The Photo
(Click here for a larger version!)
The Equipment and Settings
- Nikon D70
- Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 EX DC @ 120mm (the older mk1 version, not the new stabilized OS version!)
- Two sets of bracketed exposures, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/250 – 1/1000 sec.
- Manual Exposure, Manual WB, RAW
The Shooting Conditions
This image was captured from the observation deck / bar of the Bank of America Building in San Francisco. The view from up there is stunning, if you are ever interested in finding this perspective it is available to the public, as long as you are dressed “appropriately” for an elite (and expensive!) bar scene… Here is a wide angle image that shows more of the view:
To capture this image, I didn’t want to try and make a scene by setting up a tripod right by the window of this ritzy bar, so I hand-held the camera and balanced it on a railing or table or something. At 120mm (without stabilization) on a crop sensor camera, it took quite a few clicks before I got all four original images perfectly sharp.
The Post-Processing
The four images consisted of two sets of bracketed exposures, two EV’s apart.
First, I merged each bracketed exposure manually and did a simple layer mask to help preserve highlights around the sun.
Second, I manually merged the two frames together to create the panorama. Manual merging is pretty easy when you are shooting telephoto images, because there is no distortion whatsoever- all you have to do is line up the images and mask the edge!
Take care, and happy clicking!
=Matthew Saville=
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