360 photography: getting the whole picture
The world of photography is all about experimentation. Changing up your lens, using a completely different camera or trying new techniques is part and parcel of expanding your experience as a photographer. With that in mind, have you tried 360-degree photography?
Put simply, this type of photography is about creating beautiful panoramas, capturing all 360 degrees of the view.
How to create a 360 image
Photographer Joe Reifer, when speaking with Digital Trends, described how he tackles a 360 image:
“Panoramas in 360 degrees can be shot with anything from an iPhone app to a digital SLR. The most common way to get a nicely blended, 360 panorama with reasonable resolution is to shoot with a DSLR and fisheye lens on a panoramic head. Wide-angle lenses can also work well if you don’t have a fisheye, but usually require shooting and stitching more images. While handheld 360s are possible, using a panohead on a tripod or monopod makes stitching the resulting images a lot easier.”
Have you ever captured a landscape shot and realised how much you missed behind you? Just think of how much more you could fit in with a 360 image.
New from Facebook
Facebook has recently updated its mobile app for both IOS and Android with support for capturing and sharing 360-degree photos. No extra hardware is needed either. We’ve been able to upload and view 360 photos since May last year on Facebook but only through other devices, but now this can all be done through Facebook.
Facebook says that the feature has been rolling out worldwide so to keep a lookout for your ‘360 photo’ option.
Panorama photographers to watch
Tom Mills
London-based panoramic photographer Tom Mills is known for his work in the emerging field of 360-degree panoramic photography and virtual tour programming. He is an international panoramic photography award winner, as well as exhibiting in London, USA, Germany and France.
His ‘balcony kiss’ panorama of the Royal Wedding has been seen around the globe, as well as his ‘ground-breaking’ virtual tour for the National Gallery.
Jeffrey Martin
360-degree photographer Jeffrey Martin specialises in panoramic photos, gigapixel photos and 360 videos. He is also founder of 360cities.net, described as the world’s largest panoramic photography platform, as well as creator of Sphericam – a 360-degree video camera.
Talking about all things 360, he says, “Panoramic, 360, gigapixel, and aerial (quadcopter, drone) photography is fascinating because of the way it extends the human senses. With these tools, it is possible to see vast distances, to see everything at once, and to feel like you're flying.”
Will Pearson
Large-scale 360 photography and panoramic imagery is the interest of photographer Will Pearson, based in London. In terms of panoramic photography, Will blends extremely high resolution images together to make canvas prints that can reproduce at large scales. The largest reproduction he has done to date is a 72 metre one for Ericsson.
His 360-photography experience also extends to the automotive sector where 360 interactives allow people to explore car interiors in ‘flawless detail’.
What could be more impressive than 360 photography? This could be a great way to pique the interest of your children. Check out our guide to getting the children interested in photography.