Panoramic Design I:
The Huntington Gardens Experiment
K. W. Bridges December 2019
2019 © K. W. Bridges www.kimbridges.com
The “Forest versus Trees” Experiment Visit a beautiful garden, like the one at The Huntington. This institution in San Marino, California, is more than a botanical garden. They are equally proud of their library and art collection. But we’re here to see the gardens. The grounds of The Huntington is 120 acres of well-maintained landscapes. You see the gardens in their full extent, but your attention is drawn to the details. If you’re a photographer, most of your photos are likely close-up images of those magnetic objects that pull you into their details. You snap shots of the flowers or the details of a cactus if you’re in the Desert Garden. Over in the Japanese Garden your photos are sure to include the arched bridge that spans the pond. What you’re doing is documenting the “trees.” That is, your focus is on the details. Documenting the broader view, the “Forest,” is difficult. A wide-angle lens is generally insufficient to capture the width of your vision. There is a solution. Maybe. Panoramic photos, embedded in an interactive digital environment, can show both the broad view and details. There are some technical problems in doing this. That’s the subject of this experiment.
The panorama shown below is a scaled-down image. The original is massive. For example, if you print the original at 300 DPI (often, laser printer resolution), the result is about 5.5 feet wide. Obviously, at that size, you’ll see a lot of detail that isn’t available at the display resolution used below. The original images are linked to the images displayed. Click on an image title (below the panorama) and a web-browser tab will open in SmugMug showing the same image. Click on that image and you’ll get a larger version. You may be able to click another time to get an even larger image.
Example. Original size: 22490 x 8565 pixels; FOV: 160.84 x 56.21 degrees. Google Map Loc
Return to this document by clicking on the correct browser tab. Another feature is the Google Maps Location link. Click on the link and a browser tab opens with a satellite view of the location of the photo. A red marker indicates the image location. You can zoom in, for example, to see more details.
cation.
Disclaimers This is an experiment focused on enhancing the photographic documentation of a site like a botanical garden. There is no attempt in this document to show the breadth of the gardens at The Huntington. The images shown here are just a modest sample. The creation of the panoramic images involves taking a series of individual photos and then stitching them together. Consider the following limitations: • • • • •
The photography was done hand-held. The image locations were chosen very quickly. The visit to The Huntington was in late November, a day after a heavy rainfall. The sky was mostly cloudy. The stitching software does not handle skies very well. Some edits were make to improve the appearance of the sky, but this was not done very carefully. • There are some stitching artifacts seen in structures with long straight lines (like house or gate beams). • Image locations were not obtained with a GPS. They were estimated using Google Maps. All of these “deficiences” can be avoided or corrected. The point is that getting the test photos and stitching them was not being tested. The experiment is whether these huge images can be used in an on-line document in a useful way. Once this proof-of-concept is evaluated, a new photo series will be taken, careful post-processing will be done, and a proper document will be prepared.
Panoramic Images The images of the “forest” shown in this document come at a convenient size to get a visual overview. Linking to much higher resolution images lets you see details. The link attached to each photo gets you to where the big pictures live. An important feature of photographs is that you can re-visit a scene. Being able to zoom into details can provide information and understanding that might have been missed during a visit. After all, there are lots of distractions and time limitations that constrain any in-depth analysis of a site examination. A key element of the presentation medium. The images are placed on pages, embedded in text descriptions. The combination is critical: words and photos together. This runs counter to many photo-sharing websites. There, it’s just the image that’s posted. A photo sharing site is an essential adjunct to this document. That’s where photos are stored. These websites also handle the display of the images. Most such sites are also limited in the maximum display size. They are much too limiting. SmugMug, the photo host used here, has a size limit that is about equivalent to 20,000 x 10,000 pixels. That’s close to the maximum dimensions of the photos taken for this study.
The Huntington 2019 is the Centennial Year for The Huntington. This institution has been very successful. Each of the three major components, Garden, Art and Library, is world-class. The Huntington’s highlights its living collection as sixteen themed gardens: 1. California Garden 2. Camellia Garden 3. Children’s Garden 4. Chinese Garden 5. Conservatory 6. Desert Garden 7. Herb Garden 8. Japanese Garden 9. Jungle Garden 10. Lily Ponds 11. Palm Garden 12. Ranch Garden 13. Shakespeare Garden 14. Subtropical Garden 15. Garden Sculptures & Fountains 16. Mausoleum You can read interesting stories about all of these themed areas on The Huntington website (https://www.huntington.org/what-to-see/in-the-gardens). Note that there was no attempt to exactly match The Huntington delimited areas with the gardens named here. Several plant tours are available on The Huntington’s website (https://www.huntington. org/botanical-collections-tours). Note that a detailed map of the entire estate, with all the separate gardens (and subgardens) is used in several of these tours. This map provides more detail on the structure of the gardens than is shown on Google Maps. The decision was made to show location on Google Maps because it is a more general procedure and is available to all locations. A derivative product could use The Huntington map, but that would be a special case.
General areas and names given to gardens at The Huntington. This delimitation and designation is just for the purposes of this study.
China A major expansion of the China section of the garden is underway with area being increased to 12 acres.. Some of the most beautiful spots are ringed with construction fencing. As a result, only two panoramas are shown here. The first, shown on this spread, is just a corner of the large pond that dominates the China area. The second panorama shows the stream that flows down from the main China area. There is a nice pagoda alongside the stream. Soon,perhaps by Summer 2020, the construction will be finished and an entire set of panoramic photos can be taken. Chinese gardens are noted for having scenes, each carefully composed of both natural and man-made elements.
China1. Original size: 12974 x 9115 pixels;
; FOV: 109.28 x 67.53 degrees.
Google Map Location.
China2. Original size: 19615 x 9236 pixels; FOV: 150.09 x 62.16 degrees.
Google Ma
ap Location.
Desert The Desert Garden is old and diverse. It’s a maze of walkways that separate the 10 acres into sixty garden units. Each garden unit has plants that naturally grow together. The scale in the Desert Garden is deceptive. It is easy to focus on the small plants, and even the details of individuals. It’s important to look up occasionally and see that there are “layers” of plants. Low lying cactus or similar plants are in the foreground. Larger desert species stand behind. In many areas, tall desert trees, such as palms, form an even taller layer.
Desert1. Original size: 21181 x 8792 pixels; FOV: 151.25 x 57.36
6 degrees.
Google Map Location.
Desert2. Original size: 20124 x 8500 pixels; FOV: 147.24 x 56.79 degrees.
Google Map
Location.
Desert3. Original size: 20359 x 8256 pixels; FOV: 140.86 x 52.96 degrees.
Google Map
Location.
Oceanea This is mostly a dry area with vegetation from Australia dominating the landscape. There are pockets of plantings from other areas in Oceanea, including Hawai`i. This area of the garden is represented with a single panorama.
Oceanea1. Original size: 22068 x 9010 pixels; FOV: 172.50 x 62.89 degre
ees.
Google Map Location.
Japan All of the other garden areas are represented with just a few panoramic images. The Japan garden, in contrast, has a dozen panoramas. There are several unique features of the Japan Garden which are explored with the panoramas. Much of the garden is shaped like the side of a bowl. There are structures among the trees at the top. These include the Japanese House, the Bonasi Collection, Zen Court and the Teahouse. The slopes lead down to a koi-filled pond with a moon bridge. The individual structures are interesting. So, too, is the garden that connects each of the features. The photo locations were chosen quite hastily. This area is sufficiently complex that a more careful approach will give better series of images to evaluate and preserve information about this interesting area.
Japan1. Original size: 18687 x 8561 pixels; FOV: 120.84 x 51.36 de
egrees.
Google Map Location.
Japan2. Original size: 19008 x 8680 pixels; FOV: 136.12 x 56.89 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Japan3. Original size: 14497 x 8795 pixels; FOV: 101.28 x 56.33 degrees.
G
Google Map Location.
Japan4. Original size: 18083 x 8829 pixels; FOV: 135.94 x 60.16 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Japan5. Original size: 22446 x 8527 pixels; FOV: 185.74 x 63.17 degrees.
G
Google Map Location.
Japan6. Original size: 13047 x 8671 pixels; FOV: 83.12 x 50.97 degrees.
Google Map Lo
ocation.
Japan7. Original size: 15927 x 9271 pixels; FOV: 132.90 x 68.05 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Japan8. Original size: 18827 x 13235 pixels; FOV: 143.90 x 82.87 degrees.
G
Google Map Location.
Japan9. Original size: 16124 x 8908 pixels; FOV: 128.22 x 62.02 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Japan10. Original size: 20309 x 8488 pixels; FOV: 140.20 x 52.97 degrees.
Google Map
p Location.
Japan11. Original size: 24341 x 8678 pixels; FOV: 193.71 x 62.02 degrees.
Google Map
Location.
Japan12. Original size: 24341 x 8678 pixels; FOV: 193.71 x 62.02 degrees.
Google Map
p Location.
Lawn What’s called the “Lawn” here, are areas with wide expanses of grass and many clusters of tall trees. Among the trees, there are 200 species of palms. One of the more startling trees is the ombu. It has a huge base and it looks unlike a “proper” tree (see Lawn1). This area of The Huntington is less well visited. It’s a good place to go when there are crowds clogging other venues. The panoramic photos for this area test the use of this technology as a way to examine details of a big plant specimen. In contrast, the wide open spaces covered with grass and ringed by palm trees test whether the photo captures both the vista and allows zooming in on the individual palms in the distance.
Lawn1. Original size: 20535 x 8662 pixels; FOV: 12
27.37 x 49.43 degrees.
Google Map Location.
Lawn2. Original size: 16838 x 8858 pixels; FOV: 104.24 x 50.33 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Ponds This is where The Huntington gardens started in 1904. The ponds area covers 4 acres. There are five ponds; two are large and three are smaller. There are several sculpture on the sides of the ponds. One was created by Henry Huntington’s daughter, Clara in 1924-1925. Look for St. Francis in the Ponds2 panorama. The stone basin in the corner of Ponds3 dates from the 15th century. Plants in the ponds include water lilies and flowering lotus. The lotus were first planted in 1905.
Ponds1. Original size: 23267 x 8566 pixels; FOV: 1
174.63 x 58.58 degrees.
Google Map Location.
Ponds2. Original size: 20400 x 8578 pixels; FOV: 156.10 x 59.54 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Ponds3. Original size: 19539 x 8538 pixels; FOV: 120.52 x 49.35 degrees.
Google Map L
Location.
Photo Locations The distribution of panoramic photos in the gardens is shown in the bar char below. This emphasizes that the Japan Garden is over-represented relative to the other gardens. The coordinates of the photo locations were used as links to Google Maps. This allow the power of Google Maps, especially with the satellite view, to show the context of the photos. The geographic coordinates of the collection of panoramic photos let us plot the locations so we can evaluate the photo coverage of the garden.
0
5
10
15
China Desert Japan Lawn Oceanea Ponds The number of panoramic images for each of the garden types.
Distribution of panoramic images across the gardens at The Huntington. Each panorama location is color coded according to the garden.
Technical Procedures and Notes Shooting the Original Photos The panoramic photos were taken on November 29, 2019. It was a clear day after a period of heavy rains over the previous several days. Several places in the garden were closed due to damage from the storm. A Sony A7R IV camera was used with a Sony EF 24mm f/1.4 GM lens. All photos were taken vertically. Images were recorded as RAW and JPG formats. The RAW images were used for panoramic stitching. The camera and lens are a well-matched combination. Almost without exception, only a single row of photos was needed. The size of each image is approximately 60 megapixels. The pixel dimension are 6336 x 9504. The photos were taken with about 50% overlap, generally moving from left to right. This was done hand-held with the camera in a vertical orientation. The body-swivel meant that the axis of rotation was not on the camera’s nodal point. This introduces some parallax error. However, the convenience of not carrying a tripod significantly outweighs a nearly insignificant parallax problem.
Stitching Individual Photos into a Panorama Kolor’s GigaPano 4.4 was used to do the stitching of the individual photos into panoramas. Unfortunately, this software is no longer being sold. It does a good job, except perhaps in the sky areas and sometimes with long, straight lines (like beams in buildings). For the most part, the stitching is automatic. Sometimes it is necessary to specify a Cylindrical projection; all the panoramas used here are Cylindrical. There were a few adjustments using the Vanishing Point so that trees and structures remained vertical. Cropping used the default setting. The stitching software produces a JPG image. General information about the stitched result (such as size and field of view) is stored in the EXIF information.
Editing Stitched Panoramas
All stitched panoramas were brought into Adobe Photoshop. Small exposure adjustments were made. Each image was run through a set of Nik Collection filters in this order: • • • •
Detail Extraction Enhance Color Contrast Pro Darken/Lighten Center
Resizing Stitched Panoramas Photoshop was used to reduce each panoramic image to a width of 4800 pixels. The orignal aspect ration was maintained. The width is based on an 8.5 x 11 inch, portrait orientation, double-page spread with size margins of 0.5 inches. Filling the 16 inch width at 300 DPI requires an image 4800 pixels wide.
Extracting the EXIF Information Exiftools was used to extract the size and field of view (FOV) for each panorama. A separate folder head just the set of panoramas used here. Therefore, it was possible to use a simple exiftools command to get the required information.
exiftools -UserComments *.jpg > exif.txt
The text file (exif.txt) needed just a bit of editing in Notepad (a Windows editor) before importing the size and FOV information into an Excel spreadsheet. The fields in the text file are delimited with a pipe symbol (“|”). This allows easy separation as the text file is read. A simple concatenation of text and data fields created a string of text that was copied and pasted into the InDesign document under each panoramic image.
Storing the Large Panoramic Photos Images contained on document pages are necessarily limited to the size and resolution of the pages. Digital images, whose sizes greatly exceed the limits on print media, can be stored and retrieved for viewing. There are two aspects to consider: storage size and display size.
Most image-storage sites downsize large images to save space. It makes sense. Most photos are viewed on small screens (e.g., cell phones). Why save a big file if it is never seen at a large size. Here, we want to see all of the details in the original image files. Just as there are storage limits, image size limits are common. Most online sites have image-size limits that are quite small. Instagram, one of the most popular image-sharing sites tends to limit stored photos to 1024 pixels on the longer dimension. Flickr, a site known for high-quality images, has recently expanded the display size from 2048 to 6144 pixels on the long side. A gallery was created in SmugMug for the panoramic images. The images were loaded into the gallery. It is important to note that the default display excludes showing photos at their original size. This option was changed to permit viewing full-size panoramic pictures. Each full-size panoramic image was uploaded to SmugMug. A title, simply the name of the panoramic file, was entered for each photo. Once the images were stored in SmugMug, a web link was extracted for each photo. Right click on the picture and choose “Copy web link” from the menu. This link is then pasted into an image information Excel spreadsheet. Having a title of each photo helped keep the information straight. The link information was copied and pasted into the InDesign document as a hyperlink from the text under each panoramic image.
Obtaining the Geographic Coordinates of the Photos The Sony camera used in this project doesn’t have a built-in GPS. Therefore, coordinate locations were not recorded. Google Maps was used to get approximate photo coordinates. The Huntington location was viewed as a satellite image, zoomed in to see details. It’s not perfect, but many details of the gardens can be seen. Since the location of each panorama was known from the memory of the photo session, it was quite easy to locate the place on the Google Maps image. Right clicking with the mouse at the photo spot brings up a menu. Choose the “What’s here?” menu item and a box at the bottom of the screen will give the geographic coordinates of the position. These are typed into a spreadsheet for further processing. A photo location link was made for each panorama. The code starts Google Maps, centers a satellite view on the coordinates, and places a marker at the location. An exam-
ple of the information put in the link is shown below. https://www.google.com/maps/?q=34.125425,-118.111662&t=k The “t=k� is the instruction to use a satellite image instead of the default street map.
Manipulating Image Information Data A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet holds the basic information about each of the panoramic images. This serves several purposes. Analyses of image data Construction of data for use in other programs.
Creating a Image Location Map The web-based service, GPSVisualizer, makes it a straight-forward process to map locations. The Excel spreadsheet was used to format the locations of the panoramic images, along with information to color code each location according to the name of the garden in which the panorama was taken. It was straight-forward to copy this information and paste it into a GPSVisualizer window. A few additional parameters were set. If GPSVisualizer uses Google Maps, the user needs to provide an API key. You get this key from Google. How you do that is beyond the scope of this discussion. There is clear guidance on the Google website (do a search for Google Maps API key). Entering your own key is a one-time process as a cookie is used to store this information for subsequent uses.
Assembling the Materials into a Digital Book Adobe InDesign was used to construct this document. Standard document creation procedures were used to place the text and images. Similarly, styles were developed and used to get a consistent design. The caption text for each panoramic image (except the cover) was linked to a SmugMug image using a hyperlink. Similarly, the Google Maps location was connected with a hyperlink.
A PDF file was exported from InDesign.
Storing the Digital Book The PDF file was imported into ISSUU, a web-based service that delivers book-like documents. You’ll know about this as you’re using the ISSUU service now.
Using the Digital Book The book looks best on a computer with a large monitor. A robust broadband connection helps as the images are large. This is especially true when looking at the full-size panoramas on SmugMug. Handheld devices, such as a smartphone, can see the digital book on the ISSUU site. This is done with either a web browser or using the ISSUU app. SmugMug, which also has an app, seems to block the viewing of full-size images on small screens.
Evaluating the Experiment