Gear 360 settings?

[mark palmos]

Hello guys, 

I have seen and read a couple of other threads about stitching for this camera... 

The image from the camera comes out like this, two orbs on one image:

But I am completely lost for how to deal with stitching ONE source image.

Has anyone there created a profile I could try to use?

Thanks,

Mark.

[mark palmos]

Filename - 360_0058.JPG

ImageDescription - SAMSUNG

Make - SAMSUNG

Model - SM-C200

Orientation - Top left

XResolution - 350

YResolution - 350

ResolutionUnit - Inch

Software - 0.63

DateTime - 2016:06:12 18:02:08

YCbCrPositioning - Co-Sited

ExifOffset - 266

ExposureTime - 1/1000 seconds

FNumber - 2.00

ExposureProgram - Normal program

ISOSpeedRatings - 100

ExifVersion - 0230

DateTimeOriginal - 2016:06:12 18:02:08

DateTimeDigitized - 2016:06:12 18:02:08

ComponentsConfiguration - YCbCr

ExposureBiasValue - 0.00

MaxApertureValue - 

MeteringMode - Multi-segment

LightSource - Auto

Flash - Not fired

FocalLength - 1.20 mm

FlashPixVersion - 0100

ColorSpace - sRGB

ExifImageWidth - 7776

ExifImageHeight - 3888

InteroperabilityOffset - 36081

SensingMethod - One-chip color area sensor

ExposureMode - Auto

White Balance - Auto

DigitalZoomRatio - 1.00 x

FocalLengthIn35mmFilm - 6 mm

SceneCaptureType - Standard

Contrast - Normal

Saturation - Normal

Sharpness - Normal

GPS information: - 

GPSVersionID - 2.2.0.0

GPSLatitudeRef - N

GPSLatitude - 51  7  24 (51.123333)

GPSLongitudeRef - W

GPSLongitude - 0  1  24 (0.023333)

GPSAltitudeRef - Sea level

GPSAltitude - 0.00/0.00 m

GPSTimeStamp - 17  2  8

GPSDateStamp - 2016:06:12

Maker Note (Vendor): - 

Thumbnail: - 

Compression - 6 (JPG)

XResolution - 350

YResolution - 350

ResolutionUnit - Inch

JpegIFOffset - 36455

JpegIFByteCount - 11483

[John Houghton]

Mark, I think it's best if you crop the left and right sides of the image (3888x3888) and stitch the two images in the conventional way (with the usual qualifications about stitching two fisheye images together see other current related post).  However, if you want to use only the single image as is, see the project file at: https://www.sendspace.com/file/pi481w .  Note the masking required where the image crop circles overlap.

Assuming Samsung provide a means of creating a stitched image, you might evaluate good lens parameters by aligning the images with a Samsung generated equirectangular stitched image.

John

[mark palmos]

Hi John,

Thanks for the response... a bit over my head I am afraid. The app Samsung provides is called Gear 360 ActionDirector and is made by Cyberlink. The stitching is automatic and works well except that the images are compressed from about 10mb to about 2.3mb... and the image is noticeably more muddy. The Gear 360 is only barely sharp enough anyway, so this added softness is not ok. My phone stitches way better, but I am using a note4 spoofed as a note5 as the n4 is not compatible with the software... which crashes when importing a single image about 90% of the time.

I was hoping to find something automatic and easy as well as something which does not alter the image. I will try divide the 2:1 image into a 1:1 image and see how that works using the automatic mode. Is there anything I need to manually adjust to make that work?

Cheers

Mark.

[John Houghton]

On Monday, June 13, 2016 at 2:43:01 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

I was hoping to find something automatic and easy as well as something which does not alter the image. I will try divide the 2:1 image into a 1:1 image and see how that works using the automatic mode. Is there anything I need to manually adjust to make that work?

You should be able to stitch automatically with PTGui using a template, but in order to create a good template, you need to calibrate the lens(es) by evaluating good lens distortion correction parameters.  To do this you need shots that overlap sufficiently to allow control points to be placed over a wide area so that the optimizer can align the image details in that overlap area.  The two images on their own don't overlap sufficiently.  As I have suggested elsewhere, for the purposes of lens calibration, obtain effectively 4 images around by taking two shots at right angles i.e. one image pair at yaw=0 and a second image pair at yaw=90.  Do this somewhere where things are generally far away to minimize parallax issues.

John

[mark palmos]

Hi John

apologies for all the questions, as you are not being paid to be a tutor here ;) 

I don't have a tripod with a degree display, so can it be approximate (eyeballed, but as close as possible) ?

What would I then do with the four 3888x3888 images?

Thanks

Mark

[John Houghton]

On Monday, June 13, 2016 at 4:16:46 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi John

apologies for all the questions, as you are not being paid to be a tutor here ;) 

I don't have a tripod with a degree display, so can it be approximate (eyeballed, but as close as possible) ?

What would I then do with the four 3888x3888 images?

It doesn't have to be exactly 90 degrees.  It's easy enough to estimate 90 that angle by eye.  The resulting 4 images should then be stitched together.  If you let me have copies of the two image pairs before cropping, I'l be happy to stitch them for you.

John

[mark palmos]

FANTASTIC!

I will post them momentarily...

Thanks!

[mark palmos]

Hi John

Here are the four images in a WeTransfer download...  https://we.tl/JWnuAmmzmM

That is very kind of you.

So will your stitching result in a preset which I can use for all my Gear 360 shots spliced in half?

tx

Mark.

[John Houghton]

On Monday, June 13, 2016 at 5:01:25 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi John

Here are the four images in a WeTransfer download...  https://we.tl/JWnuAmmzmM

Thanks for your prompt response.

 

That is very kind of you.

So will your stitching result in a preset which I can use for all my Gear 360 shots spliced in half?

We'll have to see!

John

[John Houghton]

On Monday, June 13, 2016 at 5:01:25 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi John

Here are the four images in a WeTransfer download...  https://we.tl/JWnuAmmzmM

I've uploaded a template file to https://www.sendspace.com/file/4ktany .

To use this, do the following:

1. Load PTGui

2. Load in the two image crops (labelled with A/B for the same L-R halves as used for the supplied samples).

3. Apply the template with File->Apply Template (other)

4. Switch into Advanced mode via button on the right of the Project Assistant tab.

5. In theory, one should be able to go now straight to the Create Panorama tab and click on Create Panorama (after setting the output file name).

    However, perfect stitching is not to be expected with this.  Better results will probably be obtained by creating control points (Control Points menu) and then go to the Optimizer tab.  Select advanced mode.  Click Run Optimizer.  Then go to the Create Panorama tab and generate the output.

Parallax and lack of control points, may require some manual intervention.  You may need to create points when none are created on either side of the image circle.  Delete points on features near to the camera, which will be subject to parallax effects.

John

[mark palmos]

Fantastic John.

Thank you so much, whether it works well or not, I appreciate the time and trouble.

I will give it a whirl and see how it "pans" out ;)

Cheers

Mark.

[mark palmos]

Thanks John, I will fiddle with the creation of control points then optimising and running again... it is noticably sharper than the Gear 360 pc app, and is very well stitched except for the telephone line crossing the sky on the one side... it is broken... 

Cheers

Mark.

On Monday, 13 June 2016 18:23:18 UTC+1, John Houghton wrote:

[John Houghton]

On Monday, June 13, 2016 at 7:36:33 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Thanks John, I will fiddle with the creation of control points then optimising and running again... it is noticably sharper than the Gear 360 pc app, and is very well stitched except for the telephone line crossing the sky on the one side... it is broken...

Yes, that didn't escape my attention.  It's partly due to there being no features for control points in the sky area.  Ideally, you should shoot the template project in a large (usually indoor) venue that's rich in features for control points in all directions - like a mall or church.

John

[Roy Mohan]

Interested in the result!!!

Thinking of buying this camera ! 

[mark palmos]

Hi, 

I couldn't improve on John's settings, which are not as good at stitching as the Gear 360 ActionDirector program that comes with the camera. Pity, as the PTGUI is definitely a bit sharper.

I should have sent John a shot from inside a large building, instead of the view from outside my house...

If you have any better luck, please post your resulting settings file here!

tx

[John Houghton]

On Tuesday, June 14, 2016 at 1:06:54 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi, 

I couldn't improve on John's settings, which are not as good at stitching as the Gear 360 ActionDirector program that comes with the camera. 

Can you please provide a copy of the ActionDirector stitch for one of the pairs of images that you already supplied?  It might be possible to improve PTGui's result using it as a reference image.

John.

[mark palmos]

Hi John, 

Great, thanks... here is the WeTransfer download link https://we.tl/yUzZ4riL2g

I have also included the same scene stitched using PTGUI and your settings.

BTW, with ActionDirector, I do not need to split the two camera shots into two separate JPEG's, it stitches the two parts of the same image in one go...

Cheers, Mark

[John Houghton]

On Tuesday, June 14, 2016 at 2:37:02 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi John, 

Great, thanks... here is the WeTransfer download link https://we.tl/yUzZ4riL2g

I have also included the same scene stitched using PTGUI and your settings.

BTW, with ActionDirector, I do not need to split the two camera shots into two separate JPEG's, it stitches the two parts of the same image in one go...

Thanks for the  panorama.  I was able to align the two camera images to it quite well but not perfectly: https://www.sendspace.com/file/1b2lqf .  The glitch in the overhead wire is corrected, but the glitch has simply moved down to the roof of the house below.  Given the expected impact of parallax, the result is no better nor worse than I would expect.  However, the ActionDirector stitch is significantly better so you might as well use that.  Maybe more accurate remapping of the fisheye images is responsible, with smart blending and possibly some discreet morphing.

John

[mark palmos]

Hi John,

A great attempt! Yeah, I suppose all things told, the slight hit in sharpness is probably worth the great stitching ActionDirector does.... though if someone manages to get it right, please post it here!

I may be taking a shot inside a big church soon ;)

Cheers

Mark.

[Arnoud Helmantel]

The ActionDirector stitch is very good, but I notice in my own images, and also in yours, that it does have trouble matching the color/brightness of the two lenses when stitching.

In your file, you can easily see where the two images meet by looking at the sky. That is something PTGui is better in correcting.

I got my Gear 360 today and will try to do some testing tomorrow to see what can be done with it.

A nice toy anyway :)

Arnoud

Op dinsdag 14 juni 2016 18:30:04 UTC+2 schreef John Houghton:

[mark palmos]

Hi Arnoud,
If you manage to come up with a better stitch, please share it here... Have fun with it!
Cheers
Mark.

[Martin Pearman]

I installed a firmware update on my Gear 360 yesterday.
One of the update's features is "individual lenses can be tuned to enhance color matching, making for a more seamless VR image":
http://www.androidheadlines.com/2016/06/firmware-update-gives-samsung-gear-360-better-quality.html

I've not had a chance to test the new firmware yet.

Martin.

[Arnoud Helmantel]

Hi John,

Here are some sample images I shot today, with two shots per site with about 90 degrees rotation of the camera in between shots.

https://www.helmantel.com/arnoud/panoramas/gear360-samples.zip

I think I will be returning this camera for another one because the center of the rear camera is not sharp. But I'd love to see if we could get better results through PTGui in stitching these images.

Thanks,

Arnoud

Op dinsdag 14 juni 2016 18:30:04 UTC+2 schreef John Houghton:

[John Houghton]

On Thursday, June 16, 2016 at 12:51:23 PM UTC+1, Arnoud Helmantel wrote:

Hi John,

Here are some sample images I shot today, with two shots per site with about 90 degrees rotation of the camera in between shots.

https://www.helmantel.com/arnoud/panoramas/gear360-samples.zip

I think I will be returning this camera for another one because the center of the rear camera is not sharp. But I'd love to see if we could get better results through PTGui in stitching these images.

Arnoud,  Here's a stitch of one pair of images:  https://www.sendspace.com/file/0o7o4t .  It's not bad.  Note that I split the image pair into separate square images (A & B) for convenience and applied some vignetting correction in CS6 (settings: +50, +5) with the lens filter.  It might be better to do the latter with PTGui's own correction option.

John

[John Houghton]

On Wednesday, June 15, 2016 at 11:11:56 PM UTC+1, mark palmos wrote:

Hi Arnoud,
If you manage to come up with a better stitch, please share it here... Have fun with it! 

I applied the stitch from Arnoud's project as a template and got a very good stitch:  https://www.sendspace.com/file/qim3q0 .  All the template did was to set up the lens and crop parameters.  I still used some control points on far away features to fine tune the alignment set by the template, but left the lens parameters intact.  There is still the problem of the overhead wire break.  I believe this is simply the effect of parallax on the relatively close wire overhead which the optimizer can do nothing to correct.

John 

[Eddy Vermeulen]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all information here.

I have also the Samsung gear 360 tested and also the same problem about stitching.

I tried the template and the test images you have uploaded here.

This works perfect.

But do you always have to devide the image with the 2 orbs from the samsung 360 into 2 parts?

Or is it possible to use PTgui and stitch from one image?

If using two seperate images, which program is best to devide the image into 2 orbs images?

Thank you for all info here. 

Best regards,

Eddy

Op donderdag 16 juni 2016 18:29:42 UTC+2 schreef John Houghton:

[Erik Krause]

Am 19.06.2016 um 22:48 schrieb Eddy Vermeulen:
> But do you always have to devide the image with the 2 orbs from the samsung
> 360 into 2 parts?
> Or is it possible to use PTgui and stitch from one image?

You can load the complete image twice and set the crop circles
accordingly. In John's first posting in this thread 6 days ago you find
a template...

--
Erik Krause
http://www.erik-krause.de

[Serzh Black]

Hi guys. Thanks fo the samples and templates I looked for! U are monsters of ptgui!

[Joshua Cline]

See this reddit thread I made for a auto split command. It requires a bit of setup but it should never over-write originals, and never crash.

[John Houghton]

On Thursday, June 16, 2016 at 12:51:23 PM UTC+1, Arnoud Helmantel wrote:

Hi John,

Here are some sample images I shot today, with two shots per site with about 90 degrees rotation of the camera in between shots.

https://www.helmantel.com/arnoud/panoramas/gear360-samples.zip

I think I will be returning this camera for another one because the center of the rear camera is not sharp. But I'd love to see if we could get better results through PTGui in stitching these images.

Here's a template file that can be applied after loading the same camera image twice into PTGui:  https://www.sendspace.com/file/icjmja .   The template was prepared using images 27 & 28, and the result of applying the template to image 39 (x2)  is included (no control points created).

John

[Osama Ahmed Farooqi]

John can u please upload it to WeTransfer or any other place? Sendspace is blocked here in Saudi Arabia.

[John Houghton]

On Monday, September 5, 2016 at 5:18:06 PM UTC+1, Osama Ahmed Farooqi wrote:

John can u please upload it to WeTransfer or any other place? Sendspace is blocked here in Saudi Arabia

The file is here: http://www.johnhpanos.com/gear360-template.zip 

John 

[Osama Ahmed Farooqi]

Thanks a lot John. Its strange that Samsung has not explained what to do with still panoramas. Their focus is just on the videos.

[Arnoud Helmantel]

I am currently testing my third Gear 360 (the other two I returned because of horrible blurring of one of the lenses when the unit got warm), and I noticed that the template you made only matches the first camera. Both the second and third camera have different characteristics, and do not stitch correctly with this template.

I will take out the camera tomorrow for a batch of reference shot testing, and see if the image quality of this camera is better than the other two.

@John: how would one go about adjusting this template for a different Gear 360?

[John Houghton]

You should shoot a panorama in a similar way that was used for the template project.  Then apply the template and generate control points.  You may need to adjust the crop circle positioning too. Generally follow the usual procedure for optimizing, weeding out poor control points etc. 

John  

[Bryan]

Hey guys,

I have been shooting with the 360 samsung.  You do know that you can get flat panos out of it right?  My questions are:  how to use these panos, which are already stitched, into a spherical 360 using ptgui....   can you import a 360 horizontal image and make it into a 360?  A friend of mine did this in 3d max and then mapped it to a ball which is how I like it.  I am also interested in how to shoot two of these and make a 3d 360 image for headsets.  Anybody want to weigh in on this?  also, you can notify and talk to me directly at bryanwhitney(at)me.com  thanks and look forward to your ideas and input....  I'll share mine as well.