The 360º full moon night panorama of the stone ruins at an abandoned 19th century resort involved a somewhat precarious camera position. I climbed up a low stone wall into the broken up rocks and overgrown trees and shrubs next to the building. Adjusting the tripod legs on the rocks to get the camera stable was a challenge. Shooting 6-shots around for the panorama involved finding stable footing between camera rotations without upsetting the rocks that were supporting the camera. The pano stitched together just fine, and turned out to be worth the effort. Use your mouse to navigate around the image — the button on the bottom right will take you full screen!
Virginia City Cemetery Sunset 360 Panorama — by Joe Reifer
The historic Virginia City cemetery is located on a hill just on the north side of town, and features graves dating back to the 1860′s. A wide variety of religious and fraternal organizations have separate burial plots in this area.
This sunset photo was an experiment in HDR 360º panoramas while waiting for the moon to rise. Using a 10mm fisheye on a Canon 60D requires 6-shots around plus a zenith (up shot). Three images were taken at each setting, 2 stops apart. I was able to shoot the 18 images in just over 2 minutes. By the time I was ready to make the zenith for the 360, the color had disappeared from the sky and the clouds had moved quite a bit. For bracketed panoramas with fast moving clouds and fading light, a 4-shot around panorama with a 12mm fisheye on a full frame camera would be a better option because a zenith shot is not necessary.
I’ve been favoring 6 around + a zenith and nadir because the resolution is higher. Using the 60D, the final resolution is about 15,000×7,500 pixels. A 4-shot panorama on the 5D Mark II is 10,000×5,000. Sometimes the resolution tradeoff is worth it to get the shot. Unfortunately the Tokina 10-17mm fisheye is best at the 10-12mm end on a crop sensor camera. I may need to consider the Canon 8-15mm fisheye for the best quality 360′s on full frame. But enough about 360 pano techniques — why not stand in the cemetery and enjoy the view in the interactive version.
Berlin Ghost Town Mine Supervisor’s House 360 Panorama — by Joe Reifer
A 360º panorama inside the kitchen area of the former mine supervisor’s house at the Berlin ghost town in Nevada. The house is near the entrance to Berlin Ichthyosaur State Park and is filled with artifacts, photos, and news clippings. Click the image above for a closer look, or use your mouse to explore the interactive version below.
Technical details:
Virginia and Truckee Railroad 360º Night Panorama -- by Joe Reifer
The Virginia & Truckee Railroad was founded in 1868 to bring silver and gold from the Comstock mines to mills, and bring supplies back on the return trip. This 360 degree night panorama shows the V&T railroad yard in Virginia City, Nevada. The owner graciously gave us a tour of the yard including the workshop where the steam trains are lovingly restored, and the wooden car used in the opening scene of the Jim Jarmusch film Deadman (known as the “Depp car”). Find out more about visiting Virginia City and taking a ride on the historic V&T railroad on www.virginiatruckee.com
Virginia and Truckee Railroad Little Planet Panorama -- by Joe Reifer
This alternate version of the V&T panorama shows the image reprojected as a little planet. Click the image for a closer look. Or use your mouse to navigate the 360º interactive version below. The button on the bottom right will take you to a full screen view.