What's So Great About 360 Photography

Ever been in a situation where action’s happening all around you, and wished you could shoot in every direction at once? Or found yourself watching a video and wondering what was going on behind the camera?

Well, say hello to 360 – your new favourite format.

So what actually is a 360 camera?

A 360 camera system is designed to capture footage in every direction at once – or, a full 360°, which is where the format gets its name from. When you’re reviewing 360 videos, you can take control to explore the scene and decide what angle you want to see the footage from. Do you want to look at the floor? Or check out the sky? Or just swing around to take in the whole of a location? With 360, you can.

You’ll know when you’re looking at a 360 video online because the viewing window will more than likely have a small “360” logo in the corner and a “four-arrow” icon that shows you the video’s interactive. You can then explore these videos by dragging your finger or your mouse cursor across the screen to change your viewing angle. Look up, look down, look around – you’ll be able to see the whole of the experience that was captured in 360.

And if you’re lucky enough to own a VR headset like Oculus Rift or Samsung Gear VR, you can even view 360 videos in VR format, where you move your head around to see more of a scene just as you would in real life – just make sure you’re somewhere safe first!

(Hot tip: VR headsets sound pricey, but they don’t have to cost the earth: Google’s own Cardboard solution is a downloadable version that you can build by yourself using everyday items!)

Why has 360 suddenly become popular?

Back in the day, shooting in multiple directions used to require lots and lots of synchronized cameras strapped together to create an unwieldy, heavy, Franken-gadget. Editing the resulting footage was also a technological nightmare, well beyond the ability levels of everyone except the extremely tech-savvy – so it’s no real surprise that most people tended to stick to good old one-directional video, and simply move the camera and lens to point at what they wanted to film.

Fish-eye cameras like Go Pros allow you to capture more of a scene than a regular “flat” camera does – but it’s only in the last year or so that we’ve had access to affordable, travel-friendly and easy-to-use 360 cameras.

This is the real secret of 360’s success – its simplicity. Camera manufacturers have spent a lot of time and research developing devices that are incredibly easy to use, and that are guaranteed to capture fantastic-quality 360 footage without the user having to be a professional videographer.

It’s also now super-simple to share your new captures online, with no need to convert files into different formats. Last year both YouTube and Facebook started supporting 360 videos automatically: people using the Chrome browser or iOS or Android devices can just move around the 360 videos without having to click out to another site or downloading any extra software or special apps.

On Facebook, if you spot a 360 video in your feed and you’re on your phone, you’ll get the full experience by rotating your device – and you’ll also be able to control the viewing angle by moving your screen around VR-style, like in this demo video...

What should I capture using 360 video?

As with all photography or video, this is up to you – of course – but 360 videos are particularly brilliant when an experience is completely immersive and action is happening all around the camera, rather than just in one direction. This really increases the sense of “being there” that makes 360 video so much fun.

What about a celebration?

Pop a 360 camera on the table and capture video of the whole family gathered round as the birthday boy blows out the candles...

Or take your 360 camera to a bluebell wood at first light, to record footage of a peaceful early morning in one of the most beautiful seasons the UK has to offer...

Don’t forget about batteries either – it can be a good idea to invest in a second battery for your camera, as there’s nothing quite so frustrating as running out of juice in the middle of your travels without access to a power point.

Some 360 cameras come with accessories like mounts and tripods: try using a 360 camera and bike-mount on your handlebars to show your mountain bike club your latest trail ride (and your reaction to it)...

Or better still, take all your Facebook friends on holiday with you: a 360 camera is a fantastic way to share the entirety of a jaw-dropping international adventure. Watching a seascape sunset? Exploring a bustling marketplace? Or are you encountering one of the wonders of the world? Whatever you’ve bumped into on your travels, it’ll be even more awesome to share every single perspective of your experience.

We recommend you get involved immediately – and make sure you tag us into your first 360 creation. Let us know if there’s anything else we can do to help you get to grips with this exciting new way of capturing your life on camera...