)
Reset to Default	Restores the default background for the current viewing mode

Hide vs. Hide Photos. Hide above hides the background so you can see your surroundings. The separate Photo Visibility toggle () hides the photos so you can see only the background. They're independent.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get back to the original background?

Open the Background panel and tap Reset to Default in the Background Options picker. This restores the default scene for the viewing mode you're in.

I set a photo as the background but it disappeared. Why?

A photo set with Set to Photo is temporary. To keep it, save it to a Custom Background slot (Save 1 / 2 / 3 …) or use Make Default for This Album. Saved backgrounds stay available as thumbnails.

Can I see my real room instead of a background?

Yes. Tap Hide in the Background Options picker to turn the background off and show passthrough.

How do I delete a custom background I saved?

In the Custom Background row, tap the trash button beneath the thumbnail you want to remove.

The background is sideways or off-center. Can I rotate it?

Use the Rotate Background slider in the Background panel to spin the scene, or tap Reset Rotation to return it to 0°.

Quick reference

I want to…	Go to	Tap
Use a built-in scene	Background → Builtin Backgrounds	A thumbnail
Use my own photo	Background → Background Options	Set to Photo, then a photo
Save my photo background	Background → Custom Background	Save 1 / 2 / 3 …
Turn the background off	Background → Background Options	Hide
Go back to default	Background → Background Options	Reset to Default

All paths begin by tapping the Background button in the toolbar.