Canon’s Secret Weapon for Shooting Panoramas

Every lens manufacturer has a few secret weapons in it’s arsenal. For landscape photographers shooting panoramas with Canon DSLRs one of these is the TS-E 24mm f/3.5 L II tilt & shift lens introduced in early 2009. As I’ve said before, the Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II is quite possibly the sharpest lens Canon has ever released. It’s certainly the sharpest lens I’ve ever owned. If you’re interested in all the technical details I recommend reading the in-depth review at The-Digital-Picture.com.

Caprock Canyons Panorama – Quitaque, Texas
Copyright © 2010 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II set on aperture (Av) priority using a TS-E 24mm f/4L II USM lens tripod mounted. The three exposures were taken at 24mm, f/16 for 1/15th of a second at ISO 100 using a Singh-Ray warming polarizer and 2-Stop (Soft) ND-Grad filter. Post capture processing was done in Photoshop CS5 using the “Merge to Panorama in Photoshop” command in Lightroom 3.

One of the areas that a tilt & shift lens really excels in is panorama photography, Shooting pano’s is something I’ve always wanted to try but never did due to the cost of the special panning components required to turn your tripod and ball head into a pano rig. Once I bought the TS-E 24mm f/3.5 L II tilt & shift lens for my commercial work I found a much simpler method for a three or five shot landscape panorama that requires no additional hardware.

In-Camera Technique
This simple technique is based solely upon the “shift” capabilities of a tilt & shift lens and almost completely eliminates parallax (uneven overlap) and distortion.

1. Setup your camera & lens on your tripod, taking care to ensure the camera is level. I use a simple $25 bubble-level to accomplish this in seconds.
2. Focus on your subject manually and take your first exposure with the lens “unshifted”.
3. Shift the lens to the left as far as it will go without creating vignetting, and take your second exposure. Be careful not to refocus or to change the exposure settings too much.
4. Shift the lens to the right as far as it will go without creating vignetting, and take your third exposure. Be careful not to refocus or to change the exposure settings too much.

Lens Images Courtesy & Copyright © The Digital Picture

1. Lens Shifted Left

2. Lens Centered

3. Lens Shifted Right

Post Capture Processing
Once you return home simply process all three shots in Lightroom 3 keeping the exposure and other settings as similar as possible between all three. Then select all three images and select “Edit In” from the “Photo” menu. The choose “Merge to Panorama in Photoshop …”. Once Photoshop opens just select the default options and in a few minutes your three-image panorama will appear. Save this file to Lightroom and complete your post-capture processing as normal.

The results? Well, see for yourself by clicking on the image above.

Further Reading
Canon’s Digital Learning Center – Tilt & Shift Lenses.
Canon’s Digital Learning Center – An Introduction to Canon’s New Tilt-Shift Lenses
Really Right Stuff’s – Panoramas Made Simple

Capturing Birds in Flight: Exposure Control

Capturing birds in flight is a difficult task for any DSLR camera. Capturing a “stop action” shot of a bird in flight with enough detail and sharpness to distinguish between individual feathers is exceptional. Accomplishing all this with an exposure that doesn’t blow out the highlights and leave the subject silhouetted dark against a bright background is almost too much to wish for, but the Canon EOS 7D delivers all this and more.

When looking for a wildlife camera I tend to focus on the auto-focus system (no pun intended) more than anything else. However, it takes more than just sharpness to create a great wildlife shot. It also requires precise exposure control especially when shooting birds in flight. The Canon EOS 7D comes with a brand new 63-zone “iFCL” (Intelligent Focus, Color, Luminance) metering system that takes focus, color and illumination into account when determining the correct exposure. This new AE system takes the 7D’s capabilities to an entirely new level of sophistication and precision as you can see in the shot below.

Stop Action – Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Copyright © 2011 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 7D set on aperture (Av) priority using an EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM + EF 1.4x Extender mono-pod mounted. The exposure was taken at 560mm, f/5.6 for 1/1000th of a second at ISO 100. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

For a shot like this I would normally use the “Spot Metering” mode and hope for the best. Shooting a white subject backlit against a very bright background is a recipe for AE failure in most situations but to my surprise and delight, the EOS 7D handled this scenario almost perfectly in “Evaluative Metering” mode. In this situation, my EOS 5D Mark II would have blown out the highlight almost completely in it’s quest to reveal a little detail in the Heron’s neck. The new 63 zone iFCL metering system on the 7D compensated for the bright background to show feather detail but didn’t blow out the highlights at all.

Quite a feat for a non-1D series camera and one more reason why the Canon EOS 7D is a truly great DSLR value.

Using Canon’s “AI-Focus” Mode to Catch the Action

There’s nothing better for a wildlife photographer than catching a beautiful pair of birds in flight and having the camera and lens to track them through a high-speed sequence. Folks shooting with Canon’s new EOS 1D Mark IV or EOS 7D will know exactly what I mean. The “AI Servo” auto-focus mode on these two new Canon DSLRs is nothing less than spectacular, especially after years of mediocre performance from most Canon models.

Another auto-focus feature that “finally” works as advertised is the “AI Focus” mode that will switch between “One-Shot” and “AI-Servo” modes when the camera detects significant motion in the subject. I use this setting frequently with water fowl to ensure that I capture the sharpest shots when they are swimming (One-Shot) and when they take off (AI-Servo) suddenly. This feature allows me to concentrate on the birds behavior to anticipate their flight rather than spending critical seconds switching from one FA mode to another and hoping that I can pan fast enough to catch the action.

Wing Man One – Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Copyright © 2011 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 7D set on aperture (Av) priority using an EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM + EF 1.4x Extender mono-pod mounted. The exposure was taken at 560mm, f/5.6 for 1/640th of a second at ISO 200. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

Click on the image above for a larger version.

Wing Man Two – Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Copyright © 2011 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 7D set on aperture (Av) priority using an EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM + EF 1.4x Extender mono-pod mounted. The exposure was taken at 560mm, f/5.6 for 1/640th of a second at ISO 200. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

Click on the image above for a larger version.

Those Spanish Skirts

Nothing defines the beauty and grandeur of the Texas plains and canyons more than the famous Spanish Skirts seen from the canyon wall just a few miles into Palo Duro Canyon State Park. These colorful sculptures of nature are one of the first landmarks a visitor sees upon entering the park and they’re the last they see when they depart.

Folks from all over the globe remember their first view of these incredible colors and shapes and unlike the Haynes Ridge in Caprock Canyons, you can drive right up to this view and take as many pictures as you want without so much as breaking a sweat.

Those Spanish Skirts – Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Texas
Copyright © 2010 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II set on aperture (Av) priority using an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens tripod mounted. The exposure was taken at 39mm, f/16 for 1/60th of a second at ISO 100 using a Singh-Ray warming polarizer. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

Click on the image above for a larger version.

Workshop Tip #1 – Packing for Stealth

Back in late December I wrote a rather lengthy post about Photographic Safety and one of my main points was to pack for stealth. Since then, I’ve received several emails asking for more details about how I pack my camera gear to remain “anonymous” and “stealthy” in the field. Here are the main points illustrated with the two images below.

Your Gear Looks Inviting to Everyone (Including Thieves)
We photographers love our “stuff”. We obsess about our photographic gear and will buy just about anything to help us in our quest to become better photographers. Both amateurs and professionals fall prey to this obsession and it’s what drives the entire industry. It’s also what makes photographers such a “lure” for potential thieves.

Drive through any state park in Texas on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and you’ll see dozens of folks walking around with a DSLR and a telephoto lens. I’ve seen a few intrepid adventurers carrying around a full-size Gitzo tripod and Wimberley gimbal head with an 800mm super-telephoto lens attached to a very high-end DSLR worth over $20,000. The back of their SUV is crammed full of other tempting gear like spare lenses, filters, tripods, etc. and to a thief, this is like holding up a neon sign which spells out “ROB ME”. Even an open camera bag sitting in the passenger seat can be an invitation to a knowledgeable thief and believe me, most thieves can spot a Think Tank roller or Lowepro Trekker in a heartbeat.

Packing for Stealth
A little foreknowledge goes along way and packing for stealth can be as easy as using something other than an easily recognizable camera bag as your camera bag. Today I use a Filson Sportsman’s Bag (shown open above) to hold all my photo/travel gear including two DSLR bodies, four or five lenses, filters, batteries, etc. and as you can see it functions just like my old Domke bags did.

The key difference is that this bag doesn’t look like a camera bag, it looks like a typical overnight bag any camper might carry full of clothes and stuff. When closed up and sitting on the passenger seat of my SUV, it doesn’t attract anymore attention than a duffle bag would and after a few years of normal wear & tear it will attract even less attention. Few thieves these days are looking to steal someone’s socks and underwear.

So the next time you’re in the market for a new camera bag, take a moment to look at the bag from the perspective of a thief. There are dozens of great luggage makers including Filson, Eddie Bauer, Lands End, and LL Bean that make “sportsman’s bags” or “rollers” that can function perfectly as your main camera bag without attracting the unwanted attention that a name-brand camera bag will. When you’re out in the field transporting thousands of dollars in photo gear, the best advice I can give you is to pack for stealth!

Solitude

Sometimes we all need a solitude, even this Great Egret standing in a few inches of cold, blue water in a Texas bayou. Even a photographer with a wife and four daughters needs a little time in the field with nothing but a camera, a lens and a windy afternoon. To wander. To reflect. And to capture the beauty of God’s creatures to share with his friends near and far.

Solitude – Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Copyright © 2011 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 7D set on aperture (Av) priority using an EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM + EF 1.4x Extender mono-pod mounted. The exposure was taken at 560mm, f/6.3 for 1/640th of a second at ISO 200. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

Click on the image above for a larger version.

Desert Trail

Even a cloudless sky can become an interesting background is your subject is a beautiful as the scenery at Caprock Canyons State Park in Quitaque, Texas. Standing here on a warm fall evening, looking over miles and miles of pristine desert and colorful canyons is one of life’s simple pleasures.

Caprock Canyons State Park is one of the states most beautiful and least explored parks. Many folks visiting the Texas panhandle miss this wonderful park situated on the southwestern rim of Palo Duro Canyon, well away from any major highways and cities. Those that find their way there are greeted by miles and miles of desert trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding. The geology of the area is incredible and behind every one of those buttes seen in this image is another and another, just waiting to be explored.

Desert Trail – Caprock Canyons State Park in Quitaque, Texas
Copyright © 2010 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II set on aperture (Av) priority using a TS-E 24mm f/4L II USM lens tripod mounted. The exposure was taken at 24mm, f/16 for 1/30th of a second at ISO 100 using a Singh-Ray warming polarizer and 2-Stop (Soft) ND-Grad filter. Post capture processing was done in Adobe’s Lightroom 3.

Click on the image above for a larger version.

Made the Front Page of Singh-Ray’s Site

It’s amazing what impact a little warm weather photography can have on folks in the middle of the worst winter in 20 years throughout much of North America & Europe. My friends at Singh-Ray filters are some of the coolest folks in the business and I’ll take all the free publicity I can get these days!

Yes, those two images on the front of the Singh-Ray web site and their blog are two of my favorite shots from the Texas panhandle and a little something to help warm your soul on a cold and wet winter day.

While you’re feasting your eyes, take a look at the Singh-Ray LB Warming Polarizer, the Galen Rowell Graduated Neutral Density Filters and the brand new Vari-N-Trio. These are three essential filters for any landscape photographer and the same three that I use again and again in the field.

No, the folks at Singh-Ray do not sponsor me. I just think the world of their products and customer service and you will too!