I have seen some excellent stitched panos posted over last few weeks over web and at NPN. Does a special pano camera make any sense? Given their costs and handling, is a digital cam with head and software to stitch provide better option?
What do you think?
I personally wouldn't invest in one now, though I've wanted one for a while. A DSLR with good levelling base and/or pano head can produce superb results. The only caveat I can think of is if your market requires film submissions.
Then again I do have a stock of 220 film in my freezer that I need to work through so I may rent a panoramic camera setup for a day at some point.
Guy, I would also love to own a Fuji617 or similar. That 6x17 tranny must be a treat. I'm not sure about the pano back for 4x5, too heavy and problematic. HOwever, the cost of a pano camera is prohibitive, still.
It doesn't get much easier or cheaper than a digital camera and some good stitching software for making panoramas. I recomment either Panorama Factory (http://www.panoramafactory.com) or Autopano Pro (http://www.autopano.net) for stitching software. Autopano Pro is more expensive but allows you to use multiple rows of multiple photos for HUGE panoramas (so long as your computer can handle them).
If I am shooting only one row of frames I will usually shoot in vertical (portrait) mode so that I get more resolution and a higher quality print. You have more seams to stitch but if you get good overlaps and keep the frames level the software will do all the work for you. It's not necessary with Autopano Pro, but it's best to play it safe and shoot all the frames with the same manual settings (including white balance) to guarantee seamless stitching. If it is low light or you have a lot of very close objects in your pan you will need a tripod but more often than not, you can shoot a very good panorama hand-held. I have hundreds of panoramas and probably better than 75% of them are hand-held. If you want to see some samples you can find lots of them interspersed amongst all my photos in my betterphoto.com gallery. http://www.betterphoto.com?garyminish
You can of course use film and a scanner to get the same multiframe stitched panos if film is your preference.
I shoot vertical photos handheld or with a normal ballhead, then stitch them in Panormamafactory v4,3. It's cheap and gives excellent results. I've printet a 1,5 meter panorama from them. I see no need for specialized equipment unless the subject(s) is moving a lot or the light changes very fast. With my dSLR I can cover a wider angle as well for my panoramas.
Just made a 360 stitch from the balcony of a lighthouse. 16 frames, all handheld, stitched using "full auto" in Panoramafactory - STUNNING RESULT! The final image is 25000 pixels wide! No more 220 film for me thanks!
Discussion
4 repliesWhat do you think?
Then again I do have a stock of 220 film in my freezer that I need to work through so I may rent a panoramic camera setup for a day at some point.
Guy
It doesn't get much easier or cheaper than a digital camera and some good stitching software for making panoramas. I recomment either Panorama Factory (http://www.panoramafactory.com) or Autopano Pro (http://www.autopano.net) for stitching software. Autopano Pro is more expensive but allows you to use multiple rows of multiple photos for HUGE panoramas (so long as your computer can handle them).
If I am shooting only one row of frames I will usually shoot in vertical (portrait) mode so that I get more resolution and a higher quality print. You have more seams to stitch but if you get good overlaps and keep the frames level the software will do all the work for you. It's not necessary with Autopano Pro, but it's best to play it safe and shoot all the frames with the same manual settings (including white balance) to guarantee seamless stitching. If it is low light or you have a lot of very close objects in your pan you will need a tripod but more often than not, you can shoot a very good panorama hand-held. I have hundreds of panoramas and probably better than 75% of them are hand-held. If you want to see some samples you can find lots of them interspersed amongst all my photos in my betterphoto.com gallery. http://www.betterphoto.com?garyminish
You can of course use film and a scanner to get the same multiframe stitched panos if film is your preference.
Good luck with your panos!
Gary
Just made a 360 stitch from the balcony of a lighthouse. 16 frames, all handheld, stitched using "full auto" in Panoramafactory - STUNNING RESULT! The final image is 25000 pixels wide! No more 220 film for me thanks!