Hi Enda,
For your shooting scenario and subject matter, tilt wouldn't add anything useful, indeed.
Yes, shift (rise/fall) works fine for a single row setup. Multiple rows get confusing for the stitcher when lens shift (rise/fall) is involved, unless the offset parameters are additionally optimized for. But with multiple row shooting, one can also apply apparent rise/fall and keep keystoning under control in postprocessing by adjusting the projection and offset settings. PTGUI Pro can handle all those just fine, with manual intervention if needed, but it's always helpful to get things right in the camera shots first.
I don't have to correct for distortion with the Schneiders so I presume PT GUI would make a better stab at it. The problem with the Hasselblad is it can only really go to ISO 100 before noise makes the images unusable. This equates to the longest exposure going up to 90 seconds at 50 iso on a cloudy day to fill in the shadow areas in a forest. A DSLR could shoot at much higher iso, speeding up the whole process significantly. Plus probably larger apertures because of the increased depth of field. PLUS I have to count out each exposure time in my head because most exposures are longer than 1 second after which I have to use bulb!! PLUS I have to cock the shutter. With a DSLR you can set it to bracket. I do love doing it though. I find it almost hypnotic
I understand you do want to restrict yourself to a single row, and there is not much benefit making things more difficult. One already has to plan/hope that the light didn't change too much between first and last bracketed tile.
I like the shots you've shown very much.
Cheers,
Bart
Enda that sounds like quite the task! Changing light must be a problem? Even on a very overcast day you must have light levels changing over a couple of hours, do you adjust exposure as you go?
Especially when in Ireland
Not an easy task. You just have to have consistent light, whether it be cloudy(like the black and white pano I showed) or sunny, or at least with descent breaks in the cloud where you can take your shots during the sunny periods. With the forest shots you don't have much sky in shot but you can't have sunlight for one shot and cloud for the next with no shadows. It would be a nightmare to stitch and would look weird to say the least. If the sun is getting a bit low in the sky and you think you might be a bit tight for time in an evening, than start the pano to the left of the sun and make sure that it's a shaded area if possible. You than work your way around and by the time you get to the finish point where the sun is now behind the trees you finish up back at the shaded area. Again easier stitching and more realistic results.
One important factor with the forest panos is wind. The less the better for obvious reasons. It doesn't matter if there is some movement in the leaves. In fact it adds a dream like character to the images but just make sure that branches are not moving as this causes issues for stitching which can prove very difficult if impossible to correct.
One very helpful tip is to remember that only a tiny section of each image will be taken for the stitch. This allows for sun shading to the sides as you rotate the camera except for where the sun is in the middle of the shot or in the neighboring 20% to each side. Flare is a real issue when shooting with a view camera. I just got the Dinkum Systems sun shade. I was using the flare buster but the blood thing flops when it's windy. So it kept popping into the shot and of course it also caused vibration. The dinkum systems sun shade is built like a tank.
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