|
Agnos MRotator TCP/TCS Panorama Heads and the Canon D60 with Sigma 8mm fish-eye lens. Tony Quinn October 2006. Having previously used various solutions for producing full spherical panoramas, I was looking forward to trying out the Agnos Rotator TCP/TCS panorama head. The AGNO'S heads have a lot in their favour, the range of Agnos Heads includes 4 models which are virually identical (the TCP/TCS Heads), apart from the height of the upright bracket and either having or not having a quick-release mechanism (this makes clipping and unclipping the camera to the head a doddle, amd keeps the camera placed back in the correct position once you have set the nodal point). The click-stop base ensures shots are taken at the required intervals of rotation having click stops at 2 - 180°, 3 - 120°, 4 - 90°, 6 - 60°, 8 - 45º. The top bracket rotates, allowing 'up' and 'down' shots to be produced while still maintaining the correct nodal point of rotation. The sturdy head is also very compact and lightweight, keeps all its gubbins out of shot BEHIND the lens and easily fits inside a camera bag for transport. These Agnos heads are specifically designed for users wishing to produce panoramas by means of a fish eye lens fitted to a digital SLR style camera, lenses such as the Nikon 10.5 or Sigma 8mm. With a 'full-frame' DSLR such as the Canon 5D or 1DS models a full circular image can be captured. With most consumer models a 'barrel' style image is produced as the edges of the circle are clipped off. The Agnos head is designed for either technique, and the resulting images can be stitched with Real VIZ Stitcher Unlimited version 5.5. Our choice of the older model Canon D60 was simply due to our having this model already available as one of our in-house cameras, this is now quite an old camera. Results using these techniques with the newer models should give even better results, but the techniques remain the same. Equipment: Agnos MRotator TCS Panorama head [see image] Software: Real VIZ Stitcher Unlimited version 5.5. [Windows or MAC] Technique: After completing a series of succesful test shots at home, the kit is ready to go. The technique for taking the shots is to shoot each sequence on manual settings, including the white balance, aperture, shutter speed and zoom to ensure all the resulting shots match. Example shots showing the 5 image technique:
The set-up is then ready for use, and very quick, once the tripod is set and the kit is level I then shoot 4 shots at 90º intervals, then a single 'up shot', clicking each into place and firing off the photo. Some shots I produced using the self-timer or cable remote control, where I could see my long shadow on the ground would appear in shot, using the timer allows me to step back until the shot is taken. Care needs to be taken however when using the timer if there are moving objects, changing light, clouds speeding across the sky etc. as in these circumstances shooting manually and then retouching any offending shadow etc. may prove more successful. Stitching: Once back at base, the shots are downloaded to our desktop computer. I then refer back to my shot list and arrange all the sets of images in folders, 5 images for each location. The images are imported into Stitcher Unlimited and 'auto-stitched' to produce a finished panorama. The option is also available to save out the image as a JPEG file, which can be edited or adjusted (i.e. in Photoshop) and then re-imported prior to ceating the panorama. You can see samples from our tour of The English Lake District in late Autumn 2006 produced using these techniques. http://www.vrlakedistrict.co.uk © Red Door VR Limited. UK. All rights reserved. |
