Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 12 May 2008 at 18:43 GMT
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It doesn't seem to matter what I do - but a blended 30 shot (6 x 5)HDR panorama always comes out fuzzy, whereas if I just use the 6 EV shots from the same shoot the final panorama comes out sharp. But of course, the highlights are blown out.
I follow the directions on PTGui tutorial to create the HDR panorama, but suspect this is a workflow thing. I use the plugin 'Smartblend' in rendering and produce the final .mov from a 16-bit .tiff file.
I use a Nikon D300 w/Nikkor 10.5 fisheye lens. NN3. No nadir/zenith shots just to keep it simple for now.
Also - I've seen stuff on the internet about cutting off the small lens hood on the Nikkor 10.5mm lens. What's that all about?
Thanks,
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mediavets
Posts: 216
Location: Isleham, Cambs., United Kingdom
Registered: 8 Feb 2008
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 12 May 2008 at 19:13 GMT
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Hamish Tear said: Also - I've seen stuff on the internet about cutting off the small lens hood on the Nikkor 10.5mm lens. What's that all about?
Thanks,
That's about getting a full circular image on a fullframe DSLR - typically the Canon 5D with an adapter.
Andrew
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John Houghton
Posts: 2095
Location: Hitchin, United Kingdom
Registered: 17 Jan 2005
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 6:43 GMT
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The shaved 10.5mm Nikkor on a fullframe camera does not quite give a full circular image. It has the sides cut off, rather like the Sigma 8mm on an APS-C sensor. The result is that the hfov in portrait orientation is 150 degrees approx. The Sigma 8mm gives a true full circular image.
John
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Hans Nyberg
Posts: 701
Location: Denmark
Registered: 28 Aug 2005
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 7:34 GMT
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John Houghton said: The result is that the hfov in portrait orientation is 150 degrees approx.
John
Around 142 to be more exact.
But back to your HDR problem.
If you try to do HDR with 5 bracketed shots they need to be very exactly aligned. And this may be very difficult to do. You need a very stable tripod and you have to use mirror lockup to take the images.
PTgui has 2 ways to align the sets of images, you are asked what to do when you import the images,
One is to link the bracketed shots together which should work if the images are perfectly aligned in the shots.
The other is to generate controlpoints between all images which are used to align them also between the different exposures.
Unfortunatelly this does not work very good always,
Controlpoints generated in underexposed and overexposed images are not the same as in the well exposed image and this may disturb the correct alignment. You have to make sure that you have deleted all bad controlpoints and you may also need to set manual controlpoints if there are images missing them.
It may be better to use Enfuse on the sets before stitching. Check the images in a layer to see if they are aligned. If not you need to align them manually or with align layers or some other software.
I would never use all 5 exposures for doing HDR. On Canon we do 3 exposures with 2EV between. In most cases this is perfect.
Hans
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DorinDXN
Posts: 1608
Location: Timisoara, Romania
Registered: 14 Nov 2006
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 13 May 2008 at 7:53 GMT
updated: 13 May 2008 at 7:54 GMT
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Hans is right about the tripod and MLU, also, please add the remote which is another must when one uses bracketing.
Dorin
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Juraj Spaldon
Posts: 65
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Registered: 24 Jun 2006
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 3:40 GMT
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Thanks to you and Mediavets for your responses - I figured as much. I used to shoot with a Nikon D80 and a Sigma 8mm, so am used to the 'partial circular image' but have now switched to D300 and Nikkor 10.5. Anyway - is there any advantage to shaving off the lens hood - better stitching overlap, perhaps?
Hamish.
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 3:48 GMT
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Hans,
Thanks for all that. I do use a good, stable tripod and also as many of the tricks as you recommend. I used a remote shutter release. The D300 cannot shoot multiple bracketed shots with remote and 'mirror-up' function at the same time. But as far as I know, the images are perfectly aligned (but possible that there were people moving within the shots).
As far as all the control points stuff goes - I'm really trying to avoid this as, commercially, this sort of thing doesn't really pay off and I already have issues justifying post-process computer time. But the information is well received. I have enfuse and will try that (with 3 bracketed shots at EV+-2) - but that means moving between even more software. I am also researching Photomatix, and one other HDR software apparently much less expensive but equally good - can't remember the name.
PTGui PRO should be able to handle it all on its own, however.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Hamish.
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 3:51 GMT
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Hi Dorin,
Thanks - please see my response to Hans. I always face this dilemma - but MLU is not available in continuous shooting modes, such as bracketing. But then - how could it be? Or are you suggesting re-setting the exposures manually for each of the bracketing shots so that MLU can, in fact, be used?
Thanks,
Hamish
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 3:56 GMT
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Juraj,
Congratulations...this is very beautiful work indeed - a new standard for me to aim for!
Please advise if you use Enfuse as a plug-in for PTGui or as a stand alone software, before loading the blended images into PTGui.
If you have PTGui Pro - what is the reason you don't just use that software package to take care of it all. Ideally - PTGui Pro should take care of all blending and stitching
as one smooth operation (depending on how 'hands-on' one wishes to get).
Thanks,
Hamish.
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Juraj Spaldon
Posts: 65
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Registered: 24 Jun 2006
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 5:50 GMT
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Hamish,
I use PTGui ver.6.0.3 which doesn't have this function. I haven't uprgaded to pro version because I thought I don't need this HDR function. And I didn't like the panos made with other HDR softwares. But then reading about enfuse I decided to try it and I was pleased with the result.
For those four panos I used standalone EnfuseGui 1.0.3 from Ingemar Bergmark and it was very easy to use it - just "drag and drop" and after a minute or two I had my enfused shots ready.
So for me it is no problem to use "another piece of software". Anyway I use PTGui, enblend, Pano2Qtvr, PS, PTEditor, RawShooterEssentials... So one more doesn't make big difference.
Juraj
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mediavets
Posts: 216
Location: Isleham, Cambs., United Kingdom
Registered: 8 Feb 2008
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 8:11 GMT
updated: 14 May 2008 at 8:33 GMT
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Hamish Tear said: Thanks to you and Mediavets for your responses - I figured as much. I used to shoot with a Nikon D80 and a Sigma 8mm, so am used to the 'partial circular image' but have now switched to D300 and Nikkor 10.5. Anyway - is there any advantage to shaving off the lens hood - better stitching overlap, perhaps?
Hamish.
No, there is no advantage to be gained from shaving off the lens hood when using the Nikkor 10.5mm FE on a DX sensor Nikon DSLR like the D300.
Overlap for stitching is determined by settings of the click stops on you pano head and shooting technique.
For 360x180 panos using a DX sensor 6MP D40 and the Nikkor 10.5mm FE with an NN5 pano head. Manual focus (this lens doesn't autofocus on the D40 anyway), manual exposure, and preferably custom WB, I shoot 6 around at about -10 degress and one up at about +60-65 degrees. This leaves a small nadir 'hole' about the size of the rotator of the NN5 head and provides a good link between the main row and the 'zenith' shot.
These image sets stitch very easily and well with AutoPano Pro with automatic CP detection (I seldom need to adust CPs automatically detected), and rendering with spline36 interpolator and Smartblend at 8000x4000 pixels.
Andrew
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michael medina
Posts: 207
Location: United States
Registered: 27 Jan 2008
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 14 May 2008 at 8:31 GMT
updated: 14 May 2008 at 8:32 GMT
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Hamish Tear said: If you have PTGui Pro - what is the reason you don't just use that software package to take care of it all. Ideally - PTGui Pro should take care of all blending and stitching
as one smooth operation (depending on how 'hands-on' one wishes to get).
i too prefer to blend my images first as the stitching and fusing each go faster this way, it's faster to fuse 24 small images and stitch 7 or 8 than to stitch 21 or 27 and fuse the 3 planes afterwards. to me the stitching is close to the last part of the process.
i too am using a d70 too and a 10.5 fish - pdxvr.com
have you figured out why you are getting blurry results yet?
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 15 May 2008 at 3:50 GMT
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Thanks - I'm trying to figure how to spend less time at the computer and more time shooting, so less software works best for me and the more automation the better - for me. Your information is most useful, however, and I will take from it whatever I can to improve things.
Hamish.
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Hamish Tear
Posts: 37
Location: Jackson, United States
Registered: 8 Nov 2007
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Re: HDR vs EV results in PTGui / Lens hood on Nikkor 10.5
Posted: 15 May 2008 at 3:53 GMT
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Sorry Mediavets,
There's one thing there I don't quite understand - when you say 'and one up at about +60-65 degrees' - does this mean one shot or one row? If one shot - I don't get it.
Thanks,
Hamish.
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