Section for Gigapan request
Jul 19, 2013 17:03:14 #
I see snippets every now and then and am wondering if and how to set up a new section for Gigapan. Any interested parties out there? I know I've got lot's of questions and a thirst for the knowledge.
Jul 19, 2013 17:08:32 #
I'm thinking of getting one, so hearing peoples experiences with it would sure be of interest.
Jul 19, 2013 18:29:55 #
Jul 19, 2013 18:30:19 #
Jul 20, 2013 10:03:31 #
If you don't have one of these, BE CAREFUL! I thought it was a great idea when I first saw it so I got an Epic 100, a complete waste of money and time. It was so floppy that all of my pictures were motion blurred. Some users modified theirs to look like the newer Epic Pro so that it would be rigid enough but that was not easy.
$900 is a lot of money. If you're careful, you can do as well by hand on a good tripod.
$900 is a lot of money. If you're careful, you can do as well by hand on a good tripod.
Jul 20, 2013 11:16:39 #
stonecherub wrote:
If you don't have one of these, BE CAREFUL! I thought it was a great idea when I first saw it so I got an Epic 100, a complete waste of money and time. It was so floppy that all of my pictures were motion blurred. Some users modified theirs to look like the newer Epic Pro so that it would be rigid enough but that was not easy.
$900 is a lot of money. If you're careful, you can do as well by hand on a good tripod.
$900 is a lot of money. If you're careful, you can do as well by hand on a good tripod.
I have used the gigapan and manually on tripod with a pano head. I have never noticed the unit being floppy and nor have I had motion blurring but there is a work around for any type of latent movement when it changes position. Use the timer function so the unit can move, get steady and the shoot. Use that in conjunction with a 2 second delay on the camera self timer. I have never had blurry images due to movement caused by the Gigapan. I should clarify I have the smaller unit not the one for full size dslr. I still use my Panosaurus for those shots.
Jul 20, 2013 12:33:54 #
I was trying to put a Nikon D 5000 with a lens zoomed to 200mm on the unit and that completely overwhelmed it. I note on their website that they now suggest the smaller unit for point-and-shoot cameras and the $900 machine for DSLRs.
Another of my problems was using it in the field (where else would one use it?) and the wind was a constant problem. I suspect that much of my blur was wind-driven but, still, I could watch my lens bounce for several seconds after the unit stepped.
Another of my problems was using it in the field (where else would one use it?) and the wind was a constant problem. I suspect that much of my blur was wind-driven but, still, I could watch my lens bounce for several seconds after the unit stepped.
Jul 23, 2013 13:12:06 #
I figured it might be a small group but it should garner growing interest over time. I purchased the pro because it just made no sense to get the Epic for a dSLR. My reasoning's were that I could spend over 3 large and get a 21 M-pixel image or I could spend the 900 and get as big a photo as I wanted. I knew it would take longer to setup, take and PP and it would not be near as portable as the 5D. But at this time finances dictate taking the low road and I am very happy with my decision.
I got my toy just before leaving for a weekend trip to NY and I came away with a fairly good night skyline shot from Weehawkin. (my second GPan and the 1st was a test in the backyard) Check it out: http://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/131100
I also had a fair share of mistakes or should I say learning experiences. Biggest experience was a skyline from Central Park at Turtle Lake. When I started it was overcast and I set up to go left to right and then down. On the far left it was a very shallow pool (distant buildings low to horizon) but as you moved right the Dakota and other buildings made for a very deep pool. (well above horizon) Well after 1.5 hours of shooting and barely half way through, Mother Nature decided to play havoc with my shot and parted the clouds and shone her light oh so brilliantly which made the exposures WAY off, even though I was shooting a -2, 0, +2 HDR. I would have started over but I had a schedule to keep and had to get to the Brooklyn Bridge. (never made it)
Now in doing what I have already attempted and seeing the few comments I totally disagree with being able to do it yourself with a good tripod. A simple pano... yes, but I want to take advantage of all it has to offer which includes; HDR, Time Lapse, Focus Stacking, Star Trails not to mention combinations of those and a few other opportunities for the adventurous minds. These situations would be VERY taxing on any mind being made to sit for hours making tiny changes every few seconds.
My biggest problem right now, and I am determined to start with HDR in camera, is to get the delay after the movement. I have the instructions printed out and in my bag and I have set a 2 second delay but the darn thing delays after the shot and before the movement. I'm working on it. I'm sure it's a tiny overlooked setting that I am missing.
Oh, tip for newbies, when determining the direction you want it to shoot such as left to right and then down or top to bottom and then right, check your time required to create the pano and make a calculated guess as to how drastic a lighting change "could" be. (see my mistake above) For the shot above I would have changed the direction to a top to bottom and then right so I could have adjusted the exposure as the sky cleared for a relatively clean change from left to right giving me a useable shot. The way I shot it there is just no way possible to salvage anything.
I got my toy just before leaving for a weekend trip to NY and I came away with a fairly good night skyline shot from Weehawkin. (my second GPan and the 1st was a test in the backyard) Check it out: http://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/131100
I also had a fair share of mistakes or should I say learning experiences. Biggest experience was a skyline from Central Park at Turtle Lake. When I started it was overcast and I set up to go left to right and then down. On the far left it was a very shallow pool (distant buildings low to horizon) but as you moved right the Dakota and other buildings made for a very deep pool. (well above horizon) Well after 1.5 hours of shooting and barely half way through, Mother Nature decided to play havoc with my shot and parted the clouds and shone her light oh so brilliantly which made the exposures WAY off, even though I was shooting a -2, 0, +2 HDR. I would have started over but I had a schedule to keep and had to get to the Brooklyn Bridge. (never made it)
Now in doing what I have already attempted and seeing the few comments I totally disagree with being able to do it yourself with a good tripod. A simple pano... yes, but I want to take advantage of all it has to offer which includes; HDR, Time Lapse, Focus Stacking, Star Trails not to mention combinations of those and a few other opportunities for the adventurous minds. These situations would be VERY taxing on any mind being made to sit for hours making tiny changes every few seconds.
My biggest problem right now, and I am determined to start with HDR in camera, is to get the delay after the movement. I have the instructions printed out and in my bag and I have set a 2 second delay but the darn thing delays after the shot and before the movement. I'm working on it. I'm sure it's a tiny overlooked setting that I am missing.
Oh, tip for newbies, when determining the direction you want it to shoot such as left to right and then down or top to bottom and then right, check your time required to create the pano and make a calculated guess as to how drastic a lighting change "could" be. (see my mistake above) For the shot above I would have changed the direction to a top to bottom and then right so I could have adjusted the exposure as the sky cleared for a relatively clean change from left to right giving me a useable shot. The way I shot it there is just no way possible to salvage anything.
Jul 23, 2013 13:13:07 #
Jul 23, 2013 14:07:47 #
big-guy wrote:
Damn, I can talk a lot! :mrgreen:
Yeah, but thank you for all the information!!!!
Jul 23, 2013 14:08:09 #
I don't know if you are familiar with Max Lyons work but he has done huge gigapixel panos, focus stacked 6 deep with a manual pano head. I wouldn't have the patience for it.
I am not sure why you think there is a limit n the size with the smaller unit. I have shot over 500 image panos with the small one and have huge files/images. Maybe I didn't understand it when you said it was limited to "21 m-pixel"?
I am not sure why you think there is a limit n the size with the smaller unit. I have shot over 500 image panos with the small one and have huge files/images. Maybe I didn't understand it when you said it was limited to "21 m-pixel"?
Jul 23, 2013 14:24:09 #
The Canon 5D Mk III is at 21 GB and yes I could get a 5D and use the GPan but now I'm at 4 large. I was not referring to the quantity of photos an Epic could take but rather looking at a camera (5D) vs a GPan. The Epic was not intended for a dSLR especially one with a 70-200 or a 300 f2.8 but for P&S or bridge cameras. The Epic Pro was made for dSLR's.
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