On 1/28/2003 10:04 PM, Jan Dunlop wrote:
>Three issues that I am interested in are:
>
>1. What sort of camera equipment/lenses do you use/recommend for
>this type of work. I don't seem to be able to fix the exposure levels
>with the Sony Cybershot camera that I have.
>
>
>2. How did you mount the camera in the car. I am trying to work out
>the best way of mounting the camera half way between the dash and front
>seat backs. Did you use a mini tripod or build a custom base?
>
>
>3. How did you deal with lighting? I am experimenting which sheets
>over the windows to reduce exterior glare. But am wondering if I need an
>additional light source inside.
>
>Equipment I have:
>
>Quickpan III spherical system with universal mount
>Sony cybershot DSC F55V camera with wide angle lens 0.7x
>Realviz software
Jan,
There are lots of different ways to shoot interiors like this, some
better than others. I have a suspicion that you will have a difficult
time doing them successfully with the camera you describe. I am not
familiar with the Sony DCS F55V, and don't know whether you can actually
control exposure manually with it, nor whether the 0.7x wide angle
adapter is acceptable for stitching alignment (barrel distortion is often
a problem with supplemental adapters). However, necessity is the mother
of invention and we often do our best work when we have less than what we
think we need.
Of utmost importance, you need to have a camera that has, at the very
minimum exposure, lock capability, so you can lock the exposure at a
given setting when you shoot the panoramic sequence. True manual
exposure is better. (Note that some digital cameras claim to have manual
exposure, but it is simply a manual compensation -- plus or minus up to
two stops -- of the camera's auto exposure system. This is insufficient,
as the camera will continue to change its exposure with each shot.)
In terms of mounting the camera inside the car, you need to first choose
where you (or your client) want the view to be from. Many photographers
put the camera in between the two front seats, as it's easier to position
(you can often use a tripod on the floor of the vehicle) and this gives a
better view of the back seats in the panorama. Personally, I prefer to
shoot these from the driver's-eye view, which is dead center in the
driver's seat. This is where most purchasers of a car will be spending
most of their time (nobody really sits in a car astride the emergency
brake lever or stick shift).
Putting the camera on a tripod in this position is problematic at best,
because the tripod legs interfere with so much of the seat below. I
found it was best therefore, to support the camera on a boom arm which
comes in through the driver's window. This gives the camera an
unobstructed view in every direction in the interior, except for the
support arm in the window. This is easily retouched out, especially if
you are compositing an exterior view into the windows anyway. You may
also be able to do this through a removed sunroof, if available, but it's
better to do it through the window, since you know that EVERY car has a
driver side window available. Make sure the boom arm and stand are
stable, as you don't want the camera position to move even slightly
during the shooting sequence. You'll also want to trigger the camera
remotely via a cable release or other mechanism, so you don't have to be
inside the car when you shoot. The weight of a person on one side of the
car or another will shift its position slightly, and image alignment
between frames of the sequence can become a problem.
If capturing a view of the full back seat are from this position is
important, consider doing a second shot with the driver's seat headrest
removed, which you can either composite or layer (as a semi transperent
view) in post production. This gives a nice effect, as it shows the
position of the headrest, but the view toward the back of the car is not
completely blocked by it.
Lighting is best done with the most diffuse (soft) light possible.
Taping diffusion material over the outside of the windows works quite
well, especially if you are planning to composite an exterior scene into
the window areas later on. This technique presents some problem with a
"glow" around the window edges, but can be minimized if you also tape
some dark backing strips over the outside of the diffusion material
around the window edges, so not so much light is hitting the edge areas.
Additionally, you will find that some areas of the interior will be too
dark, such as the floor in the recesses of the driver and passenger leg
rests. This is not generally a problem if the vehicle's carpeting is
fairly light (gray or tan), but these spots become "black holes" with
black or dark carpeting. In these instances, hiding a small slaved
strobe or fill light under the front seats can fill in these areas quite
nicely (don't overdo it, and if you use continuous or "hot" lights, watch
out for heat buildup).
Note, if you are using bed sheets over the windows, that most linens are
not pure white and will wind up giving the interior an unfavorable color
cast (most likely a bluish or yellowish color). You might be able to fix
this in post production (after the complete panorama has been assembled).
However, it's better to actually buy a roll of photo grade diffusion
material and use it over the windows (cut it to the sizes you need),
since these rolls are completely neutral in the color balance.
I also like to turn the panel (and sometimes the interior) lights on in
the vehicle when shooting, as it tends to improve the contrast and look
of the panel. Usually this requires that you shoot in a controlled light
studio where you can burn the panel light exposure in for about 4 seconds
and have the ambient light remain dark except for the firing of the
strobe lights. This however, may be a more complicated technique than
you want.
Good luck,
Scott Highton
Author, Virtual Reality Photography
E-mail: email@hidden
Web: http://www.vrphotography.comhttp://www.highton.com
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