Shooting multiple images in multiple rows witha long-focus lenses is certainly
possible and feasible using software such as PTAssembler or PTGui, both
front-ends for Panorama Tools. Max Lyons, among others, has achieved
stupendous results with such techniques. I tend to find that this multi-row
process takes too much effort to shoot the many individual shots for casual
images. I prefer to work with 3-5 hand-shot or panorama-head-shot images and
stitch them together unless it's a must-have image.
All these images in this gallery were shot handheld with the E-1 & 14-54.
http://skipwilliams.smugmug.com/gallery/109019/1/3872400
http://skipwilliams.smugmug.com/gallery/109019/1/3872404
What took so long for your process? IME, I should be able to select 6-9
control points per seam in 5-15 minutes. Plus 15 minutes for the multiple-pass
optimization process and stitching. Total for stitching a pano of 3-5 images
should be less than an hour without complications.
The optimization process works best if you select 2-4 vertical sets of 3-4
control points across each seam. For good sets, I usually do two vertical sets
of 3-4 points. Without using a special pano head, ignore the immmediate
foreground for control points, as you'll never be able to get them matched up.
Also, use "morph-to-fit" for hard image pairs. You should also consider
getting Jim Watters new DLL version here:
http://members.rogers.com/jimwatters/index.html. I output layered photoshop
files for ease of editing.
Email me offlist at skipwilliams@xxxxxxxxx if you want help.
Here's the Panorama Tools working group site too.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PanoTools/
Skip
----- Original Message ---------------
Subject: [OM] Commute home, good ideas, stupid execution
From: AG Schnozz <agschnozz@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2004 07:38:49 -0700 (PDT)
To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxx
>Recently I read an article about stitching multiple digital
>images together to get a higher res, sharper, etc., image. So
>yesterday, while on the way home from work, I decided to take
>back roads in my jeep and look for some killer farmland shot
>that is worthy of this experiment.
>
>Eventually, I venture down a couple gravel roads that I've never
>been on before and locate a nice scene. It's a bit tougher than
>a couple weeks ago, since the corn is so tall now that the
>scenics have disappeared! I shoot a few pictures to start with
>to make sure my exposures are good and then lock everything into
>manual mode. I rack the zoom lens out to about 100mm where the
>lens has fewest abberations and start shooting in a grid pattern
>the scene.
>
>So far, so good.
>
>I get home, and copy the images into the computer (10 minutes to
>transfer all the RAW files since I left my card-reader at work).
> That's OK, I had to grill hamburgers anyway. Then I batch
>convert the RAW files into TIFF files for the next step.
>Meanwhile, I go outside and mow the lawn.
>
>I come in and batch convert the files into small JPEGS for
>experimenting. Take a shower.
>
>Now comes the fun part. Assembly. I manage to get TWO frames
>almost stitched together while the tv is tuned to the Democratic
>Convention. Wow, is this a RAM intensive process. My computer
>is drawling right along with the speaker. By the 27th "John and
>I" of the love-fest, I've managed to get the two frames finished
>and the third halfway done. Never again will I do this with a
>handheld camera!
>
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