6 Top Panorama Problems
and How to Solve Them
Number 6 in a series of 6 free articles on panorama troubleshooting.
By Denis Knight, author of The Absolute Step-by-Step Guide to the Perfect Panorama.
Top Panorama Problem #6: Curved Horizons
Here's another problem that many photographers experience over and over again when photographing landscape panoramas.
After stitching the images together, the horizon looks curved rather than straight:
Example panorama with curved horizon.
The Cause
The main cause of this problem is that the camera was not horizontal while shooting. The camera was either angled up (for example, to photograph a mountain range) or down (for example, to photograph a scenic canyon).
What you need to remember is: If you tilt the camera up, the horizon will curve down in the middle when you stitch your panorama together, and if you tilt the camera down, the horizon will curve up in the middle.
The Solution
The best way to solve this problem is to make sure you keep your camera horizontal — with the middle of the viewfinder pointing at the horizon line. But what do you do if most of your subject is either above or below the horizon?
One clever trick to help keep your horizon straight without losing too much of your scene is to rotate your camera 90 degrees and shoot in a vertical format. This gives you about 50% more vertical coverage, so you can keep the horizon in the middle and still capture what you need.
Remember, you can always crop off a bit of the top or bottom of the image after you've stitched your photos together.
Here are a few ways to help keep your camera horizontal:
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Use a tripod with a level. Many tripods come with a built in bubble level, which lets you set up an absolutely level base for your camera to rotate on. If you're able to carry a tripod, this is the recommended solution. |
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If your tripod doesn't have a built in level, you can buy a small, cheap bubble level from your local hardware store and use that to level off your tripod. It takes a bit longer, but it works just as well. |
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If you're shooting hand-held, try to aim the center of your viewfinder at the horizon. Most cameras have a little focusing square or crosshairs in the center of the viewfinder, which makes this job easier. |
Here's how the same scene looks when shot with the camera horizontal:
Example panorama with curved horizon fixed by keeping the camera level.
Well, that concludes my series of articles about the 6 top panorama problems.
I hope you've found them useful. If you have any questions or comments, I invite you to contact me at the email address shown at the bottom of this page.
Kind Regards
Denis Knight
Learn More...
If you've found this article useful, I invite you to learn more in my brand new e-Book, The Absolute Step-by-Step Guide to the Perfect Panorama.
With my easy to follow, fully illustrated instructions, you'll quickly master the basics of creating stunning panoramic images like the ones featured in this article.
Get it now at www.ThePerfectPanorama.com
Here's what one reader had to say about the book:
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"Having made all the classic mistakes it was very handy to realise that I was not alone in doing so, and to have the solutions so clearly explained. I worked my way through the samples in the book (great idea to include the relevant photos) and was very impressed with the clear instructions in the book and the ease of use of the actual program. Thank you for solving my problems so clearly." Brian Scott — Canterbury, United Kingdom |
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