The future of photojournalism and broadcasting

Jacob Clanton, Print Editor-in-Chief

As new technology is created, the way people want to view their news changes. With the creation of smartphones, society has moved even more towards a visual society, with photojournalism at the forefront of the visual push.

These smartphones also give ordinary people the chance to become photojournalists. As the saying goes, “The best camera is the one you have on you.” As smartphones are built with better and better cameras, the opportunities for everyday citizens to be photojournalists expands.

However, people can’t do it alone. Here are some apps and services to help citizens, and photojournalists, take advantage of the changing environment.

 

Aurasma

Aurasma is an app that combines new augmented reality software with traditional photos and videos. The app allows for videos to be linked with printed photos. Then, whenever the app’s camera is pointed at the photo, a video appears in place of the photo on the smartphone screen. This is quickly becoming a trend in scholastic journalism, especially in yearbooks.

 

Twitter

Though nothing new, Twitter is still a leading tool for journalism in general. Through Twitter, people can keep others up-to-date on all the newsworthy happenings. This is also a great avenue for everyday people to become photojournalists. As they take photos of newsworthy events in their neck of the woods, people can post these images on Twitter to quickly update others on what’s going on. News outlets often use Twitter to gather photos from people who were actually at the events, connecting these outlets and their consumers.

 

Lightroom

As smartphones become the norm for quick photos, editing to matter. Adobe Lightroom is one of many picture-editing apps. By using Lightroom, people can quickly edit photos taken on their smartphone, ensuring that a high quality photo is pushed out through social media.