Wide Open Spaces

Staff · Issue 24, May/Jun 2005 · pp. 24–28

Products mentioned: Olympus C40, PT-012 housing, UR Pro CY colour filter, PanoramaMaker, Nikon D2x, Subal housing, Inon WL-165, Nikon D70, 10.5mm Nikkor lens, CC30 red filter, 16mm full frame fisheye lens

Panorama photography is nothing new but now, with the digital age, it has never been easier. There are several inexpensive, and sometimes free, software programmes which can blend your individual images together and produce a stunning vista which would not normally be possible in a single shot. My introduction to panoramas happened quite by chance on a January holiday in New Zealand. (A holiday, by the way, is a diving trip without the diving!) We were staying with friends on the outskirts of Auckland and they took us to Devonport, a peninsula which overlooks downtown Auckland. It was a beautiful fluffy cloud, sunny day and the view as we came over the hill was absolutely breathtaking. Armed with a simple Olympus C40 entry level digital camera (4mp which produces jpg shots about 1mb in size which will print excellent A4 prints) I stood in one place and took 5 consecutive shots from left …