Reach into the Toolbox #9
The Photosynth tools from Microsoft allow you to create visually stunning photographs from single images which are then ‘stitched’ together. The example below was taken by my colleague Steph as we left the BETT show in January 2012.
A view of BETT 2012 on Wednesday evening as the last visitors were leaving. Taken with Photosynth for iphone.
All Steph did was stand on the balcony, take about 40 photographs with her iPhone and the Photosynth app on her iPhone stitched the photos together to create a panoramic view. Simple!
However, what if you don’t have an iPhone, iPad or anything else beginning with the letter i?
You can still use your ordinary camera to take the photos then upload them to your PC/laptop. Visit the Photosynth website where you will have to download their Photosynth Application. From there it’s a case of using the tools to create a stunning photograph. If you want a true panoramic photograph you also have to download their Image Composite Editor which will stitch your overlapping photos together to create the panoramic view.
You can share your photosynths through the usual channels – adding to favourites, embedding into a website, displaying on Facebook etc
As with most Internet based tools, you will need to create an account so that you can store your Photosynths – they are automatically set to be on public display however you can choose to keep them private and, as such, unlisted on the Photosynth website as well as any search engine.
In terms of mobile apps, as I previously stated, anything beginning with an ‘i’ is available; according to various ‘techie’ review websites there’s an app coming soon for Windows phones. There is nothing however, for Android phones. Boo!
However, I definitely think this is a tool not to be missed. A stunning 3D classroom display or a virtual tour of a school would look fantastic on a school website. Now get creating!
More next week
Claire
