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I haven't built my own, although I've thought about it, and maybe will in the future. In the mean time, if a Nodal Ninja purchase will have your wife dispatching her own ninjas after you, you can always try a Panosaurus. 1/3 the price, but maybe better than 1/3 the function :-D
Posted 41 months ago.
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My panorama setup consists of an L bracket, parts from two used flash brackets, and four 1/4" threaded knobs. The panning base is from a inexpensive laser line level purchased at Harbor Freight & Tools.
The diagonal brace locks in the tilt angle and also dampens vibration, although I still have to use mirror lockup.
Total cost was about $50.
Posted 41 months ago.
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OK, I just finished my DIY Pano Head. Here is a photo taken with my camera phone. The only issue is that the vertical bar is about 3cm shorter than my spec.
Originally posted 41 months ago.
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ruei_ke edited this topic 41 months ago.
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Thanks for posting the panosaurus link. Definitely a low cost solution, but may not be large or sturdy enough for a Nikon D3.
Nice work . I like the idea of the diagonal brace
Posted 41 months ago.
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Here's mine:
Some other favorites I've seen are Philippe Hurbain's lego robot mounts, and some other d-i-y heads.
I know I've seen scarier lego/fabricated mounts but I can't find the link for it, and I've forgotten who it was.. I really have to clean up my bookmarks. Can't find anything anymore!!
Posted 41 months ago.
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Hey Tom, don't let my wife know you only spent US$4 on yours. I had her convinced that the US$125 I spent was a good deal!
Posted 41 months ago.
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I thought mine was cheap at about $7 :) My first version was wood, but it had too much give, so an L shaped piece of steel from the builder's yard did the job. A photo of me trying to cut it with a tiny hacksaw would have been quite amusing. Got there in the end though and it allows me to do a reasonable pano of inside an 8x6 greenhouse so it must be quite accurate.
Heavily based on this design:
www.peterloud.co.uk/nodalsamurai/nodalsamurai.html
but adapted to allow portrait and landscape shooting:
Posted 41 months ago.
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I was inspired by this discussion to make a pano head.
I found a Stoboframe I could mod without destroying it and a camera bracket from an old Braun RL515 strobe.
After drilling a couple holes in the Stoboframe, finding a knob, adding a spacer and attaching the quick release from the Bogen ball head I ended up with this.
Thanks everyone for all the info and links.
Posted 39 months ago.
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All great works, guys, really motivates me.
The problem is, when it comes down to it, the bracket isn't too important; at least for someone like me that uses a fisheye to minimize the number of shots of my panos––totally different story for you all who do crazy 60 shot circular panos with your 24mm lenses :-) After all, with an 8mm lens on an APS-C, you can create a 4-shot circular pano using a philopod, so not even a tripod is necessary, let alone a pano head.
For me, a Nodal Ninja is highly alluring because of their rotators. E.g., currently with my 5.6mm Sunex, I do 3-shot circular panos at 120˚ intervals + nadir shot hand held and obliquely, e.g., for this shot:
For that kind of workflow, a preset rotator that can replicate with precision 120˚ stops is ideal, because I can use the same stitching algorithm over and over (except, of course, for the nadir shot).
Soooo.... has anyone done any nice DIY rotator??? :-D
Posted 39 months ago.
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Before I got the Manofrotto 300N rotator, I used pieces of post-it notes to mark the scale on my ball head which allowed rotation.
One advantage to using a longer focus length is getting higher resolution. I once filled an 8G memory card trying to do bracket shots with a 50mm...
Originally posted 39 months ago.
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ruei_ke edited this topic 39 months ago.
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I've built my panohead in wood and aluminium, it's designed for both my camera bodies (40D and 1D) and for Tamron 11-18mm zoom.
Now I need a super-computer to work on so big files.
ps: I used a compass to keep count of the degrees... the only problem is that it's slow to move, but maybe with some other it's better. keep in mind this possibility.
Originally posted 37 months ago.
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Andrea Biffi edited this topic 37 months ago.
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Here is an article on a robotic DIY pano head:
www.diyphotography.net/the-diy-super-robotic-panohead
Posted 36 months ago.
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Sturdy, but bitch to use. Total cost: 7€.
Posted 36 months ago.
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I was asked to post my DIY panorama head to this discussion so here it is:
[http://www.flickr.com/photos/oherrala/3426150821/]
This construction has already changed a bit. As you can see, the camera is ~5cm too high from the no-parallax point. This was solved by adding 5cm bar to lower the camera. The head must be adjusted to one camera+lens combination and changing it is pretty difficult.
The material is aluminium profile which I got for free. I wanted to make a sturdy head because 1Dm2 with lens is pretty heavy and big.
The manufacturer of the aluminium profile is Item (http://www.item.info/).
Originally posted 36 months ago.
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oherrala edited this topic 36 months ago.
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I added an arm to keep the camera in portrait position on my old DIY panohead:
Now I'm working on a robotic panohead, I hope to show you soon some detail.
Originally posted 35 months ago.
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Andrea Biffi edited this topic 35 months ago.
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Hi
Just a note to introduce myself, and pass on a picture of my DIY Pano Head.
I have just found and joined the group, and do the occasional pano on my home made equipment. It is basically 12mm polycarb and a flash bracket. It works fine for both my SD10 and E1+grip (the base of the head having two vertical axis holes).
It's great to see so many great solutions to the same requirement. I hope to be stopping by here frequently.
Kindest regards
Barry
Posted 33 months ago.
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Janne. Your bracket looks very similar to mine.
I agree, bitch to use!
Price is spot on though :o)
Posted 33 months ago.
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It won't win any beauty contests, but here is my DIY panoramic tripod head:
Posted 33 months ago.
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, Very nice! Is that a salvaged component of a pan and tilt style tripod head for the second axis?
Posted 33 months ago.
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Here's my creation:
I built it in one day from scraps in my workshop.
Posted 30 months ago.
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Here's another. It's bombproof!
Aluminium Struts: Extremely Easy to make, light and very strong
thanks for reposting ruike (below): heres 2 pics with the handle I added since then.
Originally posted 29 months ago.
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tmlthm edited this topic 8 months ago.
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Thanks for sharing your work ! The video on nodal point adjustment linked on the photo page is also useful.
I have reposted your photo as an embedded image here:
Originally posted 29 months ago.
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ruei_ke edited this topic 29 months ago.
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Built mine from scraps of acrylic, some knobs and parts from bicycles and pens.
Posted 28 months ago.
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Here's a few terrible photos of mine... Still needs a bit of work. (Built entirely out of scrap I had in the basement.)
Posted 28 months ago.
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This is my version of a Pano Tripod Bracket plus Macro Slide
Macro Slide Photos
It was created using materials readily available in most hardware and home improvement stores. Total cost is under $17 ($11 using wingnuts) and can be easily made in a few hours. And because it is actually two photo devices in one, I carry it in my slingpack where ever I go.
Parts list and approximate costs:
(1) Framing square $6.47
(2) ¼ x ½ inch 20 TPI machine screws $0.89
(2) ¼ x 1 inch carriage bolts and nuts $0.08
(1) ¼ x 9/16 inch 20 TPI 3 prong T-nut $0.38
(1) 4 x ¾ block of Oak trim molding $1.98
(5) ¼ Bar knobs, 20 TPI $7.05 or $0.50 using wingnuts
(7) ¼ flat washers $0.14
Total: $16.99 or $10.44
The paint I already had in my garage, so I did not include this in the costs. The basic tripod bracket will accommodate an entrance pupil distance from 0 to 70 mm (refer to wiki.panotools.org/Entrance_Pupil_Database ) This length will cover a large number of lens.
I also made an extra camera support bracket to accommodate long telephoto lens combinations, so I used a second framing square as well. Since the camera support brackets are interchangeable with the rest of the bracket the additional cost was only $6.47 more, which put my costs around $21.
Important design considerations:
a) flexibility - to use with all of my cameras and lenses
b) strength - strong but light weight metal
c) multiple locking screws - to increase stability and prevent mishaps
d) low cost - but not at the expense of stability
e) balanced - so that it doesn't stress the tripod head
f) quick to setup
g) allow the use of a lens hood
I thought about incorporating a bubble level, but decided to just use the bubble levels on the tripod and my double bubble level on my camera hot shoe mount because they would be more accurate.
You probably wonder why use a framing square? Because of the strength & light weight. The metal of a framing square is made of VERY strong steel and once bent to shape it takes a lot of weight/effort to cause it to flex.
The camera and bracket are balanced and can be used on or off a tripod. For example you could use on a table or just about any flat horizontal surface. The weight is just under 18 ounces. I have tested both brackets on my tripod using a 20 pound weight with minimal flexing of the metal, so these brackets will work for most all camera/lens combinations.
About the last photo above:
The telephoto camera support section makes a very nice and versatile macro slide bracket. The top portion of the photo shows it in use and the bottom section shows the parts of the Pano Bracket that were used. This camera support section was 9 inches, so it has 5 inches of adjustment/movement.
Originally posted 28 months ago.
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9MacGyver9 edited this topic 27 months ago.
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Hi Guys,
Here is my Nodal Samurai, made 2-3 years ago for about $2.
[http://www.flickr.com/photos/48783954@N05/4473063822/in/set-72157623726047466/]
I find that it works so well I have never considered replacing with an expensive commercial item. Check out more details at: Nodal Samurai
Here are some panos taken using the Nodal Samurai.
Singapore
Originally posted 26 months ago.
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peteloud edited this topic 26 months ago.
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20€ 100mm macro rail and a nailing plate on a ball head. Small, easy to use, cheap, adjustable, usable for macro stuff too. Leaves quite big nadir hole though, approx. 45 degrees in diameter. Sturdy enough for 5 fps bracketing burst, unlike the earlier iteration I posted before.
Posted 26 months ago.
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Hey , long time no talk, or type i guess...I'm finally done school for the semester and I want to get back out there and try some more stereographic projections. I was looking into making a pano head because I have trouble enough saving for a dang camera, which I'm hoping to have be mid-July, let alone a tripod head. I was looking at your design and it looks the most sturdy and fully functional and I was wondering if you had any plans on it or did you just peice things together? I was thinking about just taking different plans and making a frankenstein one.
Regards,
Joe Fig
Posted 25 months ago.
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Hi Joe, I just pieced mine together from various parts. I first got a Manofroto slider plate to do pano landscapes. I then had the vertical arm custom made at a machine shop and fitted with the axis from an old gitzo pan and scan head. I used a second slider plate to complete it. I got the rotator much later and it really isn't needed, but makes it easier to use. Total cost without the rotator was US$60 for each slider plate and US$30 to have the vertical arm made. Plus the salvaged old pano head. I am sure many of the other designs here are less expensive and just as functional. Good luck and be sure to post a shot of your creation when complete!
Posted 25 months ago.
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New version, butchered an old telescopic mount from 3 inch Newtonian and attached the macro rail to it. Unlike the old one, this allows me to point the camera straight to zenith and doesn't make so big nadir hole.
Originally posted 23 months ago.
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Janne. edited this topic 23 months ago.
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Here is my setup. I'm using a Falcon 8mm fisheye on a self made bracket. Connect to a Fanotec Rd-8 Rotator. This works pretty fine for me. I'm taking 4 pics around one for nadir and one for zenith. I put it together in hugin.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I made my DIY pano head with just 2 flash bracket.
Posted 19 months ago.
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here is mine: img607.imageshack.us/img607/9392/panoramahead0638301000.jpg
Posted 19 months ago.
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diy auto panohead
Posted 13 months ago.
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I finally wrote up a page about my head, and added more photos...
rasterweb.net/raster/projects/panohead/
Posted 11 months ago.
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I thought it was a nice challenge to build my own. I got some thick aluminum (light yet stiff) parts from the diy store and cut them up to fit my needs. I also got a thread cutter to cut 1/4" threading and use standard tripod screws.
I traded flexibility for simplicity and ease of operation so optimized everything for my Pen E-P1 with the zoom set at 14mm. I can always add extra holes to accommodate other lenses.
www.flickr.com/photos/23080718@N08/6112503222/in/photostr...
Posted 9 months ago.
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Wow, some of these are good! Here is mine, made from a CB radio bracket and a Ikea shelf support thingy... really rough (and wobbly) but not too bad since it was virtually free!!!
OK, I havent tried Hugin' yet ;-) but HERE is my first ICE attempt with it... in HDR too!!!
Originally posted 8 months ago.
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Airlock edited this topic 8 months ago.
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Hello guys,
I have a question, I have a pano head made with wood, but it has some problems, I thinking about buying two L flash brackets like this ones
i.ebayimg.com/t/Dual-L-Flash-Bracket-Nikon-D7000-D300s-D7...
Do you think I can make a tripod with just this 2 brackets? They have enough size 16cm x 11cm, and the screws seems to be attachable to the tripod. What do you think?
Thanks in advance
Originally posted 3 months ago.
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mr_mudvayne edited this topic 3 months ago.
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Janne. Your bracket looks very similar to mine.
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