Creating Panoramics

For some time now I have enjoyed taking a series of photographs and combining them using Photoshops Photomerge. Through this article I will explain how I go about this from start to finish. Its been trial and error for me, and a lot of experimenting, but now I think I've sort of hit the nail on the head.



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Setting up the Camera
Before we start taking the images for the panoramic, this is how I set my camera.

Turn AutoFocus off, and set your focus point to the Infinity symbol (the one that looks like the number 8 on its side). This will help stop the camera refocusing which in turn makes the stitching process a lot easier.

Next turn the White Balance off automatic and set it to Sunny or Cloudy, depending on the weather. This will hopefully keep your exposure constant.

Finally, if your camera will let you do this, turn on your Rule of Thirds Grid, so when you look through your view finder you've got a little helpful aid for lining things up.

Taking the Photos
I tend to take the exposures for my panoramics in Portrait, this way you get more of a better size, and better final view.

Its good (but not essential) to use a tripod for doing this technique because again it will make it easier later when stitching the image.

Take your first shot, then carefully twist your waist to the right slightly, leaving at least 40-50% overlap of your first shot (this is where the RoT grid comes in handy).

Continue the above until you have covered the area you want to make a panoramic. The more shots you take, the bigger your final image will be and also more information for stitching.


At the Computer
Now that you have your images, its time to place them together.

I use CS's Photomerge, but other packages are available and will be just as good.

With photoshop open, select File... Automate... Photomerge.

When the dialogue box appears find your files that you took for your panoramic.

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Make sure the following settings are used, then press OK.

Layout: Reposition Only
Source Files: Blend Images Together

Photoshop will now automatically lineup and blend your images using Layer Masks.
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Notice how Photoshop has kept your lined up images on seperate layers.

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Create a new blank layer, and make sure it is positioned at the very top of the Layers palette. Hold down the ALT key and from the drop down menu on the top right of the palette, click on Merge Visible. By doing this you are merging all the layers to one, but notice how your original layers stay available. This is a great technique in case you do something wrong with the merged layer, because you can return to your original panoramic!

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From here you can now do the finishing touches like adjusting levels/contrast and cloning out any unwanted objects.

The final dimensions of this panoramic measured a healthy 22" x 11.75" using three seperate exposures.

View a larger version of this image [here]

I hope this article will be of some use and hope you get plenty of fun creating your own panoramics.
Mark