Panoramic photography

Shooting multiple frames so that they will stitch together nicely.

Panoramic photography is a great method for getting enormous resolution from a small sensor. But it is more than that. For instance, turning the V1 vertical, and shooting 3 slightly overlaps frames is roughly equivalent to shooting one with the d800. But, there are some differences. You can change the focus point and exposure during the separate exposures, and put them together into something really different. You can also cover more angle of view than the widest lens, without any distortion at all! You can get professional results with a camera and lens that cost a tiny fraction of the maximum, and carry much less weight as well.

There are some problems, like clouds and people scooting along while you are trying to freeze the action in the individual frames. sometimes, you will have to shoot fast, before the clouds move far, or use good timing, to avoid passers by.

If you have a tripod with you, it is better to use so that your panoramic will come out rectangular, with no blurry frames. If maximum resolution is your goal, use the camera vertically to go across, and horizontally to go up and down. It usually works better to set all controls to manual. I have lost many potentially great panoramics because the auto-focus system chose a bush very close to the lens instead of the mountain.

Set the ISO to 100 or 200 for the lowest digital noise, and pick the correct white balance. If you forget to set the white balance, you can choose the correct one when you put the raw shots together. But if you accidentally leave the camera set to 6400 ISO, you are stuck with tons of noise and poor color.

Get your tripod leveled, so that the camera will rotate along the most interesting horizon, or go up and down along the proper line. Select a lens or zoom setting that will cover maybe 10 % more than you want. A little extra for cropping and straightening is nice. Shooting left to right is good, because the image thumbnails will line up that way in the default view. 

You are not limited to one row or one column.  For instance, you can shoot across the ground with a tiny bit of sky, and then the sky with a tiny bit of ground. You can expose the sky and the ground differently that way. Photoshop will usually stitch them flawlessly, cutting neatly along the horizon. In that case, one should choose an single manual exposure for the ground, and another for the sky. You can base it on the brightest area, so that there is not a large completely white area in the composite.

Now shoot, using the remote release for every shot if you have it handy. Overlap a third of a frame, and shoot an extra frame to either side of your desired area. You will be glad for the extra cropping room later, and photoshop will not get tired sticking an extra frame on each side. It is possible to create some sky or grass if you miss a spot, but it takes a while. Go as fast as you can if things are moving. That will mean pressing the shutter button half way down after each shot, to circumvent the 2 second review time. Shoot the panorama images more than once, changing things slightly for each try. For instance, tip the camera a little, and change the exposure after reviewing the results.

I turn on the grid pattern, and use that to get exactly 1/3 overlap. If you do not have a tripod, the grid will help you to keep the camera level as well. If you see a great potential panoramic when the light is low and your tripod is at home, get as comfortable as you can, slow your breathing and crank the ISO. Place one of the grid's crosses on an object to help steady you as you squeeze off 5 or 10 frames at 5 fps at each location. When you review them later, you may be happily surprised, and have usable frames for a portion of your intended subject. Choosing the widest angle lens will help. A flat rock and the timed release can also be used.

There will be some hard calls, when the light is the most awesome before you reach your perfect position. Similar to shooting extra frames, and bracketing the exposure, you may want to shoot a set before and after the best time. It may look dark to your eyes, but long exposures may pick out colors that are not visible to your eyes. Often, we do no know when we are getting 'the goods' until we work with the raw images. The best version is sometimes a set fired off at the 'wrong time' to check the exposure.


Keep your eyes roving while you shoot, and be ready to grab your camera and tripod and move! The most interesting part of a sunset or storm can move 180 degree in moments. If possible, find a spot where you can shoot the whole 360 degrees. there is plenty of time to crop out 1 or more rectangles later!