Kaidan Tripod manual Shooting Panoramas, How do I begin?, How much Overlap?, How many Shots?

Page 13

Shooting Panoramas

How do I begin?

How much Overlap?

The amount you turn the camera for each shot varies. It is dependent on a number of factors such as the field of view (the angle) of your camera and lens, as well as which program you intend to use. For example, with iSeeMedia PhotoVista,VR Toolbox VR Worx or Apple's QuickTime VR Authoring Studio, the recommended image overlap is anywhere from one-quarter to one-half. That’s a good rule of thumb for most stitching applications.You should check with the recommendations of the software that you intend to use in order to determine overlap requirements.

How many Shots?

Once you’ve determined the overlap, you’ll be able to figure out how many shots.The easiest way to do this is to simply look through the viewfinder and turn the camera to achieve the desired amount of overlap.You then check the angle readout to see how far you turned the camera. Round the angular value to the nearest convenient value. For most stitching programs, it is generally not that important to use a precise overlap value. However, it should be noted that some programs are more sensitive to an overlap value that constantly repeats from shot to shot. You may need to experiment somewhat to

obtain the best results.

Taking the Photos

When you’re ready to shoot, make sure that the camera is securely attached to the KiWi.You should use a tripod that is sturdy, ideally one that has a center support system of braces to help keep the camera from flexing.

Proper leveling is important and often misunderstood.When it comes to leveling there are two things that are fairly important. With multirow panoramas (i.e. Realviz Stitcher) the issue of leveling is less crucial and primarily involves aestethics and placement of the horizon.We’ll concentrate primarily on cylindrical or single-row panoramas.

First, the camera's optical axis should be parallel with the rotation plane of the tripod head. In other words the camera should not be pointed up or down with respect to the plane of rotation.

Secondly, it's also somewhat important for the camera and film/CCD to be properly aligned with respect to rotation when viewed from the front (looking into the lens).

This can happen because the camera is not seated flush against the upright bracket.This

is pretty common since many cameras have mounting screws that are not in the center of the base. Many cameras have screws off to one end of the camera or at the edge of the camera and this can cause the camera to not be pulled down evenly onto the tripod head mounting plate.

Another problem is that CCDs may not be accurately positioned within the camera body and respect to the mounting surface. It only takes a fraction of a degree and, with other manufacturing tolerances, this can add up to be noticeable.

This misalignment can also happen if the upright bracket is bent or is not exactly perpendicular to the rotation plane of the head.At Kaidan we check this dimension very closely to ensure it's as close to 90° as reasonbly possible.

The effect of a rotated camera (when viewed looking into the lens) is a stairstepping of images as you progress around the panorama. Stairstepping has nothing to do with the state of the entire head being level with respect to the horizon.This can be corrected by rotating all the images a slight amount in your authoring program.

You can also shim the camera/head to compensate for such misalignment errors as well.A few layers of tape is usually all that

12

Image 13
Contents KiWi Panoramic Tripod Head Welcome to the Kaidan KiWi and Panoramic Photography KiWi Panoramic Tripod Head OverviewCompact Camera Bracket & Twin-Axis Adapter Optional KiWi FamilyStandard Camera Bracket Optional Quick Release Camera BracketsKiWi ClickDiscs How to install and remove ClickDisc indexing discsAssembly Tripod threaded bushing adapter KiWi Rotator BaseInch Tripod Spring Plunger Indexing How to adjust the spring force and click-stop actionMounting your camera on the Standard Camera Bracket Standard Camera Bracket Camera MountingMounting your camera on the Twin-Axis Camera Bracket Compact Camera Bracket & Twin-Axis Adapter OptionalArca Swiss Style Quick Release Plates Quick Release Camera Mounts OptionalNodal Point Side-to-side adjustmentHow About Rangefinder Cameras? Record Your ResultsHow do I begin? Shooting PanoramasHow much Overlap? How many Shots?Shooting Panoramas KiWi with Standard Camera Bracket Specifications and DimensionsKiWi with Standard Camera Bracket and Quick Release Mount KiWi with Twin-Axis Camera Bracket KiWi with Twin-Axis Camera Bracket and Quick Release Mount Kaidan Warranty and Return Policy Limited Warranty Warranty and Product Return Information