Filed under: Software, Reviews, iPhone, App Store
Son of: In search of the perfect panorama
Yesterday I put three panorama programs to the test. Today, I added a 4th program, appropriately enough called Panorama [app store link]. It's US$9.99 and the most expensive of the apps on offer. After using the new app today, and going back and taking another fresh crack at the other three, I'll share the results, and some sample images from each one. I didn't always shoot at the same location, because that would have been boring, but shot them all under the same sky conditions and lighting. In each case, I took two images and then merged them in the software. All the software allows the merging of more than 2 images, but I wanted to keep the file size down.Using Pano [app store link] I got better matched skies today, and sharper alignment. The blend between the two images was good, and once you do a rough align, Pano takes care of the rest. At US$2.99 it is the bargain of the offerings.
TripStitch [app store link] gave me an acceptable image, but it was a lot of trouble because you can't take the image from within TripStitch. You have to go out to the iPhone camera app, then import the images into TripStitch, which I feel is an unnecessary step. I also didn't see any auto-alignment feature, so it's all up to the photographer. TripStitch is US$4.99.
Panolabs Pro [app store link] gave me a lot of control, but an image that I felt was below the quality of the others. I tried on several scenes, but manipulating the images for a smooth merge is difficult, and the controls are not fine grained enough to make delicate adjustments. I've shared my best effort with you in the gallery. The app is US$4.99.
Panorama did a nice job as well. It was pretty easy to merge and align the images, and the final result looks pretty good. It was the most expensive app of the group, but it was not head and shoulders above Pano or TripStitch. It allows a lot of control and lets you select the final resolution for saving. It does a nice job of guiding you through the process of taking and aligning the images.
So there you have it. A look at the options for making panoramic shots from the iPhone. Of course, you can get better results using a higher resolution digital camera, and something like Adobe Photoshop or Elements or 3rd party apps like DoubleTake or The Panorama Factory to stitch them all together. It is remarkable, though, that you can get decent pano photos from what is arguably a less than top-quality cellphone camera.
Click on the gallery below to see the images produced by the apps.
Gallery: Panoramas with iPhone
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
murdaFSM said 8:22PM on 1-14-2009
i use Pano and it is amazing. i cant believe the algorithms that are integrated in this tiny app. Too bad the built-in camera on the iPhone kinda sucks. Well.... it sucks!
As far as Pano goes - i have it,i use it, i recommend it
http://www.funkyspacemonkey.com - Personalize your iPhone one post at the time
Reply
dance said 8:23PM on 1-14-2009
Thanks for writing this type of comparative review (this and the previous--could you add the link to the previous one, BTW?). It's really not easy to do this type of research ourselves, buying multiple programs, so it's nice to see Mac journalists filling in the gaps.
Reply
mark said 8:27PM on 1-14-2009
I own Pano, and I've never once had the problems with color-matching that's apparent in the Pano image, here. I have repeatedly marveled at Pano's results, and in fact, I don't believe Pano is responsible for the discoloration in your stitched photo *at all*.
Explanation:
Have you noticed how sensitive the iPhone's camera is to light -- both indoors and outdoors? Often tilting it the slightest bit -- even a millimeter forward or backward -- can cause the image on the iPhone's display to become instantly brighter or darker. In fact I often take specific advantage of that anomaly to get a lighter or darker photo.
I believe that the *exposure* of the photos is the cause of the discoloration in your panorama! Pano blends images so perfectly that it's almost scary; Pano has no reason to *change* the color of the user's photos. The images you took simply had a slightly different *exposure*, which would explain the slightly different shades of blue sky. Pano did its job properly, given the images that had been captured. Had your photos had the exact same exposure, you would never have seen that line of demarcation.
(For the record, I'm also not affiliated with Pano's developer, nor with the developers of any of the other apps.)
[I apologize for the double post. The previous comment was attached to the photo examples, which was not what I wanted. Feel free to delete my comments from that page.] :-)
Reply
JD said 11:43PM on 1-14-2009
Since it was posted towards the end of the life of the last thread, I'll repost my example Panorama shot:
http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sunsetwx2.jpg
I think the real test of the app is when you're putting a lot of photos together. That said, from the examples above, all but PanoLabs look pretty good.
Reply
SCott said 11:53PM on 1-14-2009
I think all the photos look great except the PRO one...its awful and this just goes to show that just cuz something has the word pro in it doesnt mean it is PRO-worthy
great couple of articles and thanks for coming back with the recap article so quickly...great work newbie...lol
Reply
Risto said 3:22AM on 1-15-2009
Where do the stitched panorama images end up?
In the regular photo library on the iPhone?
i.e. can i email the panoramas and post them to facebook, etc.
Reply
Doug said 8:49PM on 1-15-2009
I know that Pano saves the images to your photo roll, just like the normal camera app.
Fel (CIX) said 1:15PM on 1-15-2009
Pano is awesome! I use it and love it, and like mark, I have never had color matching problems. Picture quality depends on lighting.
Reply