Page 3 of 7 FirstFirst 12345 ... LastLast
Results 21 to 30 of 63

Thread: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

  1. #21

    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    2,673

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Quote Originally Posted by Willie View Post
    Won't a Ries platform head work?
    In this context, what's potentially attractive about Ries tripods is the system for adjusting the legs. Each leg can be adjusted to any angle. Unfortunately, Ries doesn't provide any examples on its site for footprint diameter. Also, there are situations where I want to use a lateral arm unrelated to overhead photography, in particular for close-up/macro photography. A Ries tripod, by itself, doesn't address this. Ries tripods are also fairly expensive. I've already got three tripods, including a Ries J100 with J250 head that's in another country, and a Ries is not something that I'd purchase for limited, shot-specific use.
    Arca-Swiss 8x10/4x5 | Mamiya 6x7 | Leica 35mm | Blackmagic Ultra HD Video
    Sound Devices audio recorder, Schoeps & DPA mikes
    Mac Studio/Eizo with Capture One, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, Logic

  2. #22

    Join Date
    Nov 2017
    Posts
    381

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    with a full-sized tripod i would just invert the center column. Click image for larger version. 

Name:	reversable-center-column-tripod.jpg 
Views:	4 
Size:	21.2 KB 
ID:	229591

  3. #23

    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    2,673

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Quote Originally Posted by maltfalc View Post
    with a full-sized tripod i would just invert the center column.
    Assuming that your tripod has a centre column (mine don't), that would work, at least with a 35mm or medium format camera, for some of the scenarios that this thread is about. In one of the threads about this problem, there's an interesting photograph by @rdenney, shot from the top of a circular stairway, that's a good example of a situation where a downward facing centre column wouldn't work, but a lateral arm probably would. As someone who's never used a centre column, I'm curious to know whether you use yours to make overhead photographs with a large format camera and bellows.
    Last edited by r.e.; 30-Jul-2022 at 02:51.
    Arca-Swiss 8x10/4x5 | Mamiya 6x7 | Leica 35mm | Blackmagic Ultra HD Video
    Sound Devices audio recorder, Schoeps & DPA mikes
    Mac Studio/Eizo with Capture One, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, Logic

  4. #24

    Join Date
    Feb 2001
    Location
    Nara, Japan
    Posts
    1,296

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    It's not very long, but the Linhof Outrigger Arm is quite useful in such situations, and can be easily packed into a corner of the backpack.

    Kumar

  5. #25

    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    2,673

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Quote Originally Posted by B.S.Kumar View Post
    It's not very long, but the Linhof Outrigger Arm is quite useful in such situations, and can be easily packed into a corner of the backpack.

    Kumar
    @Bob Salomon and @David Goldfarb talk about that component in a 2005 thread: https://www.largeformatphotography.i...sic-or-MT-2000

    B&H says this about it in an old catalogue:

    Outrigger Arm (003754)
    For mounting Technika cameras upside down (lens drop) or close to the ground. Also, for Varioport table columns. Adjusts to 135mm-180mm outrigger distance. Weighs 11 oz (300g). $167.50.

    This component would work with any camera, not just a Linhof, and buy some lateral distance; not a lot, but in some cases probably enough.
    Last edited by r.e.; 30-Jul-2022 at 03:50.
    Arca-Swiss 8x10/4x5 | Mamiya 6x7 | Leica 35mm | Blackmagic Ultra HD Video
    Sound Devices audio recorder, Schoeps & DPA mikes
    Mac Studio/Eizo with Capture One, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, Logic

  6. #26

    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    2,673

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    So I took a photo of my ground tripod with the Gitzo lateral arm rig. This is the weight that the tripod and rig were supporting:

    Manfrotto 410 Geared Pan and Tilt Head: 1220g (2.7lb)
    Leica digital camera: 680g (24oz)
    Nikon Micro-Nikkor f/3.5 55mm: 241g (8.5oz)
    Total: 2.14kg (4.7lb)

    The RRS ground tripod weighs 900g (2lb). According to old catalogues, my Gitzo geared centre column (G529) posing as a lateral arm weighs 2.4kg (5.25lb). The G541 bracket holding the centre column in a lateral position is 0.86kg (1.9lb).

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Gitzo-rig.jpg 
Views:	61 
Size:	164.5 KB 
ID:	229610

    No counterweight required, and the tripod legs are at their steepest incline. The rig could not be more rigid. The distance from the camera lens to the "ground" is perfect for photographing the 21mmx51mm (0.8"x2") microcontroller that I talk about in post #9, although obviously I can get more height by using, for example, apple boxes.

    And it's pretty portable.

    Next step is to try out the rig with a full size tripod and a 4x5 camera (which may require some counterweight), but I don't think that I'll be able to do that until this coming week.

    I have some general observations about the rig that I'll post later today.
    Last edited by r.e.; 30-Jul-2022 at 14:29.
    Arca-Swiss 8x10/4x5 | Mamiya 6x7 | Leica 35mm | Blackmagic Ultra HD Video
    Sound Devices audio recorder, Schoeps & DPA mikes
    Mac Studio/Eizo with Capture One, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, Logic

  7. #27

    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    2,673

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Some comments on the photo above...

    The photograph shows that it's possible to balance the Gitzo lateral arm (which is what it is), without adding a counterweight, for common tripod head/camera/lens combinations. For the setup in the photo, I have the arm longer on the right-hand side, and I suspect that the weight of the gearbox (which I estimate at a bit less than 900g/2lb) is assisting a little, even though it's fairly close to the pivot.

    Now that I know how the rig works, I think that setting it up will take a couple of minutes. It's quite straightforward. A note on placement for a given camera setup, plus a tape measure (or taped marks on the column), will be helpful.

    I gather that some people who do macrophotography like the geared models because they help with getting rough focus. I don't doubt that, but I think that the geared models also make setup faster. The geared incremental movement was very helpful when I was finding the balance point, which may have been more elusive, and possibly frustrating, had I been using the "Rapid" model that slides. I'm fairly satisfied that the geared models offer substantive benefits and are a time saver.

    I've attached a screen capture below that compares three of Gitzo's four centre columns for Series 5 tripods. I haven't included Gitzo's "telescoping" centre column because I'm skeptical about whether it's useful as a lateral arm. In the screen capture, I think that the key info to focus on is travel distance and overall length. If the role of these factors isn't clear, the photos in post #12 may help. I'm still not entirely clear, in concrete terms, on what I'd be giving up if I used the shorter centre column.

    Two things to note... Gitzo's current "long" geared centre column is a few inches longer than the older G529 version that I have. The travel and overall length of my G529 are in post #12. Interesting that my centre column, despite being a few inches shorter, apparently weighs 450g (1lb) more than its current successor. Secondly, Gitzo does make dedicated lateral arms. I haven't researched them and don't know enough about them to make a comparison.

    This coming week, I'll post some photos of the Gitzo rig set up with my Gitzo Series 3 tripod and Arca-Swiss 4x5. If I can easily balance the Gitzo rig on a ground tripod, with the legs at their steepest angle and with a very small tripod footprint, I'm not going to have any trouble balancing the rig on a full-size Series 3 tripod. That said, I anticipate that I'll need to use some counterweight with the 4x5. This might be an excuse to try out a couple of the Matthews or Kupo weight bags shown in post #10

    Comparison of Gitzo Series 5
    Centre Columns

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Screenshot 2022-07-30 at 18.18.48.jpg 
Views:	20 
Size:	49.3 KB 
ID:	229611
    Last edited by r.e.; 1-Aug-2022 at 09:53.
    Arca-Swiss 8x10/4x5 | Mamiya 6x7 | Leica 35mm | Blackmagic Ultra HD Video
    Sound Devices audio recorder, Schoeps & DPA mikes
    Mac Studio/Eizo with Capture One, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, Logic

  8. #28
    Tin Can's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    22,387

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Just a heads up

    Your photos are way too low rez

    And the photo text is unreadable on my new iPad
    Tin Can

  9. #29
    Tin Can's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    22,387

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Quote Originally Posted by r.e. View Post
    You're talking to the wrong guy. The photos get the resolution that the forum allows

    I'm surprised that you're having trouble with the text. I bumped it to 18pts precisely because I was concerned about readability, and it reads OK on my desktop monitor.
    You are doing something incorrect


    I will prove it tomorrow

    73
    Tin Can

  10. #30
    Tin Can's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    22,387

    Re: Portable Solution to Make Overhead (90°) Photographs

    Picture is posted direct from my hard drive click for larger

    This needs an update as they recently upped image count as I tested yesterday

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Green Eye.jpg 
Views:	15 
Size:	100.2 KB 
ID:	229632


    "Method 1. Uploading and Storing the Picture on the Forum.

    a. Create and store the picture as a "JPG" or "JPEG" file on your computer, to be no larger than 250K. The forum will resize the longer dimension of your picture 750 pixels if it is larger, so if you size it that way to begin with, you won't suffer resizing errors that the forum software sometimes causes. BMP, GIF, and PNG files are also accepted, but limited to 150K and must fit within a 650-pixel box to avoid resizing. JPEG is preferred.

    b. Then, when creating a post, click the picture icon on the icon bar right above the text entry box, which will read "Insert Image" when you mouse over it. That will bring up a Insert Image dialog box that will have two tabs. Click the tab that says "From Computer". Then, click the "Select Files" button at the bottom of that dialog box. That will bring up your operating system's typical file selection dialog. Navigate to the image file you created in Step A above. Click "Open". That will add the file to the file list in the Insert Image dialog box.

    c. You may click "Select Files" again to select another image. You may upload as many as four images in any one post.

    d. When you have finished selecting images, then click "Upload File(s)". You may also "Clear List" and start over.

    e. Add whatever additional text you want to your message, and click "Submit".

    The images will be stored on the Large Format Photography Forum server. A thumbnail that fits in a 150-pixel box will be displayed in an image attachments box, and forum readers can click on the thumbnail to open a picture viewer window.

    Method 2. Store the Picture on Your Own Site or Server.

    If you have server space or your own website, and your picture can be reached from the general internet, then you won't be subject to as many restrictions as when storing the picture on the forum.

    a. Create and store the picture as a "JPG" or "JPEG" file. There are no size limitations, but please respect others, and size pictures not to exceed normal viewing screens. And by more normal viewing screens, we don't mean your 1920x1280 wide-screen, but rather my 1280x900 laptop display. Fitting within an 800-pixel box is a useful maximum size.

    b. Following the instructions provided by your web hosting service for your site or server space, upload the picture there. It must be stored in a place that allows a direct link to the actual jpg file, which should look like: "http://YourServerURL/YourPictureFile.jpg" For example, a URL to a picture on the site of one of the moderators looks like this "http://www.rickdenney.com/Island/stairs_lores_bw.jpg".

    c. Then, when creating a post, click the picture icon on the icon bar right above the text entry box, which will read "Insert Image" when you mouse over it. That will bring up a Insert Image dialog box that will have two tabs. Click the tab that says "From URL". That will provide a single line entry box for a URL. Enter the entire URL, from "http://..." to "...jpg", as shown in Step B, inside that box.

    d. UNCHECK the box that says "Retrieve Remote File and Reference Locally". If that box is checked, it will move the picture file to the Large Format Photogaphy Forum server, subject to all the restrictions in Method 1. (For more advanced posters, it is possible to use this method, with the box checked, to include attachments inline in the text of your message, and still store the picture on the forum servers. But they will still be shown as thumbnails.)

    e. Click "Okay".

    Alternate Steps:

    a. Insert image tags directly by adding the following text to your messages:



    Putting the complete URL to the picture inside IMG tags will cause that image to display within your message. This approach works no matter where the image is stored, including on third-party image hosting sites, though you must follow their instructions to determine what the image tag contents should be."
    Tin Can

Similar Threads

  1. Overhead still lifes
    By Curtis Nelson in forum Style & Technique
    Replies: 13
    Last Post: 19-Oct-2020, 05:54
  2. HC110 converting solution A to solution b
    By spgreene in forum Darkroom: Film, Processing & Printing
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 21-Oct-2006, 07:39
  3. Why make photographs?
    By Robert McClure in forum On Photography
    Replies: 22
    Last Post: 2-Feb-2006, 05:14
  4. How to make sharp photographs with long lenses?
    By Paul Schilliger in forum Style & Technique
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 2-Jan-2000, 18:59

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •