Using AE-L for pano shots?

Zilla · 04-28-2008, 07:25 PM

I'm trying to learn how to shoot multiple images to combine them into one pano using PS CS3's stitching tool. One advice I keep reading is to of course keep the exposure consistent between the shots. Make sense correct? I'm trying to do this via the following method...
- Use hyper-M mode
- Use the green button to set the exposure (whether correct exposure or not is irrelevant
for now)
- Use the AE-L button to lock the exposure
- Start taking my shots in portrait mode from left to right, overlapping by 25%

However, after the 5th or 6th shot the AE-L unlocks! Why? How can I keep it locked for the whole duration? I set my metering time set to 30s. Thanks!

alohadave · 04-29-2008, 07:27 PM

Just switch to M after you figure out what exposure you want.

navcom · 04-29-2008, 07:27 PM

You are correct...keep the exposure the same. On my K10D, I use manual mode (M) and set the aperture for around f/11-16. I've never locked the exposure as using manual mode doesn't require it. Then I look at the entire area that I want to capture and point the camera at an area that will give an average exposure for the whole shot and meter the exposure for that. I use ISO 100 whenever possible to cut down on noise and shoot away. 25% overlap is perfect.

nav

simons-photography · 04-30-2008, 04:49 AM

if your using manual its locked anyhow

axl · 04-30-2008, 05:47 AM

You don't need to press AE-L in M mode to lock exposure. It won't change wherever you'll point the camera until you decide so...

Lance B · 04-30-2008, 11:43 PM

Originally posted by Zilla

I'm trying to learn how to shoot multiple images to combine them into one pano using PS CS3's stitching tool. One advice I keep reading is to of course keep the exposure consistent between the shots. Make sense correct? I'm trying to do this via the following method...
- Use hyper-M mode
- Use the green button to set the exposure (whether correct exposure or not is irrelevant
for now)
- Use the AE-L button to lock the exposure
- Start taking my shots in portrait mode from left to right, overlapping by 25%

However, after the 5th or 6th shot the AE-L unlocks! Why? How can I keep it locked for the whole duration? I set my metering time set to 30s. Thanks!

Firstly, use Manual or M mode and set the exposure for the brightest part of the scene and keep that exposure for all shots.

Secondly, it is also best to use manual WB so as to set it the same for all if you are shooting in jpeg. You do not have to use manual WB in RAW, as it can be tweaked in post process, but it still makes it easier if you do.

Thirdly, if you can afford it, I would recommend PTGui photostitching software. It is by far the easiest and most successful I have used. See some of my examples here:
Panoramas Photo Gallery by Lance Blackburn at pbase.com

I have printed two of the Bondi panoramas and one of Sydney Harbour using my Epson R2400 printer on rolls media and have mounted them on my wall. The two Bondi Panoramas were printed to 1,880mm long by 330mm high. Unfortunately I had to cut them down to 1500mm x 330mm as they couldn't get a surround bigger than 1600mm wide. The photostitching software is that good that you *cannot* see any problems with these photos. They look as though they were taken with a large format camera.

I cannot recommend PTGui highly enough.

Buddha Jones · 05-04-2008, 06:01 AM

What I did for my Grand Canyon panos were to use the green button in manual mode. I exposed on what would be the center of the image and when that was locked in I started the pano. Turned out pretty good.

simons-photography · 05-04-2008, 07:39 AM

I think that allowing exsposure to vary won't hurt either because as you twist light varys the OP was right you should use AE-L because you need consistent exsposure not fixed settings I'd use Av and manual focus, most pano programs can equalize slight brightness differences in images

alohadave · 05-04-2008, 08:33 PM

Originally posted by simons-photography

I think that allowing exsposure to vary won't hurt either because as you twist light varys the OP was right you should use AE-L because you need consistent exsposure not fixed settings I'd use Av and manual focus, most pano programs can equalize slight brightness differences in images

The biggest problem with letting the camera change the exposure is that as you turn, you'll have variations in brightness, especially if you are using matrix metering and there is something that will change the exposure.

Also, if you are doing multi rows that include ground and sky shots, AE will certainly cause problems.

One thing that I have done with limited success is to use two different exposures, one for the ground, one for the sky. It's iffy if you have something that sticks up above the horizon, but it can be useful.

This is the best example that I have:

simons-photography · 05-05-2008, 12:51 AM

yea I think braketing is a good idea in these cases

**pixelsaurus** · 05-05-2008, 01:30 AM

I guess using a polarizer is not a good idea.

simons-photography · 05-05-2008, 01:41 AM

I've been told that too and it makes sense but I suppoe if your clever you could use one in some cases where it would benefit at least part of the pano

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-05-2008, 04:44 AM

Buddha Jones has it right.

Meter off the center of the image you want, in manual mode, and shoot all shots with that setting.

Do not use a polarizer, as it will unnaturally darken one side of the image, and its effect changes with camera direction relitive to the lighting,

Set WB to manual, to avoid any influence of the individual scenes

The whole object is not to correct for changing lighting as you change camera direction, but to insure that you have consistent exposure at the stitching points.

Bracketing is a waste of time, unless you start with a manually exposed sentral shot, and bracket around that setting, where you will keep only one out of 3 sets,. remember they ae complete sets.

As to the OP's issue of AE-lock resetting, he must be hitting the metering button or something else, my camera has AE locked until you press the button again

simons-photography · 05-05-2008, 05:48 AM

I'm wondering that if the lighting changes as you rotate because the sun is fixed can the polarizer help compensate at all ? I mean lanily in keep the sky and evenish tone

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-05-2008, 06:32 AM

Originally posted by simons-photography

I'm wondering that if the lighting changes as you rotate because the sun is fixed can the polarizer help compensate at all ? I mean lanily in keep the sky and evenish tone

No, in fact the polarizing filter is a disaster even on simple wide angle shots because the depening of the sky is localized even within the frame.

04-28-2008, 07:25 PM	#1
Zilla Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Cary, NC Posts: 39	Using AE-L for pano shots? I'm trying to learn how to shoot multiple images to combine them into one pano using PS CS3's stitching tool. One advice I keep reading is to of course keep the exposure consistent between the shots. Make sense correct? I'm trying to do this via the following method... - Use hyper-M mode - Use the green button to set the exposure (whether correct exposure or not is irrelevant for now) - Use the AE-L button to lock the exposure - Start taking my shots in portrait mode from left to right, overlapping by 25% However, after the 5th or 6th shot the AE-L unlocks! Why? How can I keep it locked for the whole duration? I set my metering time set to 30s. Thanks!

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Couple of night shots and a pano	Damn Brit	Post Your Photos!	7	06-29-2009 11:03 AM
First Pano	SCguy	Post Your Photos!	5	03-13-2009 07:35 AM
AE-L and pano shots	Zilla	Pentax DSLR Discussion	8	04-30-2008 08:11 AM
My first pano...	budkid	Post Your Photos!	3	01-19-2008 09:52 AM
And another pano	little laker	Post Your Photos!	3	04-18-2007 02:48 PM

04-29-2008, 07:27 PM	#2
alohadave Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Quincy, MA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,024	Just switch to M after you figure out what exposure you want.

04-29-2008, 07:27 PM	#3
navcom Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Minnesota USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 807	You are correct...keep the exposure the same. On my K10D, I use manual mode (M) and set the aperture for around f/11-16. I've never locked the exposure as using manual mode doesn't require it. Then I look at the entire area that I want to capture and point the camera at an area that will give an average exposure for the whole shot and meter the exposure for that. I use ISO 100 whenever possible to cut down on noise and shoot away. 25% overlap is perfect. nav

04-30-2008, 04:49 AM	#4
simons-photography Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Northamptonshire - England Photos: Gallery Posts: 496	if your using manual its locked anyhow

04-30-2008, 05:47 AM	#5
axl Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Nove Zamky, Slovakia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,183	You don't need to press AE-L in M mode to lock exposure. It won't change wherever you'll point the camera until you decide so...

04-30-2008, 11:43 PM	#6
Lance B Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 593	Originally posted by Zilla I'm trying to learn how to shoot multiple images to combine them into one pano using PS CS3's stitching tool. One advice I keep reading is to of course keep the exposure consistent between the shots. Make sense correct? I'm trying to do this via the following method... - Use hyper-M mode - Use the green button to set the exposure (whether correct exposure or not is irrelevant for now) - Use the AE-L button to lock the exposure - Start taking my shots in portrait mode from left to right, overlapping by 25% However, after the 5th or 6th shot the AE-L unlocks! Why? How can I keep it locked for the whole duration? I set my metering time set to 30s. Thanks! Firstly, use Manual or M mode and set the exposure for the brightest part of the scene and keep that exposure for all shots. Secondly, it is also best to use manual WB so as to set it the same for all if you are shooting in jpeg. You do not have to use manual WB in RAW, as it can be tweaked in post process, but it still makes it easier if you do. Thirdly, if you can afford it, I would recommend PTGui photostitching software. It is by far the easiest and most successful I have used. See some of my examples here: Panoramas Photo Gallery by Lance Blackburn at pbase.com I have printed two of the Bondi panoramas and one of Sydney Harbour using my Epson R2400 printer on rolls media and have mounted them on my wall. The two Bondi Panoramas were printed to 1,880mm long by 330mm high. Unfortunately I had to cut them down to 1500mm x 330mm as they couldn't get a surround bigger than 1600mm wide. The photostitching software is that good that you cannot see any problems with these photos. They look as though they were taken with a large format camera. I cannot recommend PTGui highly enough.

05-04-2008, 06:01 AM	#7
Buddha Jones Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Charlotte, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,587	What I did for my Grand Canyon panos were to use the green button in manual mode. I exposed on what would be the center of the image and when that was locked in I started the pano. Turned out pretty good.

05-04-2008, 07:39 AM	#8
simons-photography Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Northamptonshire - England Photos: Gallery Posts: 496	I think that allowing exsposure to vary won't hurt either because as you twist light varys the OP was right you should use AE-L because you need consistent exsposure not fixed settings I'd use Av and manual focus, most pano programs can equalize slight brightness differences in images

05-04-2008, 08:33 PM	#9
alohadave Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Quincy, MA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,024	Originally posted by simons-photography I think that allowing exsposure to vary won't hurt either because as you twist light varys the OP was right you should use AE-L because you need consistent exsposure not fixed settings I'd use Av and manual focus, most pano programs can equalize slight brightness differences in images The biggest problem with letting the camera change the exposure is that as you turn, you'll have variations in brightness, especially if you are using matrix metering and there is something that will change the exposure. Also, if you are doing multi rows that include ground and sky shots, AE will certainly cause problems. One thing that I have done with limited success is to use two different exposures, one for the ground, one for the sky. It's iffy if you have something that sticks up above the horizon, but it can be useful. This is the best example that I have:

05-05-2008, 12:51 AM	#10
simons-photography Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Northamptonshire - England Photos: Gallery Posts: 496	yea I think braketing is a good idea in these cases

05-05-2008, 01:30 AM	#11
pixelsaurus Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Te Kuiti, NZ Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 986	I guess using a polarizer is not a good idea.

05-05-2008, 01:41 AM	#12
simons-photography Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Northamptonshire - England Photos: Gallery Posts: 496	I've been told that too and it makes sense but I suppoe if your clever you could use one in some cases where it would benefit at least part of the pano

05-05-2008, 04:44 AM	#13
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891	Buddha Jones has it right. Meter off the center of the image you want, in manual mode, and shoot all shots with that setting. Do not use a polarizer, as it will unnaturally darken one side of the image, and its effect changes with camera direction relitive to the lighting, Set WB to manual, to avoid any influence of the individual scenes The whole object is not to correct for changing lighting as you change camera direction, but to insure that you have consistent exposure at the stitching points. Bracketing is a waste of time, unless you start with a manually exposed sentral shot, and bracket around that setting, where you will keep only one out of 3 sets,. remember they ae complete sets. As to the OP's issue of AE-lock resetting, he must be hitting the metering button or something else, my camera has AE locked until you press the button again

05-05-2008, 05:48 AM	#14
simons-photography Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Northamptonshire - England Photos: Gallery Posts: 496	I'm wondering that if the lighting changes as you rotate because the sun is fixed can the polarizer help compensate at all ? I mean lanily in keep the sky and evenish tone

05-05-2008, 06:32 AM	#15
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,891	Originally posted by simons-photography I'm wondering that if the lighting changes as you rotate because the sun is fixed can the polarizer help compensate at all ? I mean lanily in keep the sky and evenish tone No, in fact the polarizing filter is a disaster even on simple wide angle shots because the depening of the sky is localized even within the frame.