RetouchPRO - Blogs - Panorama Mania by Frank Lopes

RetouchPRO - Blogs - Panorama Mania by Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/ en Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:15:22 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/images/misc/rss.jpg RetouchPRO - Blogs - Panorama Mania by Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/ Stitching software http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/100-stitching-software.html Thu, 31 Jan 2008 01:15:03 GMT This is by no means an exhaustive list of panorama stitching software packages.

It is instead, a list of software that I tried at one time or another, or have come in contact with by the recommendation of others.

The notes come from the publisher's websites and the prices are current as of January of 2008.

Some releases are free, some commercial. Some of them work on multiple platforms others don't, so buyer beware.

Consult the websites for availability and latest prices.

Click the table image below to see the complete list.

]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/100-stitching-software.html Gadgets galore http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/95-gadgets-galore.html Sun, 20 Jan 2008 23:20:32 GMT When I started this blog I made the point, and still stands, ultimately you need nothing but a camera to start shooting panoramas. Sure there are several items that you will find almost indispensable as you gain more and more experience, but in reality it is the camera that is the TRULY... When I started this blog I made the point, and still stands, ultimately you need nothing but a camera to start shooting panoramas.

Sure there are several items that you will find almost indispensable as you gain more and more experience, but in reality it is the camera that is the TRULY indispensable item.

Then there is the other extreme: the photographer that needs countless brackets, supports, adapters, leveling bases, tripod heads etc, all at the same time, to shoot a pano.

I came across this picture in panomundo.com.

This is the equipment the photographer uses to shoot 360 degree interactive panoramic images. Even still he doesn't use it in this configuration most of time ( to save weight ), this setup allows the photographer to capture anything under any circumstance.

]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/95-gadgets-galore.html The Art of Cropping http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/93-art-cropping.html Sat, 12 Jan 2008 15:43:31 GMT First of all a disclaimer:

I'm horrible at cropping. Most of the time, the notion of volumes and spaces, balance or rule of thirds, is beyond me.

I have a hard time visualizing by looking at a photo, how I could improve the image just by appropriately cropping it.

Some people have "it" and some don't. I don't

So what I do is experiment until I arrive at a point that pleases me.
It is an enjoyable learning process that has thought me a thing or two.

During this journey, I came to learn a few things regarding the cropping of panoramas.

Don't crop with the camera

Unlike other kinds of photography where it is advisable to use the camera to crop the subject, when shooting panoramas always shoot more than you think you need.

When shooting panoramas always start before and end beyond the main scene. This gives you some extra canvas to adjust the distortion of the image. It is not uncommon for assembled panos to show symptoms of distortion in the far left and far right of the assemble project. This happens with all lenses but specially with ultra wide focal lengths. It also happens in the middle images but it is less severe since the stitching software by superimposing the different shots, took care of that.

Crop the image last

Don't crop the image until your post-processing is complete. Adjust for horizontal and vertical alignment, pincushion and barrel distortion and then crop.

Look at these three images.

The first is the panorama before cropping or post processing.

The second was cropped and then post-processed for alignment and distortion

The third was processed for alignment and distortion and then cropped.

Image 1

Image 2

Image 3

All images are 800 x 213 pixels.

You truly gain "real estate" by following this sequence.

Crop again

That's right. After you processed the image and cropped it to eliminate all blank areas, take a break, get a cup of coffee and then come back to it.

Is it balanced?
Does it have extraneous elements that detract from the feel of the image?
Does it have specific items that distract from the main topic?
Is it pleasing the eye?
Are you happy with it?

If the answer is yes to all of these questions (very rarely...), you are done as far as the cropping is concerned.

However, most likely you will look at your work and there will be something that you feel you can improve by cropping.

When I shot this pano, I was trying to capture the small pond in the golf course and after looking at the image for a while I realized the trees on the right were a distraction.

I thought it would be a much more interesting photo by having the contrast of the dark pond surrounded by the vibrant green grass.

The trees in the far left were interesting as framing points of reference, but were not the reason why I shot the pano but at least they had a "role". Not the primary role, but they needed to stay.

The path, I debated with myself to keep it or not. Tried it with and without it and ended up keeping it.

The final result is this after some PWL and sky replacement...

What you think?
Would you have cropped image 3 differently?
And why?

Links

Cropping is truly an art. These folks can explain much better than me the magic that happens when you crop a photo appropriately.

]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/93-art-cropping.html The Nodal Point - part 2 http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/92-nodal-point-part-2.html Sat, 12 Jan 2008 04:36:04 GMT In part one, I explained that many panorama photos never align regardless how careful you were shooting the sequence.

It happened to me many times and after some research, I found that those pictures were not aligning because I wasn't pivoting the camera on its lens nodal point.

So, if the answer is to pivot the camera on the nodal point, the answer is simple, correct?

Well not quite...

The first problem is that, in reality, there are two nodal points: the front nodal point and the rear nodal point. The physics associated with this fact, are way beyond me. But for our purposes, we will be talking about the rear nodal point.

Second, you will need to find this magical point which changes from lens to lens. As you change lenses, the nodal point changes.
Also, when using a zoom lens, there will be a nodal point for each focal length. If you change the zoom from 50mm to 35mm, you have also changed the nodal point.

Third, assuming you know exactly where the nodal point is for a specific focal length, you will need to pivot the camera on it and not on the contact point of the camera to the tripod head..

For all those reasons, and many others, I would recommend not to worry about the nodal point unless you are making a living shooting panoramas or high precision 360 degree views.

For the average person that shoots only landscapes/seascapes where all subjects are all far away, I would say, forget the nodal point discussion and just enjoy shooting your panoramas.

The actual process of measuring the EXACT position of the nodal point is such a "pain in the neck", that I will not even attempt to describe how to find it.

See links below how to do it...

So, if you don't know where it is located and still want to take a crack at it, how do you solve this issue? This is how I solved it:

I cheat: I use a table

There are almost as many theories how to properly measure the nodal point as there are photographers. There are scientific methods, there are home brewed solutions, and there are combinations of both like this one, that will give you astoundingly accurate measurements.
There are also several published tables that cover some of the more common lenses.

See links below...

I only use one lens

When shooting close and far subjects I always use the same lens: a Nikon 50mm f1.4 lens. One lens, one measurement and I'm done.

I use a panorama bracket

If you look at this image ...

you will see that the natural pivot point of the camera needs to be moved backwards so that nodal point can be over the tripod head's pivot point.

This is accomplished by using a bracket that, on the bottom, attaches to the tripod head and on the top has an adapter, that the camera gets attached to. This adapter slides backwards and forwards to allow the photographer to properly position the camera until the nodal point is over the pivoting point of the tripod head.

Once the bracket is properly installed and aligned, it will look something like this:

So how does the bracket work? Looking at first image, you see that the camera was positioned in a conventional way over the tripod head. Any pivoting that takes place, happens at the contact point of the camera and the head.

In next image, the camera is no longer attached directly to the tripod head but instead attached to the blue adapter that slides on the red bracket.

This is a fairly inexpensive and ingenious solution that solves the issue of having the nodal point of the lens over the tripod head pivot point.

Once you have one of those brackets, and have properly positioned the camera, you will end up with perfectly aligned images that will produce magnificent panoramas...

Well... are you ready for this?

Even if you think you have everything perfectly aligned and you have the camera pivoting exactly where it is supposed to, you still may end up with parallax errors.
This is because many cameras have the point that attaches to the tripod, not in line with the natural axis of the camera. Look at these images and you understand the issue.
Because of modern cameras being loaded with so many electronics, the final location of the attachment socket, ends up being sometimes an afterthought.

Click the images to see them in larger sizes.

Misaligned cameras...

Properly designed cameras

If you have a camera that has that issue, you need to select a bracket that allows the camera to be adjusted both longitudinaly ( back and forward ) and transversaly ( side to side ).

Off course the perfect solution is to just buy a specialty panorama camera. Unfortunately they are beyond what my "home CFO" is willing to approve...

How to find the nodal point

Finding the Nodal Point of a Lens
Nodal Point Alignment
Panorama Imaging
Digital Grin
Determining the Nodal Point of a Lens

Nodal point tables for common lenses

Entrance Pupil Database
Lens Measurement Table
KingPano

Brackets and pano tripod heads

Real Right Stuff
Home-made panorama head
The Nodal Ninja ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/92-nodal-point-part-2.html Thank you Herbert Keppler http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/91-thank-you-herbert-keppler.html Thu, 10 Jan 2008 14:58:13 GMT Unless you are a photography geek, you probably don't recognize the name of Herbert Keppler.

For more than 50 years (since 1950 to be exact...), he thought and inspired tens of thousands of budding photographers.

A writer, editor, publisher, journalist, teacher, photographer and industry guiding light, his columns in Popular Photography and Modern Photography, were famous for his wit, clarity, knowledge and foresight.

After a very short illness, Herbert Keppler passed way.

He will be missed. ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/91-thank-you-herbert-keppler.html The Nodal Point - part 1 http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/89-nodal-point-part-1.html Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:26:50 GMT When I started shooting panos, I noticed that some of my assembled images did not quite align properly. It was not the camera, the software, or, I thought, the technique used. In all cases I was shooting using the same camera and the software was the same. Assuming it was the software that... When I started shooting panos, I noticed that some of my assembled images did not quite align properly.

It was not the camera, the software, or, I thought, the technique used. In all cases I was shooting using the same camera and the software was the same.

Assuming it was the software that was doing a lousy job, I experimented with all packages that were available. At one time I had six different trial packages installed...

The problem "stitches" all seemed to have one thing in common: the photos captured both very near and very far objects. Somehow the near objects never seemed to align properly. I would end up with gaps or the near objects (or part of them...) would appear twice.

This misalignment however never appeared when I was shooting scenic panoramas where the subjects were all very far away.

I couldn't understand what it was until someone asked me if I was pivoting the camera on the Nodal Point of the lens.

Since I had no idea what the "nodal point" was, I had no idea what the answer was...

Google here I come!

After some research I found the issue had to do with the physics of optics and parallax.

Light coming into a camera gets reversed. Just like a human eye, what it up is captured upside down, what is left is captured on the right and so on. This switch takes place in the pupil of the eye and, in the case of the camera, inside the lens being used. Where exactly is this point, will be covered in a later blog entry.

So, why does this happen?

Click the images to see them in larger size.

Image 1 - Shooting straight ahead.

First some landmarks:
Camera is on a tripod shooting subjects 1 and 2. The red dot represents the center of camera body, which is the typical pivoting point since it is this point that attaches the camera to the tripod head. The film/image sensor is represented by the heavy blue line and the light rays coming into the camera, in yellow. The two light blue lines represent the X and Y axis of motion of the camera crossing at the optical center of the lens: the nodal point. Inset, is an example of what a photo would capture with the camera in that position.
Notice that the two subjects are very far apart but when viewed from the camera's point of view, their outlines almost touch, but not quite.
Assume this was the first of two shots that will be assembled later.

Image 2 - Pivoting on the nodal point.

Assuming you are pivoting the camera on the nodal point of the lens ( the green dot ), the second shot now shows what happens if you rotated it 15 or 30 degrees to the right.
The subjects now appear on the left side of the photo obviously, but the positions of the two items relative to each other are the same as in photo 1. Notice how the red line demonstrates this in comparison to image 1.
When it comes time to assemble all the two photos, there will be no misalignment issues.

Image 3 - Pivoting on the camera center.

Assuming you rotate the camera on the point of contact with the tripod head ( the red dot ) and shoot a photo, you will now be moving the nodal point "away" from the subjects. Notice how the red line now goes over the closest subject.
The photo clearly shows now subject 2 covers most of subject 1 due to parallax errors introduced when the nodal point was moved away.
Regardless of how good your software is, image 2 will never properly align with image 1.

The moral of the story

If you shoot panoramas and you are capturing both very close and very far subjects, you must rotate the camera on the nodal point of the lens not the center of the camera body otherwise your results will never be satisfactory.

Where exactly this point is, how to find it and how to fix this problem, will be covered in a later blog entry. ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/89-nodal-point-part-1.html <![CDATA[Odds & Ends]]> http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/87-odds-ends.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 14:35:58 GMT As anything else in life, there are degrees of proficiency in the panoramic capture realm. There are panorama photographers that dabble in the hobby and then there are Panorama Photographers that via the techniques employed and technologies used take the art of pano capture to whole new level.... As anything else in life, there are degrees of proficiency in the panoramic capture realm.

There are panorama photographers that dabble in the hobby and then there are Panorama Photographers that via the techniques employed and technologies used take the art of pano capture to whole new level.

These are some of the more interesting items that I've come across recently.

The Cube

The wildest looking tripod head I've seen in a long time, is from Arca Swiss. They make some of the best photography equipment in the world. This tripod head is used for medium format photography and panoramic photography.

Price? US $2,000

IATH

Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities best Practices Guide to Digital Panoramic Photography

The complete (and free...) guide in PDF format is here

Panoguide.com

The best organized online guide on panoramic photography... ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/87-odds-ends.html Something different http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/85-something-different.html Sun, 30 Dec 2007 19:45:21 GMT One of my first vertical black & white panos.

A larger size pano is here

Any comments?

Attached Thumbnails

Click image for larger version

Name: pano001.jpg
Views: 69
Size: 88.8 KB
ID: 45

]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/85-something-different.html Focal length issues in pano shooting http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/84-focal-length-issues-pano-shooting.html Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:43:40 GMT Since I shoot with Nikon cameras, most of these lens references are based on my personal experiences with Nikon equipment. The general concepts however apply to any manufacturer. The focal length of a camera lens is the distance between the center of the lens and the film/sensor when an... Since I shoot with Nikon cameras, most of these lens references are based on my personal experiences with Nikon equipment. The general concepts however apply to any manufacturer.

The focal length of a camera lens is the distance between the center of the lens and the film/sensor when an in-focus image is formed of an object far away.

This fact causes the angle of view of the camera to be inversely proportional to the focal lens. Another way to look at it is: the closer this point is to the film/sensor the less the camera captures.

(Wikipedia image)

Since most digital cameras come with all purpose 18-55mm, 28-70mm, 18-153mm or 18-200mm zoom lenses, what focal length should one use when shooting panos?

Should you use 18mm so that with just a couple of images you cover the whole scene?
Or should you use a longer setting, 70 or 135mm, to minimize distortion in your images?

First a primer on modern zoom lenses.

A camera lens is composed of a series of glass elements that focus light on the camera sensor or film. If the lens is not a zoom lens (a lens that does not allow you to change the focal length), the lenses are fixed and only certain elements move to allow for focusing. These lenses are typically called "primes".

A zoom lens is mutch more complicated since it has banks of glass elements that need to move in an away from the sensor thus increasing or decreasing the distance between the optical center of the lens and the sensor causing the angle of view to decrease or increase.

Since zoom lenses have that much more to deal with, they are most of the time a compromise between performance, price and weight. Just like anything else in life, you can get 2 out 3 but never all three. There is no such thing as a lens that is cheap, perfect and weights only a few ounces.

Because consumer zoom lens manufacturers make compromises regarding lens performance (to keep the price down), what do you lose when shooting panos with a variable zoom lens?

All lenses suffer in different degrees, but specially so zoom lenses when used in wide angle mode, from vignetting and chromatic aberration.

Vignetting

(from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/)

Vignetting is a reduction of an image's brightness or saturation at the periphery compared to the image center. This will cause the stitching software to have a hard blending the individual photos since the periphery of the photos doesn't match the center of the photo.

Chromatic aberration

(from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/)

Chromatic aberration is caused by a lens having a different refractive index for different wavelengths of light ie the dispersion of the lens. In layman's terms this means a photo shot with a lens with poor chromatic aberration, will show obvious signs of color fringes around high contrast areas.

In addition to these two problems, there something else that you will need to deal with regardless of the quality of the lens when shooting with a wide angle lens 28mm or less: The distortion on the periphery of the image. Due to the lens having a wider angle of view, the periphery of the photo tends to have circular distortion. Remember, the bigger the angle of view, the bigger the distortion.

When I tried my first panos with the lens that came with the camera, I used to set the lens to 18mm assuming that was the best setting. The final work looked ok but great. This was until I tried a prime lens: 50mm f1.8

This is a fairly inexpensive lens (less than US $100) and very fast allowing for low light situations. It is very sharp and has no discernible vignetting or aberrations. Also, because it is not a wide angle lens, it causes no distortion in the periphery of the photos.

Off course the penalty is, since it has a narrower angle of view, I could not longer shoot only 3 or 4 photos to capture the whole scene but now I would have to shoot 6 or 7.

Eventually I bought its faster brother, the 50mm f1.4 It is much more expensive (US $275), but it gave me what I was looking for: a prime, non wide angle, very sharp, very fast lens that I could use both for panos as well as general photography.

What if you want to shoot panos with the zoom that you have?

Here are a couple of ideas.

Try not to shoot at the lenses' widest settings: even still it is tempting to do so, you complicate the life of the software and your results will have many more compromises.
Try between 35 and 50mm. Much more than 50mm and you will probably have to shoot way to many shots to capture the whole scene. Much below 35mm and you will have to deal with the issues mentioned above. Specially vignetting.

When shooting, avoid the extremes in aperture: all lenses have a range of aperture at which they are the sharpest. If you don't know what it is for your camera, try to shoot halfway between the two extremes. Experiment with f8 to f11 and go from there until you are happy.

A terrific site that demonstrates these performance issues issued with aperture and focal length using a typical zoom lens is kenrockwell.com ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/84-focal-length-issues-pano-shooting.html Panoramic Cameras http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/82-panoramic-cameras.html Sat, 22 Dec 2007 20:10:30 GMT Myself and 99.99% of pano photographers, use what I would call normal cameras. Point and Shoot, DSLR, rangefinder, are the more common types of cameras. For the professional and serious pano enthusiasts, there is another very different type of camera that comes into play: panoramic cameras. ... Myself and 99.99% of pano photographers, use what I would call normal cameras. Point and Shoot, DSLR, rangefinder, are the more common types of cameras.

For the professional and serious pano enthusiasts, there is another very different type of camera that comes into play: panoramic cameras.

These are highly specialized cameras, most of them expensive, that are designed from the ground up to do one thing and one thing only: shoot panoramas.

I have never owned any of these cameras, but have played with a couple. After doing a quick search to see what is available, I came across the Panoscan used by the department of defense and NASA.
Price: a healthy 36 thousand dollars!

If you are curious to see what else is "out there" with somewhat more sedate pricing, go to ephotozine.com where they have a very complete list of cameras.

In case you are thinking that the idea of a dedicated panoramic camera is something new, take a look at panoramicphoto.com for an interesting history of panoramic cameras.

If you are somewhat more adventurous and would like to build one, go to funsci.com for complete instructions, including technical drawings. ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/82-panoramic-cameras.html This is a Rant: things I resent http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/81-rant-things-i-resent.html Sat, 15 Dec 2007 01:25:46 GMT Having to pay US$5,000 for Nikon's best DSLR (D3), when their top of the line film SLR (F6) goes for US$1,600. So much for advances in digital technology...

Having to know Photoshop (or PaintShop, or Elements, or Lightzone, or...) to be able to produce a good photograph. I wonder what Ansel Adams did without Adobe...

Having to shoot sometimes hundreds of photos to capture that special moment. I wonder what the percentage of "keepers" is for top photographers...

Having to deal with people's hyper sensitivities regarding shooting in certain public places: Maybe he is spying. Let's call the police...

Having both Nikon and Cannon cameras, why can't I just use the lenses from one in the other? I'm not sure the light passing through the glass elements will care...

Having to listen to camera manufacturers that my 3 year old, 6 mega pixel DSLR, is no longer good enough and that I need the latest and greatest one that is about to be released, when in reality the camera takes photos just as good now as it did when I bought it. What am I missing here?

What "gets to you" in photography?
Post a comment and let me know. ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/81-rant-things-i-resent.html Another pano: fall in New England http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/78-another-pano-fall-new-england.html Sun, 09 Dec 2007 18:36:14 GMT Here is another fall panorama from a dew weeks ago. Equipment used:Tripod Nikon D70s 50mm f1.4 lens Panorama Composer Photoshop for PP Image: http://www.franklopes.com/public_images/panorama3_small.jpg Here is another fall panorama from a dew weeks ago.

Equipment used:

Tripod
Nikon D70s
50mm f1.4 lens
Panorama Composer
Photoshop for PP

]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/78-another-pano-fall-new-england.html Why the 488 head? http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/77-why-488-head.html Sat, 08 Dec 2007 03:11:55 GMT On top of my tripod lives a Bogen-Manfrotto 488RC4 Midi Ball Head using the RC4 Rapid Connect System.

Why did I chose this particular one? It was the best "bang for the buck".

Unlike tripods where the differences are easily measured (min height, weight, size etc.), tripod heads are not.

With the exception of the weight they are capable of handling, the differences are much more subbtle making it much more complicated to properly select one.

Things like how smooth they operate, how precise the adjustments are, the material they are made of, are all extemely important but much less tangible.

What feels "ergonomic" to me, may not to you.

How did I arrive at this particular model

I looked a three manufacturers that had the reputation for first class equipment:

Bogen-Manfrotto
Acratech
Really Right Stuff

Off course there are many more. For example Gitzo has superb equipment but I felt they were out of my monetary league. Another manufacturer that makes first class equipment is 360Precision however they specialize in panorama heads and I was looking for a general use head.

From Bogen-Manfrotto I looked at the 400 series heads. They have several models of the type that I was looking for. The differences were the size (height), weight rating, construction material and camera adapter style. Prices ranged from less than US$50 to more than US$300

From Acratech, I really liked the Acratech V2 Ballhead model. It is built as solid as they come, capable of handling lots of weight and the are very precise and accurate. They have 3 models ranging in price from US$250 to almost US$400.

Really Right Stuff sells very high quality equipmentn to professional photographers. They have primarely three heads: BH55 BH40 and BH25. All equaly superb in construction, the only differences being the size and the weight rating. The prices range from US$145 for the BH25 up to US$575 for the BH55 with the camera plate.

After reading both print and online reviews, asking many questions, and trying different ones, it became obvious to me that there were two main factors that dictated the price of a tripod head: weight rating and material.

Off course quality of construction, adjustment controls, leveling aids, quick connect systems, all influence the ultimate price. But those two seemed to be the primary ones.

After comparing them, I felt the Really Right Stuff heads where head and shoulders above the others. But, would I be willing to pay US$390 for a mid size BH40 head? Not really. Sure I could have selected the much cheaper BH25 but it felt to me, small for anything much bigger than a "point and shoot" camera.

That left Acratech and Bogen-Manfrotto.

The basic Acratech Ultimate Ballhead had all the features that I wanted: solid, precise, easily adjusted with full motion of the ball. It even comes in left handed or right handed models. It is also, and this probably sounds silly, the best looking of the bunch: I looks like a modern sculpture... The price was around $US275 including the camera plate. Expensive but, because I liked it so much, I couldn't dismiss yet...

Bogen-Manfrotto, makes great tripods and there was never any doubt which manufacturer I was going to buy my tripod. Their heads, however, are not as well known in the community of photographers. Sure, everyone knows they made heads, but pros typically stayed with other more established, specialty makers.

Bogen-Manfrotto has more than a dozen of heads. All kinds of prices, all kinds of sizes. From minuscule little jewels to massive behemoths capable of handling almost 30lbs of weight.

I tried several with different cameras. I experimented with different tripods. Every time I compared the different models, I found myself leaning towards the 486 or the beefier 488 model. It was rugged, smooth, not to big and very well made. It was not made of magnesium like their top of the line models which meant it would weight a little more. It had a weight rating of 16lbs (12 for the 486) and came with 2 spirit levels. The camera plate was included and had a very helpful circular scale in degrees that would come handy when shooting panos. There was however a big difference in price, The 488 was twice as much as the 486 due to the weight rating. This primarily due to the higher weight rating.

After seriously contemplating both my talent and my bank account, I decided on the 488. Price, including an extra camera plate, US$165.

The truth is, the Acratech was the one that I REALLY wanted except that. in the end, I couldn't sell its virtues to my personal Chief Financial Officer: my wife. ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/77-why-488-head.html Why this equipment for panoramas? http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/69-why-equipment-panoramas.html Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:01:11 GMT When I shoot panoramas, the camera sits on top of a Bogen - Manfrotto 055XB tripod with a Bogen-Manfrotto 488RC4 Midi Ball Head using the RC4 Rapid Connect System. Why did I chose this tripod combination? The ideal tripod is light, solid and cheap. Unfortunately, and to paraphrase a local... When I shoot panoramas, the camera sits on top of a Bogen - Manfrotto 055XB tripod with a Bogen-Manfrotto 488RC4 Midi Ball Head using the RC4 Rapid Connect System.

Why did I chose this tripod combination?

The ideal tripod is light, solid and cheap. Unfortunately, and to paraphrase a local expression, that is "pie in the sky": a virtual impossibility. You can have 2 out of 3, but you will never get all of them.

For me money is always an issue, so I had to compromise in other areas when it was time to buy my tripod and head.

Vibration control

Any vibrations that a tripod is subject to, will be transmitted to the camera. If these vibrations take place while the camera is taking the shot, it will cause the image not to be as sharp as it would if there were no vibrations. During daylight shooting or when using fast shutter speeds, this problem can be negligible. However night shots will suffer if the camera detects these vibrations. High wind, bumping the equipment or pressing the shutter release, are all sources of potential vibrations. Basalt fiber tripods tend to do a slightly better job at absorbing those vibrations than metal tripods. Others claim the best solution is to have as heavy a tripod as you can carry. Ironically the best material to combat this problem is wood.
Compromise: I can live with metal.

Weight

Since I almost never walk, but drive, to shooting locations, as much as I would love to pack a featherweight tripod, I can live with a couple extra pounds. This logic eliminated immediately all carbon fiber, basalt fiber or magnesium tripods. This in essence brings down the price of the tripod by about US$250
Compromise: no need for exotic materials.

Minimum Height

A tripod that is capable of shooting very close to the ground, is extremely useful if you like to photograph flowers, insects etc. A tripod capable of being setup as low as 6 or 8 inches from the ground, needs to have some serious engineering built into it so the legs can spread wide enough apart and still present a solid platform to the camera. That means an expensive tripod. I don't shoot macro photography and rarely flowers, so minimum height is not an issue for me.
Compromise: minimum height is irrelevant.

Center column tricks

Most if not all tripods have a center column that can be raised or lowered helping increase the overall height of the shooting platform. However the best tripods allow the column to be removed, reversed (useful for upside down photography... not a joke...) and installed parallel to the ground. This last trick is useful for close ups. Which I don't do.
Compromise: no center column gimmicks required.

Height without center column

A camera sitting on top of the tripod legs directly, is on a much more solid base than if it sat on top of an extended center column. A fully extended tripod center column is nothing more than a glorified monopod. Not a good thing when you are trying to get the most stable platform. That was the whole point of getting a tripod in the first place. For me, the tripod needed to be tall enough so that its height without the center column + the height of the tripod head + the camera, would bring the camera viewfinder almost to my eye level, but not above obviously.
Compromise: none allowed here.

Maximum weight rating

All tripods and heads have a maximum weight that they are capable of handling. Needless to say if you shoot primarily with very long telephoto lenses (400mm and above), you are dealing with very heavy glass. Some of these lenses weight as much as 20 or more pounds.
If you, instead of using a DSLR or a point-and-shoot camera, you use a so called "large format" camera, you off course are dealing with very heavy equipment. That is not the case for me: I tend not to shoot with telephotos and medium format photography just doesn't appeal to me. This logic meant that I needed a tripod capable of handling an average size DSLR with room to grow in case of upgraded equipment ( heavier camera ).
Compromise: max weight rating of around 15 pounds

Number of leg sections

The more sections, the smaller the tripod will collapse into. Which is a good thing: easier to carry, easier to pack etc. All other variables being the same (very rare that is the case), a tripod with more sections is more expensive. It requires more time for manufacturing, more parts and bigger potential for things going wrong in the field. This means extra care is required from the manufacturers perspective to make sure the tripod is as solid as a 3 section tripod.
Compromise: 3 section legs is fine.

Leg locks

Very expensive tripods use locks that snap on an off to lock the legs in place. Slightly less expensive solutions, use thumb screws to tighten the sections. Snaps are faster and thumb screws can be lost. I'm willing to pay a penalty in setup time if I can save $40 in the price of the tripods.
Compromise: thumb screws are fine

Leg protectors

Some tripods have the upper leg sections wrapped in foam, rubber or neoprene. The logic is that, specially in the winter while using a metal tripod, is easier to make adjustments without having your fingers frozen to the legs.
Compromise: I'll take gloves with me when shooting outdoors in the winter

Coming later: why did I select the 488RC4 Head ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/69-why-equipment-panoramas.html New panorama links http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/65-new-panorama-links.html Thu, 29 Nov 2007 01:19:04 GMT Once in a while I come across examples of work that make me realize how much I still have to learn

View and enjoy these examples

http://dezmix.zenfolio.com/p750980357/
http://www.pbase.com/bauer/panorama&page=all ]]> Frank Lopes http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/blogs/frank-lopes/65-new-panorama-links.html