photography

213 Articles

Build A Google-style Panorama Rig For $300

September 29, 2009 by 24 Comments

PhotoTrail

As part of a “disruptive technologies” course at the United States Military Academy, [Roy D. Ragsdale] produced a working prototype of a Google Street View-like system called PhotoTrail. Like its corporate-backed inspiration, the system captures georeferenced 360-degree panoramas that can be viewed interactively in a web browser…but at a hardware cost of only around $300. [Ragsdale’s] prototype is based entirely on consumer-grade off-the-shelf components and open source software, all tied together by the yin and yang of DIY: foam core board and a few Python scripts.

This article from IEEE Spectrum magazine provides some background on the selection of parts and construction of the system, including a hardware shopping list and a list of links to all of the open source packages used.

The PhotoTrail prototype is surprisingly small and lightweight. A vehicle isn’t even required; the camera array can be carried overhead by a single person, making it possible to capture remote locations. But [Roy] expects future revisions to be even smaller and less obtrusive, perhaps mounted to a headband. Mount Everest awaits!

Timelapse Dolly

September 18, 2009 by 7 Comments

[vimeo = http://www.vimeo.com/3150715%5D

[Andrew Curtis] does fantastic timelapse photography. He found that he wanted to be able to move the camera while taking the shots to give motion to the final product. While this isn’t exactly a new idea, not too many people mess with it. The dolly to do it with can be quite expensive as it has to support the camera and move it in an automated and controlled fashion. [Andrew] has been working on building his own dolly and has documented the process.

[via Flickr]

Toyaanisqatsi: Time Lapse Control Using LEGO Parts

September 6, 2009 by 4 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fm1fFQfGc9M&feature=player_embedded]
A simple panning motion can add impact to the already-dramatic effect of time lapse photography. To accomplish this, frugal cinematographers sometimes build [Rube Goldberg] contraptions from clock motors, VCR parts or telescope tracking mounts. Hack a Day reader [Stephan Martin] has assembled a clever bargain-basement system using an Arduino-driven stepper motor and a reduction gear system built up from LEGO Technic parts, along with some Processing code on a host PC to direct the show.

While the photography is a bit crude (using just a webcam), [Stephan’s] underlying motion control setup might interest budding filmmakers with [Ron Fricke] aspirations but Top Ramen budgets. What’s more, unlike rigid clock motor approaches, software control of the camera mount has the potential for some interesting non-linear, fluid movements.

$15 HDR Camera

July 16, 2009 by 28 Comments

rewire1 (Custom)

[Steve] was planning a 15 mile hiking trip when he came up with this idea. He wanted to get some good HDR photography, but didnt’ want to lug around his 5D MKII. He managed to pick up a couple of cheap Polaroid X530s. These have decent optics and record in RAW format, which is pretty impressive for something he got for 99cents plus shipping. He had all of the buttons wired for external control via a Viliv umpc. As you can see on his site, his results are quite nice. Of course, you don’t actually have to hack your camera to make HDR images.

Magic Lantern For Canon 5D

June 24, 2009 by 10 Comments

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/5267475%5D

[Trammell] has released a new firmware for the Canon 5D Mark II DSLR geared toward film makers. The stock firmware was very limited on the audio side. This firmware adds features such as live VU meters, reduced audio noise, and crop marks for filming in different formats. The firmware is written in a manner that it can be extended fairly easily. Hopefully this will turn out to be as helpful as CHDK has been for point and shoot cameras.

The Camera Axe

June 14, 2009 by 17 Comments

hr_cameraAxe_2513

The Camera Axe is an open source system for doing high speed camera triggering. You know all those pictures people get of balloons popping or drops of water in mid splash? This is how they do it. The system has light sensors and sound sensors to help get the timing just right. It can trigger your camera and the flash to capture images at just the right moment. There are a lot of picture examples on the site as well as a full schematic and parts list. Not too bad for roughly $100.