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Aerial Photography and Video > Panorama photos. How to altitude lock…?
 
 
Angelos
Key Veteran
Location: nr Oxford, OX11, UK

I have done a few attempts for taking panoramic photos and I must say I am getting better and better at it. The FMA co-pilot helps a lot for keeping the heli level, my Powershot G3 is set to high speed shooting mode (2.5frames/sec) and the same switch that triggers the camera also adds a 20% offset on the rudder. So taking all photos I need for a panoramic only requires to flicker one switch and wait for the heli to complete the turn. A tip for anyone who attempts that… do not take photos from the front of the heli but from it’s side. Helicopters hover slightly tilted to one side when stationary to compensate for the thrust of the tail rotor. If you take photos from the front of the heli they will be all tilted and will be hard to stitch.

Anyway, all his works fine for taking panoramic photos that will show flat on the screen or paper. However I am getting into trouble when I try to create 360 degrees VR panoramas. It seems that always the heli climbs or decents a bit while completing the circle although to my eyes it seems to stay at the same height. See below detail of the first and last pictures of the panorama sequence.




I guess that if I am already very high a small change in altitude wouldn’t affect the picture as much. But I need to take panorama photos from relatively low altitude to show ground detail. At this height a small altitude variation changes picture geometry a lot the. Any ideas of how to altitude lock the helicopter? I am already considering GPS (least favorable), barometric pressure (not too keen), ultrasonic ranging (will test soon if feasible). I am happy to hear all other ideas. I can develop the electronics to control pitch. Throttle is already controller by a GV-1.
09-15-2003 Over year old.
 
 
daggit
Elite Veteran
Location: Waseca MN

Angelos

That is a very cool project. Saw your stitched photo before, very nice.

I was just thinking it would be a lot easier to hold the heli in one spot and have the camera do the 360 pan, shooting as it turns. I know you already have a lot of time invested in your current system (looks great by the way) but what you're doing sounds like A LOT of work
09-16-2003 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
daggit
Elite Veteran
Location: Waseca MN

Ok, I have an idea...

Looking at your helicam, how hard would it be to make one more modification to your front camera mount. Make the mount pivot down so it protrudes below the gear and can rotate 360 degrees (modify the panning servo too). Then it can retract into its current position for landing.

just an idea (I know, a lot of work)

.
09-16-2003 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
Angelos
Key Veteran
Location: nr Oxford, OX11, UK

daggit,
thanks for the replies. I don't feel any need to convert the mount. My rudder approach works fine for doing the circle. Don’t forget that heading hold gyros accept rate demand from the rudder stick. So when I mix a 20% offset the hei rotates at a nice constant speed of just over 90deg/sec whether the tail is moving against the wind or being pushed by the wind. My only problem at this stage is keeping a constant altitude.
09-16-2003 Over year old.
 
 
FlightPower
Veteran
Location: Herts UK

That canon G3 takes can take interchangeable lenses?

If so, here's my midnight musing on your topic.... Is there any special advantage (in return for the labour of stiching photos together) over mounting a fish-eye lens on the camera and taking 360 degrees in one shot from one altitude. (naturally with reference to the above comment regards getting parts of the heli out of the way of the shot). Looking at your mount - maybe if you mounted the camera on its back instead of its base, by the time you tilted your mount downwards the fish-eye could be lower than the rest of the heli (and then brought up again for landing).

I have a funnly little barometric altitude hold device designed for aeroplane elevators that I keep wondering if I dare attach to a heli. Maybe I'll actually go ahead and risk it on my spare raptor and let you know - otherwise I believe Val aka Cyber-flyer (www.cyber-flyer.com) has actually got something that works on the Z axis.

Cheers!

Julian
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
kevinbuckley70
Senior Heliman
Location: Oxfordshire, UK

Does it make a difference which direction you pirouette whether you ascend or descend?

Regards, Kevin
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
Angelos
Key Veteran
Location: nr Oxford, OX11, UK

Kevin,
you are right it sure does, but I think it won't be noticeable. Good thing you pointed it out though. I will to some tests close to the ground to see what is exactly happening.

Where to you fly? I live in Oxfordshire too if you noticed. I am a member of this club http://www.nbrmas.co.uk/

-Angelos
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
kevinbuckley70
Senior Heliman
Location: Oxfordshire, UK

"Where to you fly? I live in Oxfordshire too if you noticed."

At the moment I fly in my garden. I'm very much a beginner still hovering(Eolo electric heli.) but soon my garden will be too small to do anything else.

I'm trying to find somewhere bigger to fly - either near to home (just south of Wallingford) or near work (Slough).

Your field or Reading seem to be the closest to me - bit neither is very close. And Slough has a field also.

Kevin
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
Angelos
Key Veteran
Location: nr Oxford, OX11, UK

Quote 
I'm trying to find somewhere bigger to fly - either near to home (just south of Wallingford) or near work (Slough).


Ohhh, now I remember. You emailed me a few weeks ego!
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
kevinbuckley70
Senior Heliman
Location: Oxfordshire, UK

Regarding the "height change", I kind-of agree with the previous comment. If the camera's mounted "side-on" it looks more like the heli. rolled slightly to the left during the pirouette.

Maybe you could mount the camera on a gimbal so that as the heli. rolls either left or right the camera behaves like a pendulum (with some damping) - either than or get some kind of gyro stabiliser.

Kevin
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
kevinbuckley70
Senior Heliman
Location: Oxfordshire, UK

Whoops - ignore that. I just looked at the photo again & remembered the perspective change. - Kevin
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
Angelos
Key Veteran
Location: nr Oxford, OX11, UK

aircombat,
good thinking. I’ll try that but the camera can't sustain the high speed shooting mode for very long. Flash memory is slow and thus the camera keeps the photos in an internal RAM buffer. When this is full it stops until everything is dumped in the flash. By that time the helicopter would drift a bit anyway and parallax kicks in. perhaps can do about 3 turns at most before the camera pauses. I'll try to increase a bit pitch after the first turn and reduce after the second and see what I get.

Janek,
yes the heli didn't move. It is easy to see that but altitude is much harder. The distance may seem different as I cropped the photos manually from larger frames and didn't pay much attention. What I was trying to point out was the distance between the building and the horizon.
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
flyboy
Elite Veteran
Location: California

Just an idea?

The solution is a mount that you could attach three cameras to.

Have the three cameras on the same plane, with a slightly overlapping field of view, fire the shutter electronicaly all at the same time.

Then use stiching software that comes with any digital camera & stich them togather. I am using the Minolta F300, it is five mega pixel's and weights almost nothing. It shoots amazing pictures and I believe that they go for around three hundreds bucks.
09-17-2003 Over year old.
 
 
mlmcquiggjr
Heliman
Location: Tulsa, OK

Some design work required!

I found an ingenius device at a photo site where panarama shots are taken with exactly one shot and processed in a propriety software program. The device is vertical and would require a 90 degree rotation from take off position to a vertical photo position. The oreintation would be upside down, but how hard is it to rotate an image! the thing costs about a grand, but simplicity makes it worth it. the site can be found at http://www.steves-digicams.com/2002_reviews/360one.html
Now someone get out there and adapt this thing!
09-18-2003 Over year old.
 
 
FlightPower
Veteran
Location: Herts UK

Sold!

Absolutely have to have without question, delay, let or hinderance.

Thanks for posting mlmcquiggjr

Yet another reason why RunRyder ROCKS!!
09-18-2003 Over year old.
 
 
AirShot
Heliman
Location: Blairsville, GA.

Another Sold!

You ought to call this guy up and ask for commission!

Thanks for the post mlmcquiggjr!

AirShot
09-22-2003 Over year old.
 
 
daggit
Elite Veteran
Location: Waseca MN

WOW, talk about your money burning a hole in your pocket.... my wallet nearly exploded into a fireball!

but I'm gonna wait and see how it works for you guys... keep us updated!!
09-22-2003 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
jeffscholl
Key Veteran
Location: Whitefish, MT

I used something similiar a couple years ago using a 180deg. fisheye and IPIX, however I found that you have to be very close to your subject in order to pull out any detail. Landscapes always appeared to suffer :-(
examples here

Cheers,
Jeff
09-22-2003 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
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Aerial Photography and Video > Panorama photos. How to altitude lock…?
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