Panoramic tripod heads provide the best results for panoramic photographs, if you accompany it with the use of photo stitching software and a digital camera. However, quality panoramic tripod heads and very expensive. Fortunately, you can make your own at very little cost by following the steps below.
Instructions
Finding the Pivot Point
1. Place two of the same object on a flat, elevated surface (such as a table) with one directly in front of the other. Make sure they align perfectly when viewed straight on through your camera's viewfinder.
2. Observe the parallax by rotating your camera left to right and back again, on a horizontal plain. Note how the objects move proportionate to each other.
3. Position the end of your left index finger anywhere at the bottom of the lens, about 1/4 inch away from the camera. Hold your left hand very still and rotate the camera using your finger as the pivot point.
4. Move your index finger along the rim of the lens. Rotate the camera on each new pivot point your finger creates until you find a pivot point where there is no longer a shift in your objects. Once you have that pivot, write down the distance from your finger to the screw socket in the base of the camera for later use.
Constructing the Base and Side
5. Cut and sand the wood for the base of your panoramic tripod head. The base should be about 5x4 inches and cut from plywood or hardwood that is approximately 5/8 inch thick.
6. Carve and sand the side piece for your tripod head from the same type of wood. It should be 6x4 inches.
7. Form an L by placing four-inch end of the side piece on top of the four inch end of the base piece. Put would glue where the two pieces meet for extra hold.
8. Join the two pieces together with two 1.5-inch long screws through the under side of the base piece.
9. Place your camera on a table and measure the distance from the top of the table to the center of the lens. Drill a hole in the base piece at that exact distance from the joint of the side and base pieces.
10. Install an insert nut into the hole of the base, so that you can attach your panoramic tripod head to a tripod. Be sure that the dimensions of the insert nut will accommodate the screw provided with your tripod that typically attaches to your camera.
11. Drill a hole in the side piece about 5 inches from the joint of the side and base. Align this hole perfectly with the hole in the base piece.
Constructing the Arm
12. Add an inch to the pivot point measurement you took in Section 1, Step 4. Cut and sand the arm piece from wood at this measurement by two inches wide.
13. Drill two holes in the arm a half inch from each end. The distance between the two holes should equal your pivot point measurement.
14. Insert a thumb screw in one of the holes that is long enough to go through the entirety of the arm and thread into the bottom of your camera. Be sure that the screw matches the size and thread pitch of the hole in the bottom of the camera.
15. Using a machine screw, attach the arm to the inside portion of the side piece through the other available hole. Be sure that the screw settles a bit inside the wood so it doesn't scrape your lens and secure the screw with a washer and wingnut.
Tags: your camera, base piece, pivot point, side piece, distance from, hole base