Panoramic Photography Setup
It is possible to take a panoramic photograph out of hand but in order to achieve high-quality results, you need to start off with the right gear. In this video, one of our digital marketing team members and photographer, Johan Deysel, discusses the essential equipment required for panoramic photographs and how to utilise your setup correctly so that you can take a panoramic photograph effortlessly while avoiding any post-processing headaches.
Quick Top Tips
1. Level is key
Always ensure your camera is level by using a 3-axis bubble level and a levelling head such as the Nodal Ninja EZ-Leveler.
2. Avoid parallax problems
Always make sure you have setup the camera and panoramic head so that you camera rotates on (or as close as possible) the entrance pupil (iris) of the lens to avoid parallax problems and stitching issues in post-production.
3. Overlap images with 25-30%
Use roughly 25-30% overlap between your shots to ensure proper stitching.
4. Manual exposure
Always shoot in manual exposure to avoid “banding” in stitched areas. All shots should be equally exposed.
5. Manual focus
Shoot in manual focus mode to avoid depth-of-field and focus plane differences between the neighbouring shots.
6. Avoid moving objects (if possible)
Fast- and continuously moving objects in your shots may cause ghosting in stitched areas. If they must be included, try to start your sequence with the moving object (a tree moving in the wind, for example) in the centre of your first shot. This keeps it out of stitched areas.
7. Create height with vertical orientation
Shoot with your camera in a vertical orientation to capture a larger vertical field of view so your panorama will have more height.
8. Go steady
Use a sturdy tripod and do not move the tripod or the shooting position between shots in one sequence.
9. Detail, detail, detail
Scenery with lots of detail will create more accurately stitched panoramas as stitching software relies on detail to find reference points for aligning and stitching images together.
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