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	I hope the little informations of this section will enable you to begin with creating panoramic images and spherical Quicktime VR or maybe better understand the process involved.
	Vidéo : create a complete Quicktime VR 360°-180° in 10 minutes How to create a Quicktime VR step by step, from the shots to the stiching part A smaller hole on the nadir = less work in Photoshop Tilt your camera for less work in Photoshop after: Nikon D70 + Nikon 10.5mm + Nodal Ninja 3 + Stitcher Unlimited (or PTGUI) Quicktime VR 360°-180° with 3 shots : Nikon 10.5mm on a Canon 5D Create a good quality Quicktime VR with only 3 pictures and a strange couple camera/lens Spherical head 360Precision /PTMac /PhotoshopCS2 /CubicConverter Easy and quick workflow to create a spherical QuicktimeVR Basic informations to understand & create Quicktime VR 360°-180° Basic informations and tutorial Manfrotto 304 VR : a cool "do-it-yourself" Quicktime VR head From the 303SPH Manfrotto to a head with new functionalities All the technical chapters in one (and long) page

Video : create a complete Quicktime VR 360-180° in 10 minutes [not a basic tutorial :-]
How to create a Quicktime VR step by step, from the shots to the stitching part

This vidéo explains how to create a complete spherical Quicktime VR (360°-180°) in 10 minutes, step by step, from the shots to the stitching part. (video format: H264 - mini. Quicktime 7.01> apple.com/quicktime/ - soundtrack: English)
Thanks to Robert Haddock and Christine Collier-Roberts for their help. (voiceover and translation)

See the video in a new window - Download the video in ZIP format (32 Mo)

video : create a Quicktime VR in 10 minutes

Bir-Hakeim, tour Eiffel

Large view

zoom inside

Quicktime VR : medium - large - fullscreen

ecard

Download links : 8 photos from the video (4 Mo) - Render 5000 x 2500 (1.7 Mo)

See the video in a new window - Download the video in ZIP format (32 Mo)

A smaller hole on the nadir = less work in Photoshop
Nikon D70 + Nikon 10.5mm + Nodal Ninja 3 + Stitcher Unlimited (or PTGUI) + Nikon Capture / NX

With a 10.5mm Nikon lens, the size of the "hole" on the nadir, when creating a Quicktime VR, can be significantly reduce, and then reducing the amount of work in Photoshop. To do this, you simply need to tilt your camera when shooting the last 6 shots row until you can see the panoramic head in the lower part of the photo (-10°, -15°...). The size of the circle to edit will then depend on the size of the panoramic head used.

Click to open the original Quicktime VR (1)

Click to open the orginal Quicktime VR brut (2)

Quality
There is almost no quality difference in the overlapping area with the zenith if you shot your pictures with a closed enough aperture, choose FINE or RAW as your saving parameters and with an angle allowing a good overlap.The following details are from a 'normal' render (0°) and a render with tilted images (-15°) of 10.000x5.000 pixels/Smartblend.

Horizon
The current available softwares (Stitcher, PTGui) allow to align a panorama with a single click.

Exemple
You can find here the final fullscreen Quicktime VR file and all the composing images 6+1+1/-15° (ZIP 21 MB)
Note: The nodal point of my images is ~~not really~~... not at all perfect :-)

Paris - Quicktime VR : Eiffel tower, pont d'Iena, river Seine

Pont d'Iena , tour Eiffel, Seine

Set d'images - ZIP 23 MB

Quicktime VR : fullscreen

Softwares
The stitching can be done with Stitcher Unlimited (http://stitcher.realviz.com), PTGUI 5.x (http://ptgui.com)..., etc
You can see here the four steps to create this panorama with Stitcher : from the loading of the 'fisheye' images, the automatic stitching and aligment, to the final render of the panorama (using smart blending option)


[1] Loading fiseye images	[2] Automatic stitching	[3] Aligment

Result	[4] Rendering parameters	Final render

Nadir patching
The correction of the nadir can be done easier and quicker now. It's possible, if it doesn't have a lot of details, to use only the "patch" tool without using the 8th photo (often taken handheld). For more information, watch the video about the realisation of a Quicktime VR : Open the video in a new window - Dowload the video (ZIP 32 MB)

Hardware
For all these tests, I used a Nodal Ninja 3 (http://nodalninja.com) panoramic head because it has a very small base.
(Thanks to Bill Bailey for his help)


	Horizontale screw	Nodal Ninja 3 + Nikon D70
	Pro • Not expensive (introductory Price $159.95 / normal $211.95) • Light, small, compact & easily transportable (free NN3 case) • very small 'click stop' base: 5 cm (see above ) Cons • Does not support Nikon D2X, Canon Mark II, DS, 1Ds, or similar sized larger DSLR’s

Quicktime VR (360°/180°) with 3 shots with a Nikon 10.5mm on a Canon 5D
Create a spherical panorama with 3 pics, witout zénith (up) and without nadir (bottom)

english soon

Ce montage permet de réaliser une vue sphérique en trois photos sans avoir à photographier le zénith et le nadir.
Après avoir enlevé le pare-soleil du Nikon, l'angle couvert est de 200° (!) sur le capteur "fullframe" du Canon EOS 5D.
Les avantages sont nombreux et simplifient la vie, de la prise de vue rapides de scènes d'action, à celles dans un espace réduit ou dans des conditions difficiles. Plus qu'un fisheye 8mm, Sigma ou Nikon, cette optique couplée à cet appareil photo permet des panoramas originaux et de bonne qualité tout en diminuant le niveau des contraintes.

Les Quicktimes ci-dessous sont assemblés avec PTMac (Mac OS X) ou PTGUI (PC / Windows).

Note : Tenter de retirer une partie du pare-soleil peut facilement entrainer des rayures sur la lentille frontale (ou pire).

Canon 5D + adapter + Nikon 10.5mm

Head for my first tests

Nikon 10.5mm without sunshield

Original picture (200° !)

Nadir without a "patch"

Zenith

Example 1 (no link to Paris)

Quicktime VR fullscreen (2 Mo)

Example 2 (still no link with the City of Lights :-)

Quicktime VR Fullscreen (2 Mo)

Useful web links
- Peter Murphy un des ("le" ?) premiers à avoir monté le Nikon 10.5mm sur le Canon 5D pour faire un Quicktime VR
- Comparaison entre les fisheyes 8mm Sigma et Nikon 10.5mm (par Michel Thoby)
- Découpage du parsoleil du Nikon 10.5mm (par Michel Thoby)
- A propos du changement de diaphragme (toujours par Michel Thoby)
- Le site de Michel Thoby (vous l'avez deviné, c'est le site à ne pas manquer si vous lisez ces lignes)

Spherical head 360Precision + PTMac + PhotoshopCS2 + CubicConverter
Easy and quick workflow to create a spherical QuicktimeVR

spherical render

Large view

zoom inside

Quicktime VR : medium - large - fullscreen

ecard

360Precision (http://www.360precision.com)
For most spherical heads on the market, setting the "nodal point" requires patience and a minimum knowledge. Even when it is set, vibrations, transportation, shocks... will make you the operation regularly (most of the time, when you do not have time to do so).
360Precision works on the opposite principle: it has been designed for a couple "camera body + lens". It has no customizable setting, apart from the spirit level. > see the video


	360Precision + D70 +10.5mm	back screw
	Pros • Precise : vey, very precise • Compact, it can easily fit into a photo case / bag. • Resistent and reliable, it looks sound as a rock. • As it is preset, you only have to screw it on the camera ~~and make it level~~ Cons • Expensive : £520. But you'll find it more cost-effective than you think, compared to other heads of the same category.

Photoshop CS2
The most famous of the image editing software. Enhanced from the CS2 version with more convenient features for panoramic photographers, like the Warp or Vanishing Point features.

http://www.adobe.com
http://www.adobe.com/products/tryadobe/ (free trial)

PTMac
A Must-Have (as Realviz Stitcher) to assembly panoramic images directly from fisheyes shots.

http://www.kekus.com/ptmac/

CubicConverter
The Swiss army knife for Quicktime VR. It can convert images in 2-ways "equirectangular" <-> Quicktime VR as well as edit the sides (cube) separately.

http://www.clickheredesign.com.au/cubicconverter/

Photographic part - Stitching - Nadir creation

Photographic part

Nikon D70 + 10.5mm

8 images : one row (6) / nadir (1) / zenith (1)

AF : manual

Balance des blancs : manuel

Vidéo [Mpeg /4,1 Mo / 61 secondes]

Stitching

Selecting 8 images making up the sphere:
zénith (1), rangée (6), nadir (1)

Opening PTMac

Adding the first 7 images:
zénith (1), row (6)

Lens settings*
ex: fov 87.1946 (10.5mm Nikor)

Placing the images:
+ 0°, + 60°, +120°, -180°, -120°, - 60 °...

Creating control points
Note : Autopano software enables creating multiple control points.

Optimisation

Rendering and saving

Nadir creation & patch

Opening CubicConverter

Loading the image previously rendered in PTMac

Saving the side containing nadir with the "hole".

Opening Photoshop CS2

Loading the Nadir with the hole from CubicConverter and the picture of Nadir made during the shooting

Assembling, placing and modeling the two images with the Warp module

Edit -> Transform -> Warp

Fine placing and cutting

Correction of the density of the added central part.
Note: You can set this correction in "grayscale" not to be influenced by colors.

Color enhancement of the added central part

Editing of details and backup

Replacing the side containing nadir with the hole in CubicConverter

Final conversion in CubicConverter and saving as a Quicktime file and an image (TIFF, JPEG format...)

Once saved, the final spherical image can be corrected, edited, enhanced according to your needs and your creativity.

Duration (shots, stitch, nadir): 15 - 30 mnts

Quicktime VR "fullscreen" (1.3 MB)

Special thanks to Matthew/360Precision, Pierre/Adobe, Stéphane/Realviz, Gilles, Michel, Jean,... and all members of the PhotoPanorama forum for their assistance and informations (especially on PTMac).

Another instance made the same way (without any link to Paris, but fun and pretty technical :-). Note that the mirror on nadir has not been shot from the "nodal point", in order to avoid the camera to be reflected.

Quicktime VR "fullscreen" (1.3 MB)

Original idea: Marco Luethi : fullscreen (1.5 MB)

Basic informations to create a clean Quicktime VR 360°-180°
Basic informations and tutorial

There are as many techniques as different ways to build a panoramic image or a spherical Quicktime VR through stitching. The one described below is one amongst others. It probably is the easiest one to reproduce. It's up to you to adjust it according to your needs. (as the above article)

Basis
For greater ease, this example's shooting is based upon an horizontal row of 6 pictures, a top view (zenith) and a bottom view (nadir) using a VR head mounted on a tripod. (see graphics below)

Hardware
- Camera:
Nikon D70 and 10.5mm / Canon 1DS orMark II DS and 15mm Sigma / Canon 20D and 10-22mm, etc.
- Support:
QTVR head (Panosorus, Manfrotto, Kaidan...), tripod

Nikon 10.5mm - Sigma 15mm - Canon 10-22mm

Preliminary settings
- Photo:
The camera must be set to manual mode for focus, exposure and white balance to avoid any offset of the point, light and color setting between images.
- Photo + head:
Beyond the correct mounting of the head and camera on the tripod, you have to define the nodal point to get pictures that are easy-to-assemble.
Alain Hamblenne wrote an interesting Web documentation and PDF on an adjustment method called "the grid": http://www.outline.be/quicktime/tuto/ (available in english and french)
Arnaud Frich is giving large details on the topic and on the ways to operate these different settings (french only): http://www.arnaudfrichphoto.com/gp_point_nodal.htm
Manfrotto also has a page dedicated to the subject: http://www.manfrotto.com/303SPH/main.php?cnt=howto#sph

6 horizontal views

Shooting
1 row of 6 horizontal pictures, 1 top, 1 bottom> see video

There are many ways to "shoot" the bottom (bottom/nadir) :
- 1 view by handholding the camera after taking good marks and placing yourself out of the shooting field.
- 2 views with the camera inside the head, above the screwing joint of the tripod (add a logo to hide the remaining circle).
- 2 views by making sure, if your head allows it, that the camera is outside the monopod if you are sure not to have problems with paralax and/or offset.
- 3 views (as shown on the right) if you're paranoid : 2 inside views + 1 outside view).

Top and 3 bottom views with parts of tripod & head

Stitching the bottom picture (nadir)
Whatever software you're using (Photoshop, The Gimp...), your goal is to stitch all 2 or 3 images to get a bottom image free of any part of the tripod/head.

Paris Sainte chapelle bottom 01 and 02 and 03

after assembling 1+2+3 bottom views in Photoshop

Correcting images before stitching
- Lens correction / Remap to rectilinear
Defish : http://www.worldserver.com/turk/quicktimevr/fisheye.html - http://www.kekus.com
Nikon Capture (perfect with both Nikon D70/10.5mm) : http://www.digitalreview.ca/cams/NikonCapture4.shtml

Lens correction

Remap to rectilinear

Stitching
It can be done using multiple software with different processes, including:
-RealViz Stitcher : http://realviz.com/products/st/index.php
-PTmac : http://www.kekus.com/ptmac/ (note: you don't need -> rectilinear with PTMac - see above)

Publishing (flat and QTVR)
After stitching and rendering, the resulting image (spherical, cylindrical, etc.) can be displayed "flat" or interactively through Apple's Quicktime VR technology.

- Realviz Stitcher enables a Quicktime VR direct rendering.
-CubicConverter is an excellent conversion software: http://www.clickheredesign.com.au/cubicconverter/

Enjoy your shooting...

Sainte Chapelle de Paris Quicktime VR large

spherical render (cropped)

Large view

zoom inside

Quicktime VR : medium - large - fullscreen

ecard

Manfrotto 304 VR: a cool "do-it-yourself" Quicktime VR head, which doesn't exist :-)

MAJ [01/05/2005]: I'm still using this head in some special cases, but more and more a 360Precision.


	horizontal 300 N	vertical shot position
	For years, I have been using for panoramic shootings a 303-Plus (+) head. I have decided to switch to a 303-SPH which is a very good choice to expand its use to Quicktime VR 360°/180° shootings. After a few days of use and tests (with all due respect for its manufacturing and design quality), a few issues appeared : Inaccuracy of the swing system : the system only holds marks for each degree to align by hand in front of a spot but there is no blocking mark. Reproducing 2 (or more) identical views is therefore impossible once the swing position has been changed. => replace by a thinner horizontal 300N or MA300 (read article by Michel Thoby)

a modified 303 SPH (click to zoom)

Incapacity to separate the camera and the head then placing it back quickly without changing a bit the settings of its stand rail => add a 323 quick-release bracket

Incapacity to shoot a nadir (vertical) view outside of the tripod without changing the head or tripod configuration (if you can hold your camera with your hand, for a night-20-second-long exposure without moving, please contact the Guiness Book of World Records). => add a vertical 300N.

338 fine tunes and level

vertical 300N

The lens is too close to the tripod for vertical shooting (nadir) => vertical 300N: +15 cm

No micro-positioning plate for ultra-fine positioning (as on the 303 Plus (+) for instance)

No spirit level => add a 338 plate from my old 303 Plus (+)

Relative elasticity of the main rail (which "crimps" a bit even with light cameras like Canon 20D, Nikon D70, etc. => screw the 357 from former tilt axis over the rail supporting the square

outside tripod rotation

quick release 323

The accessories available in the Manfrotto catalog allow to slightly modify a 303 SPH and avoid some of these issues.

Add-ons include: 300N (x2), 338 plate, 357 rail and 323 quick release (see pictures above).

This "304 VR" (with its imaginary reference) is indeed a simple DIY device, but it can now meet 100% of my needs for shooting 360-degree-views (most of which are night-shot landscapes).

Video from the first test [Mpeg/3.1MB/120 seconds]

The panoramic view below is the first image shot using this head (October 29, 2004) see fullscreen QTVR version

Bir-Hakeim bank & Eiffel

Large view

zoom inside

Quicktime VR : medium - large - fullscreen

ecard

Many Quicktime VR head models are available which will suit your needs and budget (less expensive and lighter than the assembly demonstrated above :-). Don't spend a lot if you just want to make a few tests or if this type of shooting is not an every-day practice. (see various models and links at the bottom of this page)

This configuration is more stable when used with cameras with no grip (avoiding to increase the distance of the offcentered weight of the camera).

The grip/screw under the head is the one from the original tilt axis of 303 SPH, kept to serve as a hold and to increase portability once the head is bent.

The parallax is not perfect on the view taken "outside" the tripod due to the extreme offcentered position of the camera regarding the tripod's central screw and to the flexibility of the support rail screwed on the 338 plate. The defect is minor (especially if you don't use the central part of the bottom image) and the pictures stitch pretty well in the various software.

HERE is an example of one QTVR with objects close to the lens.