Utah Pano

I haven't blogged in a while, but it's been a crazy few months. I recently updated my portfolio with this image that was taken in Utah. I've been getting into panoramic photography and I've learned a bunch. Here are some tips and some questions if anyone can help out.

1)Hardware - first things first...what equipment do you need for a good pano?

1. Lens - I use either a prime 24mm or a wide zoom with my Canon XT. You want to use a lens that doesn't have a lot of distortion so I find that primes do the best job, but zooms will work too. The main thing is to go wide!
   
2. Filters - I hate taking pics and the ground is exposed properly and the sky is all white or you expose for the sky and the ground is all black. You can fix this with neutral density grads, but you'll need a holder to attach the filters to your lens. I have a Cokin P holder that I use with neutral density grads to balance to exposure.

2)Technique -

1. Orientation - When I shoot panos I always shoot vertically to get more of the foreground and sky. I find that when I shoot in landscape orientation it doesn't give me enough space to work with once i stitch the pics in Photoshop.
2. Exposure - I set my camera to Manaul mode. Don't use Av or Tv modes or you will get different exposures for each pic in the scene. I usually start by scanning the entire scene to find the brightest and darkest areas. Once I have these two points, I choose an exposure in the middle. I take a test shot somewhere in the middle of the scene and check the exposure. I rely on my in-camera histogram to make adjustments to the exposure if needed. Once you get a good exposure you're ready to go.
3. Focus - Manual focus...kinda. Let's say you have a cool mountain range way off in the distance or a really cool building. It may be tempting to focus on that, but don't! Focus on the foreground and use hyperfocal apertures to get a clean result. If you want more info on hyperfocal distances check out this site. I usually autofocus on the foreground first. Once I get autofocus lock I'll switch to manual focus on my lens and shoot the rest of my sequence. With my 24mm I usually try to focus on something ~10ft away. With my aperture set to f/8 or f/11, everything ~5ft and farther will be in focus. This is key to get everything in the frame in focus. I usually don't use apertures smaller than f/11 (say f/16 or f/22) because you will get softer images due to diffraction.
   
4. Sequencing - My camera doesn't have a "Pano" mode, but I've seen it on some cameras. If you have it, use it. If you don't have that option you'll need to eye ball it. Once I get my exposure and focus spot on, I'll start my sequence usually from left to right. In my first shot I'll try to look for an object on the right side of the frame that I can easily identify, for argument sake let's say a rock. I use that rock as a marker so I know when to stop in my next shot. In the second shot I try to put that rock on the left of the frame, but not to close to the edge. You want some overlap so photoshop can easily stitch the images. After I take the second shot I look for another object in that frame, once again on the right side that can be a good marker for the next shot. Repeat until the sequence is finished. Of course this takes some practice, but it can be done handheld.
   
5. Post-production - this is where you keep your fingers crossed and pray your pano comes out okay. I've used both Photoshop CS3 and CS4 and both work well. Just open all your pics in photoshop and go to File ->Automate -> Photomerge. It will ask you which layout you want ( I usually use auto), what files you'd like to use and some extra options. If you already have all your photos in photoshop just click "Add Open Files" and then Okay. Make sure the "blend images together" box is checked. Photoshop will do its voodoo on the pics and stitch them together for you.
   

3)Questions? - There are some things I still haven't figured on with panos. Can anyone help?

• Moving objects - How do you account for moving objects like waves? Is there a particular way to make these panos better, or do you just need to clone out the mess.
• Filters - Has anyone compared Cokin and Singh-ray filters? The Singh-ray filters are nearly 3 times expensive and I'm wondering if they make that much difference.