VR Experiments
April 6, 2004
Adam Pratt <apratt@adobe.com>
I was creating 2D and 3D QuickTime VRs in LA last week and here's what I learned....
Hardware
Canon Digital Rebel
I shot in Manual mode with a high f-stop (16-22 depending on light) and whatever shutter speed it took. I absolutely love this camera. I've taken about 3,000 exposure a month since December.
Manfrotto tripod with the Peace River Studios 3Sixty Panoramic Tripod Head
I borrowed this tripod and head. This head really rocks. It costs about $650 but what's great about it is that with other attachments you can do multi-tier panos as well as add a spinning tray for object VRs. Solid construction, smooth operation, multiple cam rings for 12 or 18 stops, and pretty easy to calibrate to your camera/lens combo.
EyeSee 360 VR Mirror Gadget
This is an intriguing $1,000 gadget that I wanted very badly to work. I could only get it to work in the very brightest of light and even then I was disappointed with the quality. It comes with some cool software to unwrap the donut image you get with one exposure and it's fast and easy, but the quality stinks. It's fun and easy, but you're trying to do with one shot what normally requires 18. Did I mention it costs a thousand bucks? I'm glad I borrowed it!
Software
The Stitcher software that comes with Canon Digital Cameras
This software is fast, easy, and the quality is pretty darn good. The downsides are that VRs from the Canon software show the seams a little bit more and while I can create 360 VRs with it I cannot get it to "loop" around. See the samples:
Stitcher EZ 1.0
The quality of the stitching is better, but the speed is on the verge of unusable and the final output is really blurry with no way to control the compression options. See the samples:
PhotoWarp 2.0.2
This is the software that comes with the 360 One VR head and unwraps the donut images. Easy and fast, but the final output isn't very good.
My Software Conclusion
If you're going to do a lot of VR work and get paid for it then I think you're going to have to pony up for the good stuff. If you're just playing around with cylindrical VRs then one of the OEM/sub-$50 options will probably ring your bell.
Tips
- If you want to do simpler 2D panos you can usually get away with hand holding the camera and then stitching/cleaning in Photoshop with the new Photomerge feature. If you're doing cylindrical VRs you need to use a tripod and mount the camera on it's optical center.
- Shoot in portrait mode.
- Use a cable release or shutter timer to eliminate shake on long exposures as you'll want to use a very high f-stop.
- Experiment a lot, you'll get better.
- Learn more at http://www.panoguide.com/
|
