Build A Panoramic Tripod Head For $10

Despite the excellent software solutions for stitching panoramic pictures together, there is no substitute for taking clean and well-aligned pictures from the start. Create great panoramas with an inexpensive DIY-tripod head. Over at the photo-editing site Worth1000, user Arodrix has put together a detailed tutorial on making your own panoramic mount. A panoramic camera-mount can set you back hundreds of dollars. If you’re not planning on paying the bills with your epic panoramic-shots of famed world locales, you’ll be better served making your own mount for $10 in parts. While the end product doesn’t have the polished look of a $300 mount it does provide the proper alignment necessary for a nice clean panorama. Below is the sample from his tutorial made with the mount—it required extremely minimal post-processing work to stitch neatly together:

Once you have your photos, check out how to create panoramas with free software. If you’re particularly proud of your handy work upload it to Panoye, a panoramic photo and Google Maps mashup.