Panoramic Cameras

lukeinoz · Feb 8, 2006

Hi all, first timer here. I am looking to explore the possibilities of the panoramic camera. Does anyone have any suggestions or experiences in this area?

markc · Feb 8, 2006

They cost a bit more money, but if I were to get into panoramic photography, I'd get the kind of cameras that use the full film height and use more of the negative to sides. A lot of the cheap ones simply crop a standard 35mm neg down. You can do that yourself, so there's no need for a special camera, and you lose a lot of resolution.

Some cameras to check out are made by Widelux, Horizon, Noblex, and Gaoersi.

danalec99 · Feb 8, 2006

No experience yet, but this, I hear, is a cool toy!
Review on their first version at Luminous Landscape.

If you can shoot a pm to ksmattfish, you can get more info and images from the Widelux.

Mitica100 · Feb 8, 2006

lukeinoz said:
Hi all, first timer here. I am looking to explore the possibilities of the panoramic camera. Does anyone have any suggestions or experiences in this area?

The cheapest you can go is the way of owning a Horizont, Russian Panoramic Camera. There are many on E-bay, going for around $200.

The more expensive ones, like the Noblex (German) produce better images due to some kick-b*tt loptics.

Also, I believe there are specialized forums which deal with Panoramic Photograpy. Google?

sobolik · Feb 10, 2006

I bought a Noblex 135U for one reason above all other reasons. It can be counted on to actually work!
I rejected the Russian Horizons because of others experiences of frequent problems. Do you want a panoramic camera to take pictures with or so that you can work on the camera? I do not buy cameras for taking on adventures only to find that they do not work. And I'm sure you do not like that either.
The Noblex is the cats meow of panoramic's period. But even then they are a pain to use. It must be PERFECTLY level. A source for printing is a royal pain and very costly. About $5.00 per print.
If you do not need one then avoid them as they have many down sides. If you need one buy a Noblex 135U. Can be had on ebay for about $1000.00 even a new one if looking frequently.

lukeinoz · Feb 12, 2006

Thanks for the info re pano cameras. Have any of you tried the Xpan by hasselblad. I had a play with one the other day and liked the results but before jumping want to know a little more. I can see real advantages to the dual format but want to know what the negatives are also.

lukeinoz · Feb 12, 2006

danalec99 said:
No experience yet, but this, I hear, is a cool toy!
Review on their first version at Luminous Landscape.

If you can shoot a pm to ksmattfish, you can get more info and images from the Widelux.

Thanks for that. I like the idea of the Hasselblad Xpan especially for its size and versatility. Time to do some browsing.:thumbup:

Leo · Feb 12, 2006

My Minolta 500si can shoot panoramic pictures. There's a used Minolta 5000si at www.belaircamera.com for $69.00. Decent camera for a beginner like me.

sobolik · Feb 18, 2006

Comparison of Xpan to others :http://www.noblex.com/english/noblex/frameset.htm

ps as much as I personally hate stitching etc, for panoramics the digital may be the best choice even though it too has many problems. Like anything in the scene that moves. The printing costs are still an issue.