Zurich Grossmünster Panorama | 90m View over the Old Town | 360° Gigapixel Panorama

Zurich is the final stop in the "GigaExplorer Across Europe" series.

Our first impression was the city's youthful energy and efficiency. Unlike the leisurely rhythm of Paris, Zurich moves quickly and precisely. With a concentration of financial institutions and a global reputation for wealth management, it is a major financial center—but its prosperity never overwhelms its everyday character. Old and new, urban life and the surrounding landscape, coexist here in a remarkably balanced way.

The panorama was captured from the top of the twin towers of Grossmünster. For this kind of outdoor, high-altitude matrix photography, we followed the path of the sun to find the city's best-lit side and scanned the entire city over approximately six hours.

The greatest technical challenge came from the twin towers themselves: our camera position was on one tower, while the other inevitably entered the frame. To keep both the nearby tower structure and the distant city skyline exceptionally sharp, we had to constantly adjust the focus while maintaining a precise and stable matrix shooting path. Back in Shanghai, the team spent another three weeks selecting images, color grading, stitching, repairing the panorama, and developing the interactive experience. The result is this 51-gigapixel panorama of Zurich, assembled from 2,726 photographs.

Zoom In and Discover the Zurich Inside the Frame

A moment frozen in time: Across the Limmat River, Fraumünster's green copper spire is clearly visible. Zoom further into the large clock face on St. Peter's Church, and the hands are fixed at 11:05, preserving the time when our scan passed across this part of the city.

Everyday life on the streets: Near Fraumünster, a newlywed couple poses with their guests, with details of the bride's dress visible when you zoom in. Below, a blue-and-white tram passes through the Old Town streets, while several young people wait beside a traditional carousel.

Life along the Limmat: Clear water flows through the heart of the city as visitors reach toward the river to feed the swans, while a mother swan and her cygnets compete for the food. Along the river, historic guild houses, bridges, and outdoor cafés bring the energy of city life together with the calm of the waterfront.

Lake and distant hills: Looking south, Lake Zurich opens out beyond the city, with sailboats scattered across the water. Zoom toward the distant hills and you can find Uetliberg and its observation tower, a familiar green backdrop that forms part of Zurich's skyline.

The scale of everyday life: From the tower, the rooftops, streets, bridges, and river of the Old Town are compressed into a single view. There is no staged city scene here—only trams, visitors, weddings, cafés, swans, and people going about their daily lives, together forming a real and constantly moving Zurich.

Shrink the view and it becomes a city; zoom in, and you discover a collection of real, specific moments preserved inside Zurich.