Rendering and compositing backgrounds for animation

Hi,

I’m working on an animation in blender and I’m kind of new to 3D, but I’ve used after effects extensively for years. I know that rendering background images and comping them in post with characters on alpha channel is a huge time saver for rendering. I know how to handle still and basic moving shots, but what about drastic angle changes? Like a 180 degree turn? What’s the best way to approach that kind of movement? I’ve seen people using curved backgrounds, should I be using a skybox?

If you could point me towards a tutorial or the correct terminology for Google, that would be great. I seem to be having trouble locating resources.