andre antunes
Posts: 6
Location: Canada
Registered: 10 Oct 2007
|
high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 8 May 2008 at 16:09 GMT
updated: 8 May 2008 at 16:10 GMT
|
|
Hey everyone,
Long time reader not so much a poster.
Here is my dilemma, i purchased a 0-360 lens about 6 months and i'm just not satisfied with the quality of the 1 shot panoramic tours.
I come across images such as this:
they are soo large and high res everything is so crisp
(Tour - www.viewat.org/?i=en&sec=pn&id_pn=1442&rc=1
i know its with a fisheye lens and a Nodal ninja 3
Unfortunately i haven't used either a fisheye nor the nn3, and not sure what needs to be purchased nor how it works.
I have a DSLR Canon 30D
What is the best way to get such high res panoramic pictures. My budget is about $1000 can this be achieved?
Any help is always greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
mediavets
Posts: 302
Location: Isleham, Cambs., United Kingdom
Registered: 8 Feb 2008
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 8 May 2008 at 16:33 GMT
|
|
andre antunes said: Hey everyone,
.........I have a DSLR Canon 30D
What is the best way to get such high res panoramic pictures. My budget is about $1000 can this be achieved?
Just about possible with your budget.
Sigma 8mm f3.5 fisheye lens:
www.shopbot.ca/p-33724.html
Nodal Ninja 3 pano head:
www.rosaurophotography.com/html/order.html
Then you'll need PTGui or Autopano Pro and perhaps Pano2VR.
And a decent tripod.
Andrew
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
John Houghton
Posts: 2169
Location: Hitchin, United Kingdom
Registered: 17 Jan 2005
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 8 May 2008 at 16:52 GMT
updated: 8 May 2008 at 17:05 GMT
|
|
The Tokina 10-17mm fisheye is also recommendable, and is some $200 cheaper. You just need 2-3 more shots to cover the 360x180 view.
John
PS. As to how it all works, there are some Sigma 8mm images and tutorial for stitching them with PTGui at:
www.johnhpanos.com/ptgtut.htm
You can also try stitching the images with Autopano Pro too.
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
rudders
Posts: 343
Location: North Yorkshire & Northern England, United Kingdom
Registered: 21 Aug 2005
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 8 May 2008 at 23:39 GMT
|
|
you use a 1 shot with a 30D?  what a waste lol! Also look at the peleng manual lens if your not wanting to spend a lot. We use it with a 450d and 350d with the NN3. It is considered by some to be sharper than the sigma 8mm.
PTgui is highly recommended!
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Doug Aurand
Posts: 537
Location: Albuquerque, NM, United States
Registered: 2 Jan 2008
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 9 May 2008 at 1:29 GMT
updated: 9 May 2008 at 1:33 GMT
|
|
Andre
There are less expensive lenses than the Sigma 8mm but only the Nikkor 10.5mm is used by more VR Photographers
Tim Hatch has a break down of what equipment was used on the World Wide Panorama website which probably has more panoramas than any single website. The Sigma 8mm is used twice as much as any other lenses other than the Nikkor 10.5mm
timhatch.com/projects/wwp-equipment/
By using the Sigma 8mm on your Canon you'll have plenty of support all across the Web.
As far as rotators, the Nodal Ninja 3 is very affordable, but 360Precision just annouced their Atome, which is ordered for a specific lens and has a tilt that eliminates the need for a Zenith Shot with the Sigma 8mm. Its only US$300
I suspect Nodal Ninja will be announcing a similar product soon.
Also in your $1000 price range is the Sunex 5.6mm which can produce a full 360°x 360° image with just 3 shots. Although the general opinion is that the Sigma is a little sharper and brighter
Maybe some one can make a better suggestion if you told us what type of virtual photography you want to do and if this is a hobby or for commercial use
Doug Aurand
Albuquerque, NM
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
andre antunes
Posts: 6
Location: Canada
Registered: 10 Oct 2007
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 12 May 2008 at 16:18 GMT
updated: 12 May 2008 at 16:27 GMT
|
|
wow this is amazing! thanks for the info!
You guys have been a huge help!!
Thanks a bunch
- I have another question regarding the picture i posted above. Was that taken with multiple shots? and then stitched together?
That shot was taken in Downtown Toronto, there are dozens and dozens of people walking back in forth in that area how was he able to take the full 360 shot without any blurring or people being in the same shot twice.
This is what leads me to believe it was a full 360 shot. Can anyone explain please?
Thanks!
-Andre
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Roundshot
Posts: 78
Location: Hamburg, Germany
Registered: 27 Jul 2004
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 12 May 2008 at 17:46 GMT
|
|
Dear Andre:
You can speed up rotation with a motor drive as follows:
MK PanoMachine
vr-head.com/english/MK_PanoMachine.html
Highspeed for little money
Additionally to the production of „normal“ 360° panoramas in the stitching procedure it is possible for the first time to move the camera very fast.
Thanks to its fast speed it is feasible to photograph street scenes, city life, people, dynamic landscapes etc. in high quality, without investing into expensive technology and having even more expenses.
Marc
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
michael przewrocki
Posts: 709
Location: basel, Switzerland
Registered: 19 Nov 2004
|
Re: high res panoramicc shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 9:26 GMT
|
|
marc, can we expect a price cut of 50% when the new rotomachines are available?
even if you have the quickest turntable you will always have to correct if your subject is too speedy. in this case there hardly is no alternative to rotapancameras.
how can you capture both groups simultanously.
look at this shot:
www.auschwitz.ch.vu
people not moving fast. 1/60=4 secs/360
i pushed the button and exposed 7-9 pans in 30 sec.70mm/5m film full.
maybe it could have been done with dslrs. even showing the same groups twice. or coming in and out. would be nice.
sorry i dont have a nice location. roundshot/panascope 65/70/220-65mm grandagon(26mm shift). tto heavy to carry around.
michael przewrocki
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Hans Nyberg
Posts: 752
Location: Denmark
Registered: 28 Aug 2005
|
Re: high res panoramicc shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 9:56 GMT
|
|
Rotating a DSLR with a good rotator with "freegear" can be done very fast while shooting if you shoot at 1/1200 second or faster.
I use the Manfrotto 300N.
I shoot continuous shooting 3 images per second and I do the rotation manual. That means I shoot 270 degrees in 1.5 second.
This is very easy with some practice, Usually you never have movement all 360 degree so you can shoot the last image 1-2 seconds later.
This one has movement in both directions and there is no areas without people moving. This is the most difficult you can do.
www.panoramas.dk/new/fullscreen16.html
No manual manipulation was needed to stitch it. I exported the layers from PTGui and used Photoshop autoblend to blend them. On windows Smartblend would probably also been able to take care of the blending automatically.
Peter Murphy does the same but he uses a standard electric screwdriver as a motor for the rotation.
www.mediavr.com/blog/
Hans
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
mediavets
Posts: 302
Location: Isleham, Cambs., United Kingdom
Registered: 8 Feb 2008
|
Re: high res panoramicc shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 10:48 GMT
|
|
Hans Nyberg said: This one has movement in both directions and there is no areas without people moving. This is the most difficult you can do.
www.panoramas.dk/new/fullscreen16.html
Hans
Was this shot using a pole? The viewpoint seems quite elevated.
Andrew
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Hans Nyberg
Posts: 752
Location: Denmark
Registered: 28 Aug 2005
|
Re: high res panoramicc shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 13:04 GMT
|
|
Yes my own special.
Monopod-tripod with 2 monopods. Rotator between monopods for easy fast rotation.
Max height 4m. I guess this one was 3m
Hans
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Hans Nyberg
Posts: 752
Location: Denmark
Registered: 28 Aug 2005
|
Re: high res panoramicc shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 13:19 GMT
|
|
Everything goes into a standard Cavalet including my large MacBook Pro 17 (and your favorite drink.)
At standard height I can also do perfect downshots with a couple of cm accuracy using this setup.
Shadow from tripod is minimized because of the low height of the tripod legs.
Hans
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
andre antunes
Posts: 6
Location: Canada
Registered: 10 Oct 2007
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 17:57 GMT
|
|
Hi,
Thanks to everyone for helping me out here. Unfortunately im starting to get quiet confused with all the different answers im getting.
It seems that there are a few different approaches to this VR stuff.
I was looking for a solution with a $1000 budget for majority of my work will be showcasing homes. However i do not want to limit myself to just still subjects or rooms.
Would a system like the Nodal Ninja and a fisheye lens allow me to achieve these super high res panos?
When shooting with a system like the Nodal Ninja or similar how many shots are necessary to complete the full 360? Its extremely impressive how some of these VR's you can look straight up to the sky and straight down and not see any of the equipment.
Will a fisheye lens allow me to capture the floor and ceiling in 1 shot? Then all i would need would be rotate the panoramic tripod head until enough shots are captured to do the 360?
Sorry again for so many questions, but alot of this equipment is pricey and I don't want to make another mistake like i did with the purchase of a $600 0-360 1shot lens.
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
TriggerHappY
Posts: 590
Location: vancouver, Canada
Registered: 21 Jul 2004
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 18:17 GMT
updated: 13 May 2008 at 18:18 GMT
|
|
Hi Andre, a a sigma 8mm fisheye and a nodal ninja should run you less than the $1000 and allow you to do what you want.
Have fun
Dylan
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
Robert Harshman
Posts: 202
Location: Austin, TX and Chicago, IL, United States
Registered: 14 May 2004
|
Re: high res panormaic shots ?? Help!
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 20:06 GMT
|
|
Andre,
Sorry to hear you've had such a bad experience with a 0-360 lens. It is what it is, fast to shoot and process, but limited in resolution (detail) and vertical FOV - about 110 degrees of usable image.
I've used 4 different mirror systems in the past and they work well for what they are. They are not, not a one of them, capable of producing high quality virtual tours. But then again, depending on your market they may be just fine as most Real Estate Photography is all about good enough and low cost to produce with very fast turn around.
Mirror systems also work best with Point and shoot type cameras as their depth of field is almost unlimited and because your shooting up, the typical P&S flexible LCD comes in very handy.
But, if you want high quality thats great, just be prepared for a steep learning curve and spending more time and money than you could possibly imagine if using mirrors is your background.
Stepping up to a DSLR and quality fisheye lense is a huge leap up in the possibilities and time to shoot and produce. And if you're shooting Real Estate I hope you can price your services so you can make money. It takes an extremely efficient work flow to make real money in Real Estate virtual tours using a DSLR to produce full 360 by 180 VR's.
Before you price any work I would suggest getting a much deeper understanding of the work it takes to shoot, process and post high quality VR's.
This list is a great resource along with the Wiki on VR's and many other sites. You should do your homework so you can better understand what your getting into.
Best of luck and good reading!
Robert
|
|
alert moderator
|
|
back to threads list |
this thread is closed
Prev
