Resources
Resources needed for creating 360x180 degree panoramas
Camera equipment
In this series of web pages, I have documented the process which I currently use to create 360x180 degree panoramas. My equipment list is relatively short and not necessarily ideal for the job, although I have been very pleased with some of the results I have achieved with this budget set-up.
- Camera (I use a Canon 1000D, but it is getting a bit out of date now).
- Wide angle lens (I use an Opteka 6.5 mm stereographic "fish-eye" lens).
- Panoramic tripod head (mine is home-made, but I want to buy a Nodal Ninja and a decent tripod that doesn't wobble).
- Luminance HDR (optional, free software for tonemapping).
- Hugin (free software for stitching the panorama).
- Photo editing software (I use the GIMP, which is a free fully-functioned image editor).
- A way to display the panorama (I use 360cities.net and an app from fieldofview.com in my Flickr stream).
Patient determination
None of the items in this list work in a "plug and play" way, they each require some effort to begin to master their use, but in each case, the initial effort is relatively small and it is worth persevering, as the tools are each deep and full-featured.
A friend posted the following quote on Facebook recently. It is from a pianist called Glenn Gould, in 1962 and it resonated with my experience.
"I believe that the justification of art
is the internal combustion it ignites in the hearts of men
and not its shallow, externalized, public manifestations.
The purpose of art is not the release of a momentary ejection of adrenalin
but is, rather, the gradual, lifelong construction of a state of wonder and serenity."
What this quote says to me is that creation of art (in which I include my photography) is a slow-burning, life-long process and that the process of creation is, in itself, a goal and a transformative process for the artist. Art is also something that we can expect to provoke a response (ignition) in the hearts of others and it is this ignition, this inner combustion that is a second goal of art, not primarily public acclaim, feet through the door of an exhibition, reviews or pay cheques. This, for me, is justification for persevering in the acquisition of new skills, which may be hard and time-consuming to learn.
Glenn Gould's words bring to mind Wordsworth's daffodils.
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Wordsworth's vision of the daffodils ignited a fire in his heart, even as his description causes a similar reaction in ours. What a goal this is, to be transformed ourselves, while we create art, which in turn, ignites a spark in us and in others. Not surprisingly, I don't think this goal is ever achieved in an instant, not even the single click of a camera shutter.
The next three pages detail how to set up the tripod and camera as well as taking the photos.