Start taking 360 photos for free

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Sam Stewart steps to the middle of his JEA session on immersive storytelling to take a 360 picture with his 360 camera.

Although the Ricoh Theta is all the rage now for taking state-of-the-art 360 photos, one doesn’t have to invest in top equipment to stay current.

Who says?  Samaruddin “Sam” Stewart says.

Stewart of the Verified Pixel Project, San Francisco, presented two sessions at the JEA Indianapolis convention.  Both shared ways in which Google News Lab and Medium.com/journalism360 can up a journalist’s 360 storytelling strategies.

But, what camera to buy?

Theta’s range from $250 – $350 with an optional $20 extension.

The LG version may be a mid-range for affordability.

A recent lead story on its Medium channel is about choosing a 360 camera.

In the meantime, however, he said to “take your smart phone and stitch together 12-16 pictures.”  It isn’t necessary to buy a camera to create 360 visualizations.

If you do buy a camera, however, he recommended buying the cheapest one because the technology will change in the next 10 months.

Michelle Harmon

Michelle Harmon is in her 13th year of teaching and advising the school newspaper at Borah High School in Boise, Idaho. She is state director of Idaho JEA and President of the Idaho Student Journalism Association.

Michelle Harmon has 102 posts and counting. See all posts by Michelle Harmon

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