I'm using a Nikon D70, Nikon 10.5mm fisheye, Nodal Ninja 3, Stitcher 5.6.1U
6 around + 1 up and 1 down with between 3 to 6 bracketed exposures which i convert to HDRs for use in lighting CG objects for integration into still and moving images.
 
To test that the stitch will work I bring the 8 images in as jpgs and let SU5.6 defish them for me before i go ahead with the HDRs
 
I have tried many times to achieve a fully stitched 360d panorama but almost every time the autostitch fails to stitch the sky shot.
 
Without having a Force Stitch facility in 5.6 i am becoming increasingly frustrated.
 
I can understand that some of the outdoor stitches i have tried have skies without much reference or. even worse, moving clouds but it's almost as though the sky shot is not being defished. I can match up one side with eyeline objects but it will not stretch to the other side.
 
Has anyone experienced this problem and might be able to suggest any solutions. I have tried turning the sky shot through 90d and 180d to no effect.
 
Anyone?...Please?...
 
 
John Purdie

Hi John,
 
Have you tried using templates? This should allow you to stitch areas of featureless sky, which is what I guess is causing the problem for you.

Hi Badders
 
Apologies for taking such a long time to reply and thank you for your prompt response.
 
I have attempted your suggestion and i can see where you're coming from but i have not had success so far. This is possibly down to not taking the shots in exactly the same order each time (ie. sometimes i start with my sky shot sometimes i end with it)
 
Prior to 5.6 and HDR i was hacking the script to rename the image files and change the references so they were "relative" and could be dropped into any folder containing the appropriate number of images.
 
After a number of experiments with positioning on my Nodal Ninja i have decided that my problem is large areas of featureless sky. I will perservere with hacking the script and attempting to make the template idea work.
 
As another option I am considering trading in my Nikon 10.5mm for a Sigma 8mm and then upgrading to the DS version of the software.
 
Thanks again for your advice.
 
JP

If you're working or thinking of working with HDR, one of the things to get nailed straight away is consistency of workflow. By that I mean you certainly shouldn't be changing the order in which you take your shots.
 
Get into a pattern of ALWAYS taking your shots in the same order. It will save you a lot of frustration in the long term.
 
I think both the 10.5mm and 8mm are GREAT lenses and each have benefits. The 10.5mm has the edge in overall image quality (only by a gnats whisker) but the 8mm needs only 4 x shots for a full 360 x 180, a blessing if you are working with HDR.
 
One thing though, whichever lense you use, you DONT need DS. Your existing Unlimited version is fine.

Hi Badders
 
Take your point about maintaining shot order. Will bear that in mind and do it in future.
 
re the 8mm Sigma, I am still keen to trade my Nikon 10.5mm as 4 positions vs 8 is a huge time saving when time is at a premium.
 
Thanks again for your advice. It is much appreciated.
 
JP

Hi Badders
 
I have just got my Sigma 8mm and was wondering how you take a full spherical panorama with only 4 shots. I assume that this is what you mean by "4 x shots for a full 360 x 180".
 
Sofar i have only been successful with 6 shots (4+2). Is it me or am i misunderstanding you?
 
JohnP

To use just 4 x shots, you need to:
 
1. Take the shots in Portrait orientation
2. Tilt the camera/lens slightly skyward by 15 degs. You can only do this if your rotator supports it. (Big plug here for the excellent 360Precision Adjuste).
 
With this system you get enough overlap around the horizontal plus there's enough overlap for the zenith (top). You do get a hole at the nadir (bottom) though. So you'll need to either clone the area in, use a tripod cap graphic or take a 5th shot pointing down.

thanks for very much for that Badders (very quick response - what would Realviz do without you?!) i'll give this is try
 
JP

Badders - when talking about 8mm and the number of frames needed does that assume full frame (35mm), or does the same apply with a 1.5 / 1.6 or 2.0 crop factor?   I assume the crop factore of a reduced sized digital sensor needs to be accounted for ?

I'm assuming a reduced sensor, since you said you had a D70. With a full frame, you can get away with just 3 x images using the same tilted technique.

I wasn't the original poster.  But thanks for the info.

oops! Sorry! great pics on your site BTW.

Hi Badders
 
Thanks for the 4 shots around tip. Its works (D70 - 8mm Sigma - NN3 - Stitcher U 5.6.1).
 
With a bit of experimentation I found that I did better with around 21/ to 22degree angle as this closed the hole in the zenith (top) i was getting with 15d.
 
Unfortunately i can't quite justify a D300 (full frame) and so i'll have to be content with a 4/5 shot total (booohooo)
 
Darren, I agree with Badders, beautiful photographs.
 
JohnP

Trying to move from PTmac to StitcherUnlimited5.6
with my previous stitching software, I've been shooting 4 images around tilting my panoramic head up around 5 degree. It has worked fine. I had to manually enter the tilt angle .
Can someone tell me how you enter the "tilt" angle on SU5.6 ?
Many thanks
Laurent, NikonD200+sigma8mm3,5+NodalNinja3

Hi Laurent,
 
In Stitcher, there's no need to enter any tilt angle. But with the D200/Sigma 8mm f/3.5 I use 15 degs for 4 shots round.