What are panoramas?

Panoramas are usually multiple photos of a subject "glued" together via specialized software. 360 panoramas are photos taken at a 360 degree angle which form one big photo [in other words you grab the camera and spin in a circle while taking shots]. In order to make a succesful panorama that will blend in nicely, I recommend the use of a tripod.

What about the tutorial?
The tutorial below will help you understand the concept and teach you how to make your own circular masterpiece.

Step I - The base image
The starting images are three shots taken approximately at roughly the same time in roughly the same place. Usually, you should go for photos that are similar as Photoshop will do a horrible merge if the photos are taken ad very different angles.

Step II - The melding process

The melding process consists of the File>Automate>Photomerge menu. This process is usually automated but it can be done by hand [Interactive Layout]. Doing it by hand ensures that the final panorama is refined, however I strongly recommend the auto version as the refining process can be painstakingly long.

Once you have entered the menu, select Auto and add the images you want to meld together. Depending on CPU speed, RAM and number of images, the process usually takes around 40 seconds to complete. Size is aso an important factor as a wallet-size panorama will be done in a couple of seconds as opposed to a double desktop panorama which can span a few minutes.

Step III - The panorama

Once the melding process is complete, the final image will look something like this:

However, there are nasty edges that need to be taken care of.

Step IV - Minor adjustments

From the Tools menu, select the Crop tool and draw a rectangle that covers the non-white parts of the image. After that, double-click to crop the image. All done! The nasty edges have been trimmed and the panorama is complete!