Ultra-wide angle zoom question

[billybobboy42]

Back in July I purchased a Canon 6d and the EF 17-40L lens.   My first shooting attempt with this equipment was a sunrise panorama of a beach resort skyline near where I live.  I used a tripod and took 6 frames with the suggested 60% image overlap, with the intention of creating a stitched panorama. My camera angle to the view was fairly close to perpendicular.  At home I first tried stitching with Photoshop Elements.  It managed to stitch, but poorly.  One frame was excluded, which of course rendered the final product unacceptable.  So, on to Canon's DPP stich program.  Not one image was useable.  I forgot the error message, but it kept telling me to delete certain frames, which led to deleting the entire shoot.  So, I guess this is a "lens 101" question(s).  Is this lens suitable for landscape photography? Is there a technique to using wide angle lenses in landscape photography?  The focal length I used has long since left my brain, but let's assume it was set at F28, or about in the middle of the range. I also have a Canon EF  70-200L series.  Perhaps I should have used it.  But sunrise waits for no one.

Any helpful comments will be greatly appreciated.

Bill

[billybobboy42]

No, the camera was on a tripod.  The only part of the ball head that was loosened was the horizontal function, which was tightened before each shot.  As I mentioned earlier, PhotoShop Elements managed to stitch 4 of the 5, but the missing one was in the middle, making the image worthless.

[hsbn]

I got a little different result with Ebiggs using Auto Giga Pano software. But it could be due to the files are small.

[billybobboy42]

The file sizes ranged from 3.49 mb to 3.61mb. Your result appears to have produced the correct breadth of the panorama. However, it looks to me like part of the clouds are a bit low. Also, I'm not sure that the files as posted are the same resolution as my originals.

[Skirball]

If you want HDR you should do each "frame" in HDR first, then stitch.  But for something that simple I'd just "stitch" it by hand. 

Open in Elements

Expand the canvas size (little on top and bottom, a lot on the sides)

Import the other shots

Move them around until they look good

Mask each layer and use a soft brush with low fill to blend the layers into each other

I would also create a curves adjustment layer for each layer, turn it into a clipping mask (Ctrl alt g) so it only affects the layer below, and you can fine tune your exposure to make sure they match.

[ebiggs1]

Something changed because the post of the dock(?) is not the same size in each frame.  Neither is the clouds in the back ground. Unless you didn't size them evenly when you uploaded them?

[billybobboy42]

I need to respond to a couple of issues brought up:

1)HDR - the hdr function was completed at each shot.  In this function the shutter triggers 3 times; one at each of 3 exposure settings, then the camera processes the three into one frame.  While the camera is processing the image(s) the camera is not available for another exposure.  For all shots, I used a Canon cordless remote control .

2) Size of dock pier post - the exposures I posted are the original frames; thus no post camera processing on them.  The post was only a foot or two from the camera which might explain the size error or distortion.  But I have no clue re clouds.

As I mentioned earlier, I do not remember what focal length I used; however, it may very well have been at 17mm.  Notice how distant the scene is of the resort skyline.  I do remember that the scene as viewed thru the live screen appeared a bit distorted or stretched.

For the record, I took several sunrise shots (at the ocean front from a balcony) with this lens on successive days previous to this panorama attempt.  They were not taken to stitch, but just individual shots.  They turned out quit satisfactory.  I even got the moon and sun within the frame, but of course the moon looked way to far away.  In any case, no distortion.

Hope this clears up some of the questions.