Panoramic equipment?

K_user

I’ve tried a few panoramic shots over the past while, with varying success. Using only a standard tripod, or hand held, there is always a 50/50 risk that you are going to mess it up. Problems with perspective, levels, stitching, it can all go wrong very quickly.

Here are a couple of examples, they “work”, but have issues:





I stated looking at getting a panoramic head, but brands like Manfrotto cost almost as much as a lens, and the others either don’t deliver to Ireland, or don’t look all that great.

The next option would be a nodal slide rail, but I’ve never seen one in action, so I’m not all that clear on the number of parts that are required. You need a rail, a plate, an L bracket and a tripod head to hold them all together.

Naturally I really don’t want to waste money on something that doesn’t work. And I don’t want to buy 4 things, find that one is not required, and I’m missing something vital. I even noticed that some of the L brackets are camera specific.

Does anyone have any advice?

Does anyone have a working example of the required equipment?

Thanks in advance.

pete4130

Shoot in "portrait" format (i.e. top to bottom). It helps keep more of the top and bottom of the picture when stitched together.

Plan your shoot. Aim for a decent overlap between images, even 40-50% overlap so they can stitch easily.

Get a spirit level bubble for your hotshoe on the camera. You don't need a panoramic head that way. You can keep the camera level on the tripod as you rotate it around. They cost a few € on ebay.


I've handheld 360 degree pano's taking 2 rows of shots to give me a taller image. Granted I was using a fisheye lens.

These 4 paths converge in a cross in real life, but this is the 360 pano.

DaireQuinlan

pete4130 wrote: »

I've handheld 360 degree pano's taking 2 rows of shots to give me a taller image. Granted I was using a fisheye lens.

what was that you were using the last few shots you put up on the random photo thread ? was it one of those LOMO yokes ?

pete4130

Yeah, one of the LOMO 360 spinners. They can be set up on tripods. I find sometimes they don't spin a full 360 and the sun causes streaks down the frame sometimes. It could possibly be a feature of the crap LOMO production though.

I scanned them in the neg holder so no sprocket holes. I was being very lazy.

Judge

If the photos you've posted are typical of the type of panoramas you shoot, you shouldn't need a panoramic head. All that nodal point stuff is only necessary if there are objects in the foreground that could cause parallax errors - for example a pole or furniture, if you are shooting interiors.

What you do need to do is ensure that the camera is perfectly level on both axes - i.e the base should be level and also the camera should not be pointed up or down. Assuming you camera doesn't have a virtual horizon, then, as recommended by Pete, a hotshot level is an essential - and cheap - purchase.

One thing you will find is the that as you pan the camera, you will find the camera will tend to tilt either left or right. This is because, unless you on a very flat surface, it's virtually impossible to set up the tripod so that the base is perfectly level. For this reason, it's a good idea to invest in a levelling base. I use one of these.

If you are shooting a lot of panos and assuming you are following good practice and shooting in vertical format, an L-bracket is a good investment. Unfortunately, they can be costly for two reasons: (i) they all use the Arca-Swiss plate system, so you might have to invest in a new ball head and Arca-compatible heads can be dear and (ii) the L-bracket has to be machined specifically for your model of camera so L-brackets are also costly. On the the positive side: L-brackets make shooting vertically on a tripod much easier; the camera is much more stable on the tripod since it's positioned directly on top and not off to the side; and the Arca-style system is vastly superior to the proprietary plate systems used by the likes of Mantfrotto, so even though expensive, they represent a good investment. I use heads and plates made by Kirk Enterprises and these are good quality and easily ordered from Wex.

I also find I get the best results if shooting using a "normal" lens (i.e. 35mm DX or 50mm full frame) since presumably there is the least amount of distortion in the image, certainly when compared with a wide angle.

K_user

pete4130 wrote: »

Shoot in "portrait" format (i.e. top to bottom). It helps keep more of the top and bottom of the picture when stitched together.

Plan your shoot. Aim for a decent overlap between images, even 40-50% overlap so they can stitch easily.

Get a spirit level bubble for your hotshoe on the camera. You don't need a panoramic head that way. You can keep the camera level on the tripod as you rotate it around. They cost a few € on ebay.


I've handheld 360 degree pano's taking 2 rows of shots to give me a taller image. Granted I was using a fisheye lens.

These 4 paths converge in a cross in real life, but this is the 360 pano.

Thanks for the advice. That 360 is very impressive, especially considering its handheld.

I think I'll get a spirit level bubble, its a handy thing to have, my eye isn't the best at getting the levels naturally straight.

pete4130

Remember you will lose some image tom rate top and bottom when it stitches it together, especially handheld pano's so you usually have to crop the pano the best way you can. I'll see if I can screenshot an example…

This was handheld on a bulky medium format camera consisting of 3 shots, all eyed in, no tripod or bubble.

K_user

Judge wrote: »

If the photos you've posted are typical of the type of panoramas you shoot, you shouldn't need a panoramic head. All that nodal point stuff is only necessary if there are objects in the foreground that could cause parallax errors - for example a pole or furniture, if you are shooting interiors.

Well as I mentioned I've only started playing around with pano's, so the photographs are just samples.

As you know, once you try a panoramic, you get parallex errors. So I just avoid anything with a straight line in the foreground. Water, beaches, or fields, help just negate the issue.

But I've always liked the panoramic format, and would like to try more challenging subjects. I have a few in mind and they won't work unless I can avoid the nodal issues.

Judge wrote: »

What you do need to do is ensure that the camera is perfectly level on both axes - i.e the base should be level and also the camera should not be pointed up or down. Assuming you camera doesn't have a virtual horizon, then, as recommended by Pete, a hotshot level is an essential - and cheap - purchase.

One thing you will find is the that as you pan the camera, you will find the camera will tend to tilt either left or right. This is because, unless you on a very flat surface, it's virtually impossible to set up the tripod so that the base is perfectly level. For this reason, it's a good idea to invest in a levelling base. I use one of these.

If you are shooting a lot of panos and assuming you are following good practice and shooting in vertical format, an L-bracket is a good investment. Unfortunately, they can be costly for two reasons: (i) they all use the Arca-Swiss plate system, so you might have to invest in a new ball head and Arca-compatible heads can be dear and (ii) the L-bracket has to be machined specifically for your model of camera so L-brackets are also costly. On the the positive side: L-brackets make shooting vertically on a tripod much easier; the camera is much more stable on the tripod since it's positioned directly on top and not off to the side; and the Arca-style system is vastly superior to the proprietary plate systems used by the likes of Mantfrotto, so even though expensive, they represent a good investment. I use heads and plates made by Kirk Enterprises and these are good quality and easily ordered from Wex.

I also find I get the best results if shooting using a "normal" lens (i.e. 35mm DX or 50mm full frame) since presumably there is the least amount of distortion in the image, certainly when compared with a wide angle.

Thanks for that.

I think you've hit the nail on the head here. As I mentioned I knew there were a number of things that needed to be purchased to make pano's work. So some sort of levelling base is obviously important. And as I suspected the L plate isn't an off the shelf buy.

I'll have to do a little more research before I commit. Thanks.

K_user

pete4130 wrote: »

Remember you will lose some image tom rate top and bottom when it stitches it together, especially handheld pano's so you usually have to crop the pano the best way you can. I'll see if I can screenshot an example…

This was handheld on a bulky medium format camera consisting of 3 shots, all eyed in, no tripod or bubble.

Very impressive, again because its all hand held.

This is exactly the type of shot I've avoided, as I've tried to keep the foreground simple and easy to crop. I also have been averaging on 6-8 images and therefore there is a higher chance of error.

I'll try 3-4 photographs, with a level, and see how I get on.

pete4130

I'd say I had a 10-20% overlap on the 3 frames. It was a wide angle lens as well which makes the pano's a bit easier albeit you get more distortion.

The lens wasn't wide enough for the whole scene so took a punt on 3 handhelds to stitch them together later. I spent a few minutes lining up where I'd take each shot, how to get the horizon even enough on all 3 images and where I'd overlap on frames.

K_user

Its all in the planning and getting everything to line up correctly.

Will have to practice my "technique" a bit at home, and then next time head out with specific shots in mind. Just to see what I can get.

Thanks