Trouble leveling for pano
Jun 19, 2018 11:45:33 #
Greetings on this Tuesday Morning,
Just recently I was practicing on a pano of a local mountain. I used the bubble level on the tripod ballhead to level the horizontal plane of the camera. Then I loosened the panning knob on the tripod and panned the camera for a bit only to watch the bubble on the ballhead shift to wildly out of level. If I panned back in the opposite direction it would line up level again until I panned beyond that point where it would go out of level again. Any time I panned, the ballhead (locked into position) would go badly out of level. I have since then discovered two more levels; a level for the tripod legs (which I had not checked) and a second (vertical) level on the ballhead that I had not noticed before the exercise. If I get all these levels properly leveled I probably should be able to pan from left to right in a fairly long sweep and be level all the way through the pan sweep? Anything else I should be doing?
Thanks,
Just recently I was practicing on a pano of a local mountain. I used the bubble level on the tripod ballhead to level the horizontal plane of the camera. Then I loosened the panning knob on the tripod and panned the camera for a bit only to watch the bubble on the ballhead shift to wildly out of level. If I panned back in the opposite direction it would line up level again until I panned beyond that point where it would go out of level again. Any time I panned, the ballhead (locked into position) would go badly out of level. I have since then discovered two more levels; a level for the tripod legs (which I had not checked) and a second (vertical) level on the ballhead that I had not noticed before the exercise. If I get all these levels properly leveled I probably should be able to pan from left to right in a fairly long sweep and be level all the way through the pan sweep? Anything else I should be doing?
Thanks,
Jun 19, 2018 11:51:01 #
Jun 19, 2018 11:57:05 #
Level your tripod first by adjusting the legs so the tripod bubble level is centered. This takes time, and you have to be aware of terrain; on a paved surface it is not that hard, but on uneven terrain it can be a chore. Get yourself one of those bubble levels that slips on your camera's hot shoe, it is much more precise than ones on the ballhead. Sweep the ball head left to right to see how the level changes, adjust tripod legs as necessary. Do your pano shot left to right, this was recommended to me by an Oscar winning Cinematographer. And do a minimum of 25% overlap on the images. And, always shoot vertically.
You can add a leveling base to your tripod:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/886344-REG/Sunwayfoto_DYH_66i_Leveling_Base.html?ap=y&gclid=CjwKCAjw06LZBRBNEiwA2vgMVeb91Fof8_MNXfMX51zdU9OFKzuuMhje_SXiaPSSl5AgoiABWLrlgRoCJRsQAvD_BwE&smp=y
I have one from Really Right Stuff and it works beautifully.
You can add a leveling base to your tripod:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/886344-REG/Sunwayfoto_DYH_66i_Leveling_Base.html?ap=y&gclid=CjwKCAjw06LZBRBNEiwA2vgMVeb91Fof8_MNXfMX51zdU9OFKzuuMhje_SXiaPSSl5AgoiABWLrlgRoCJRsQAvD_BwE&smp=y
I have one from Really Right Stuff and it works beautifully.
Jun 19, 2018 12:27:11 #
ppage wrote:
Greetings on this Tuesday Morning, br br Just rec... (show quote)
I find I get good results with hand-holding pano shots. The trick is to use the camera's 3 x 3 grid in the viewfinder to help keep the shots aligned. Example attached.
Jun 19, 2018 12:48:31 #
Jun 19, 2018 13:26:14 #
rgrenaderphoto wrote:
Level your tripod first by adjusting the legs so t... (show quote)
I have one similar to that and they work great for leveling and doing it quickly. I might add that I did several panos this past month on a trip to 7 or 8 national parks around Utah and did them all hand held anywhere from 8 to 15 images with no problem at all and they came out great. I used my Nikon D600 with a Tamron 24-70mm in portrait orientation with the camera.
Jun 19, 2018 13:44:32 #
Thanks for the confirmation.
Eddy Vortex wrote:
That should set you up correctly.
Jun 19, 2018 13:48:01 #
That was really excellent information, thanks so much! I just ordered a hot shoe level. I will try that first. The ones that come with the tripod heads can be hard to see and work with.Love the forum! The really right stuff leveler costs more than my tripod did. I'll get to that if I need to.
rgrenaderphoto wrote:
Level your tripod first by adjusting the legs so t... (show quote)
Jun 19, 2018 13:49:37 #
By the way, for all you older landscape lovers, I hope you got your national parks and federal recreation senior passes before they jacked the cost up at the end of last summer.
Jun 19, 2018 13:50:19 #
That's a nice shot. Good work! I don't feel steady enough hand held. I like being on a tripod for landscape shots anyway. It feels much more exact and controlled.
DWU2 wrote:
I find I get good results with hand-holding pano shots. The trick is to use the camera's 3 x 3 grid in the viewfinder to help keep the shots aligned. Example attached.
Jun 19, 2018 14:15:05 #
dsmeltz wrote:
By the way, for all you older landscape lovers, I hope you got your national parks and federal recreation senior passes before they jacked the cost up at the end of last summer.
Got mine for $10.00 the last week they were available. Saved me a lot of money on my recent trip to several parks in and around Utah. Even at $80.00 it would have saved me money. They are a lifetime pass good at any National Park.
Jun 19, 2018 15:03:49 #
If you go to a caravan retailer you can buy a 3 way leveler (left/right/front to back) they are only small so will fit in your pocket.
Jun 19, 2018 17:18:05 #
dsmeltz wrote:
By the way, for all you older landscape lovers, I hope you got your national parks and federal recreation senior passes before they jacked the cost up at the end of last summer.
At a time when deals are fast disappearing, this was truly a Beat Buy! It is a great value at the new price, too.
Jun 19, 2018 18:57:22 #
ppage wrote:
Greetings on this Tuesday Morning, br br Just rec... (show quote)
Making the camera level is the last step.
I use a ball head for my panos if I am not doing it hand held.
First I level the tripod. If yours does not have a level, you can get a plate with a level that fits between the ball head and the tripod. A hot shoe level will be useless for this.
After the tripod is level, you can use the hot shoe thing or simply the in camera level indicator if your camera has one.
Once the camera is leveled on the leveled tripod you only have to level the tripod again if you move it. The camera is already leveled relative to the tripod.
Jun 20, 2018 06:27:01 #
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