5 Techniques to Shoot Panoramic Digital Photography

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From Inside a Cylinder

This method creates a complete cylinder of images that are viewed as if you were standing inside the cylindrical space. Your camera remains in a fixed position, and then a series of images are captured of the 360-degree scene surrounding the camera. The photos are connected in the correct sequence with editing software to form a seamless circle of photos of the entire scene.

From Outside a Cylinder

This type of panoramic photography is shot much the same as #1 above: A series of images are taken of the 360-degree view of the scene. During post processing, you create a carefully blended strip of all the images, but now they are on the outside of the cylinder and viewed from this perspective, as if you were walking around the cylinder.

From Inside a Sphere

There are two photographic techniques you can use to create an inner-sphere panorama. The first is to photograph all sides or surfaces of the three-dimensional object in your picture: a ball, a box, etc. Then, splice together the images to form the equivalent of a hollow ball, turning the photographed surfaces inwards. The object is then viewed from a perspective inside the ball.

The second technique is created with a multitude of images shot with a fisheye or standard lens. You will then need a specific type of editing software to create the hollow-ball effect again. When you use this technique, the panorama can only be viewed on a computer screen.

From Outside a Sphere

To see the entire surface of a sphere, like the Earth, or a ball, you must photograph a series of images of the 360-degree exterior view and from the exact same distance from the subject. Editing software is used again to create one seamless image from all the digital images captured. Now, the exterior of the sphere is viewed from outside of it, much the same as astronauts view the Earth while rotating around it.

The Flat Panorama

Typically, this method works best when the scene is a long plane, such as building fronts along a street. The camera can’t be placed in a fixed position to capture a complete series of images of the scene. The camera must be moved parallel to the scene for each separate digital photo. These are combined into one long, flat, panoramic image. This technique could also be used vertically to photograph several stories of a building with the camera (and photographer) lifted parallel to the building to take the series of photos. This is known as a planar-panoramic picture.

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Photo copyright PhotographyTalk member Aaron Peggs

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