Kaidan III User manual

User’s Guide - V0.9 - 27 June 2002
QuickPan III
Panoramic Tripod Head

QuickPan IIIPanoramicTripod HeadOverview
Thank you purchasing a Kaidan
QuickPan III Panoramic Tripod Head.
This manual is designed to help you
understandhowtouseyourQuickPan
III to create quality panoramas. This
documentwillberevisedfromtimeto
time and updated versions can be
downloaded from the QuickPan III
pageontheKaidanwebsite.
QuickPanIII Overview
The QuickPanIIIfamilyisbuiltaround
asturdyandpreciseRotatorBasewith
interchangable indexing rings.There
areseveralcamerabracketsthatslide
andlockontotheRotatorBase.
WhydoIneeda tripod head?
Apanoramictripodheadmakesit
possibletoeasilycaptureasequence
ofphotosthatarestitchedtoforma
completepanoramicimage.Itholds
thecameraintheportraitorienta-
tion,positionsthecamerasothatit
rotatesaround theopticalcenteror
nodalpointofthelensandprovides
arepeatableandadjustableclick-
stopindexingmechanism.
Welcometo theKaidan QuickPanIII and PanoramicPhotography

TheQuickPanIIIFamily
Twin-Axis
CameraBracket
TheTwin-AxisCameraBracketisdesignedto
supportmostdigitalandfilmcamerasthatare
equippedwithfisheyelenses,orforthoseusers
whodesireorappreciatetwoindependentslid-
ingandlockingaxesofadjustment.Thetwoin-
dependentaxesofadjustmentpositionsthe
lensinsuchamannersoasnottocaptureany
moreoftheRotatorBasethannecessary.When
acameraequippedwithacircularfisheyelens
isinstalledonthebracket,onlyasmallsegment
oftheRotatorBasewillappearintheimage.
ThisfeaturemakestheTwin-AxisCamera
Bracketidealforthose usingiPIXsoftware,
Panoweaver(www.easypano.net) andother
softwareapplicationsthatusefisheyeimages.
Spherical
CameraBracket
TheSphericalCameraBracketisdesignedto
supportmostdigitalandfilmcamerasandto
permittheangularup/downelevationforthe
captureofmultirowsphericalandQuickTime
VRCubicpanoramas.Thisbracketisidealfor
thosesoftwareapplicationsthatstitchmul-
tiplerowsofimages,includingup/down"cap"
shotssuchasREALVIZStitcher.TheSpherical
CameraBracketcanalsobepositionedatalevel
zerodegrees,thusfulfillingthesamefunctions
astheStandardCameraBracket.Anoptional
Arca-SwissQuickReleasecameraplateisalso
available.
Standard
CameraBracket
TheStandardCameraBracketisdesignedto
supportmostdigitalandfilmcamerasinapor-
traitorientation.Usedprimarilyto shoot
single-roworcylindricalpanoramas,theStan-
dardCameraBracketcanbeadjustedalongthe
horizontalarmoftheRotatorBaseinorderto
locatethecameraintheside-to-sideorienta-
tion.Therearethreeslotsinthebracket, that
whenusedwithvariouspositioningaids,pro-
videforthefore-aftadjustmentofthecamera's
opticalcenter,ornodalpoint,overtherota-
tionalcenterofthetripodhead.
RotatorBase
Thisheavy-dutydesignis lighterandmore
compactthanpreviousmodelsandthecompe-
tition.Thenewbaseemploysinterchangeable
IndexingRings thatsupport anynumber of
click-stop positions from 2through22.The
ringscanbeeasilyswappedatanytimeand
contributetothelightweight.Theindexing
mechanismrequiresnolubricationoradjust-
mentsandhasnolooseparts.Thebasecontains
an integral circular bubble level and
accomodateseither1/4”or3/8”tripodthreads.
ThenewQuickPanIIIRotatorBasewillalsoac-
ceptolderKaidancamerabrackets(i.e.KiWi+,
QuickPan).
Introducingthe QuickPan IIIComponents

TheQuickPanIIIFamily
ProQuickRelease
CameraBracket
TheProQuickReleaseCameraBracketisdesignedto
support mostdigital andfilm camerasthatare
equippedwithfisheyelenses,orforthoseuserswho
desireorappreciatetwoindependentslidingandlock-
ingaxesofadjustmentwiththeconvenienceofaquick
releasemountingsystem.Youcanchoosefromeither
aBogen oraArca-Swissmountingplate(Arca-Swiss
shownatright).
Thetwoindependentaxesofadjustmentpositionsthe
lensinsuchamannersoasnottocaptureanymore
oftheRotatorBasethannecessary.Whenacamera
equippedwithacircularfisheyelensisinstalledonthe
bracket,onlyasmallsegmentoftheRotatorBasewill
appearintheimage.Thisfeaturemakesthisbracket
idealforthoseusing iPIXsoftware,Panoweaver
(www.easypano.net)andothersoftwareapplications
thatusefisheyeimages.Ofcourse,thisbracketcanalso
beusedwithanywide-anglelensandstitchingsoft-
wareaswell.
Welcometo theKaidan QuickPanIII and PanoramicPhotography

Rotator Base
Installing
IndexingRings
1) Slide the Indexing Ring onto
the Rotator Base from the bot-
tom, keeping the portion of the
IndexingRingwiththedegreela-
bel facing up until itmakes con-
tact with the brass plunger.The
brassplungerwilleventuallysnap
into the hole that in the side of
theIndexingRing.
2)Rotate the Indexing Ring to
lineupthenotchonthetopofthe
Indexing Ring with the black
slanted alignmentpin atthe top
of the RotatorBase.The pin will
eventuallygointothenotch.
3)Depressthebrassplungerand
pushupontheIndexingRingun-
tilthebrassplungerpopsintothe
plunger hole and the pin slides
intothenotch.
Removing
IndexingRings
Onthelower portionoftheblack
Indexing Ring, there is gold col-
oredpinvisiblethroughthe hole
inthe side.Insertthe tipofaball
pointpenorapaperclipendinto
theholeandpushthegoldpinin-
wardtilltheIndexingRingdrops
down, then slide the Indexing
RingofftheRotatorBase.
Adjustingthe Force
oftheSpringPlunger
The screw, shown at left,can be
used to position the spring
plungerupanddown.Youcanuse
ascrewdriver(oracoin)toadjust
the indexing or click-stop force.
Thespringplungerissetfromthe
factory,butyoumayfindthatyou
preferaharderclick-stopaction.
Be sure to not overtighten the
plungersothatthemetalbodyof
the plunger would come in con-
tactwith the indexing ring.Also
besurethattheplungerisnotset
deep enough as this will cause
excessive playin theindexingac-
tion.
How to install and removethe indexingrings and adjustingthe indexing force

Standard Camera Bracket-CameraMounting
Mountingyourcameraon theStandard CameraBracket
Tomountyourcamera,firstselectthe
appropriate slot in the Vertical Cam-
eraBracketthatwillbestlocatethetri-
podmountingthreadonyourcamera.
You may need to reposition the Cap-
tiveCameraKnob.Toremovetheknob
simplyslideitalongtheslottotheend
that has the threaded hole.Carefully
unscrewtheknoboutofthethreaded
hole,beingcarefulnottocrossthread
theknob.Replacetheknobintotheap-
propriateslotbyreversingtheproce-
dure.
Note: Whatever side of the Vertical
Bracketyoumountyourcameraonal-
ways keep the offset portion of the
Vertical Bracket towards the rear of
thecamera.
Thecameraknobisatwopieceknob,
withainnerandouterknob.Beforein-
stallingthecameraknobintheVerti-
calBracket,turntheinnerknobclock-
wiseintotheouterknobuntilitwon’t
turn anymore. Next install the knob
intotheappropriateslotthenintothe
tripodmountingholeofyourcamera.
Turnthe innerknobintothecamera
until it bottoms out, then turn the
outerknobclockwiseuntilthecamera
is tight on theVertical Bracket.Don’t
worryaboutgettingthecameralevel
atthistime,asthisisataskyou’llneed
todowhenyou’rereadytoshoot.
The left-right adjustment to center
your lens over the pivot point is ac-
complished by loosening the purple
knob and sliding the bracket.Be sure
totightentheknobtolockthebracket
inplace.
The fore-aft adjustmentismadeby
loosening the camera knob and slid-
ing the camera along the slot.There
arecameraadjustmentshoesandlugs
tolocateyourcameraonthebracket
andtohelppositionthecameraalong
theslot.Thesedeviceswill also make
it easy to remove and replace your
camera when you use it for other
tasks.
SomemodelsoftheStandardCamera
Bracketmayhavetherubberizedcork
as shown on the left. Newer models
have a special anodized coating that
willgripthecamera.

Mountingyourcameraon theSphericalBracket
The Spherical Camera Mounting Bracket
has a rotating swing arm which is held
into position by large black locking knob.
Theknoballowsyou to position the arm
and your camera from plus 90°to minus
90°.
Mounted on the swing arm is an adjust-
able camera mount. This mount can be
adjusted along the length of the swing
arm by loosening and tightening the
purpleclampingknob.Toremovethecam-
era mount, simply loosen the knob and
slide the mount off of the swing arm.
Thereisaspring-loadedplasticballwhich
provides drag on the camera mount as
well as the camerabracket.Whenyoure-
place the mount or the camera bracket
onto their respective arms,you’ll need to
push it sharply so as to overcome the
springforce.
Thestandardcameramount(shown)has
a number ofslots foryou to choose from
to mount your camera. It’s important to
make sure that the centerline of your
camera’s lens intersects the pivot axis of
theswing arm.Sincesome camerashave
tripod mounting threads that are not
inlinewiththecenterofthecamera,itmay
benecessarytouseoneofthevariousslots
onthebracket.
Spherical Camera Bracket-CameraMounting
There are camera mounting shoes (flat
shaped)andlugs(triangleshaped)thatare
providedforyoutohelplocateandposition
the camera.These are also helpful when
youwantto remove and replacethe cam-
eraandreturnittotheproperlocation.
Anoptionalcameramountisalsoavailable
withaquick-releasemount.Inthiscaseyou
wouldattachtheaplate(eitherArca-Swiss
or Begen) to your camera and this plate
wouldthendovetailintoamatingplateon
theoptionalcameramount.
Adjusting the camera position for the
nodal point is made by loosening the ap-
propriatelockingknobsandslidingeither
the camera mount plate along the swing
arm,orslidingtheentireassemblagealong
the arm of the Rotator Base. Be sure to
tighten the knobs whenyou’re done posi-
tioningthecamera.

Twin-AxisCamera Bracket-CameraMounting
Mountingyourcameraon theTwin-Axis CameraBracket
Select the appropriate slot in the
bracketthatwillbestlocatethetripod
mounting thread on your particular
camera.You may need to reposition
thecameraknobtoanotherslotinor-
dertoachievethis.Toremovetheknob
simplyslidetheknobalongtheslotto
the end that has the threaded hole.
Carefullyunscrewtheknoboutofthe
threaded hole, being careful not to
crossthread the knob. Replace the
knob into the appropriate slot byre-
versingtheprocedure.
Thecameraknobisatwopieceknob,
withainnerandouterknob.Beforein-
stalling the camera knob in the
bracket,turntheinnerknobclockwise
intotheouterknobuntilitwon’tturn
anymore. Next install the knob into
theappropriateslotthenintothetri-
pod mounting hole of your camera.
Turnthe innerknobintothecamera
until it bottoms out, then turn the
outerknobclockwiseuntilthecamera
is tight on the bracket. Don’t worry
aboutgettingthecameralevelatthis
time,asthisis ataskyou’llneedtodo
whenyou’rereadytoshoot.
The left-right adjustment to center
yourlensoverthepivotpointisaccom-
plished by loosening the purple knob
andslidingthecamerabracketinand
outoftheslider.Besuretotightenthe
knobtolockthebracketinplace.
The fore-aft adjustment is made by
looseningtheotherpurpleknobonthe
slider and then moving the entire as-
sembly along the arm of the Rotator
Base.
There are camera adjustment shoes
andlugs(shownatleft)tohelplocate
your camera on the bracket and to
help position the camera along the
slot. These devices will also make it
easytoremoveandreplaceyourcam-
erawhenyouuseitforothertasks.

NodalPoint
This is one of the most frequently
asked questions when it comes to
stitcher-based panorama creation.
Onceyouunderstandthebasics,you’ll
beabletoeasilylocatethenodalpoint
foranycameraandlenscombination.
Simply put, the nodal point is the
point inside your camera where the
light rays converge and flip over.
When shooting a panorama it’s
necessary to rotate about this point
to eliminate the image mismatch
causedbyparallaxerror.
It’s also worth noting that the nodal
pointisnotthesameasthefilmplane,
which is often marked on the
underneath side of many 35mm
cameras. Generally, for most 35mm
cameras and lenses, the nodal point
is located somewhere towards the
centerofthelensbarrel.
Parallax error can be easily
demonstrated by this simple
experiment. Close one eye and hold
your index finger upright about six
inchesawayfromyouropeneye.Rock
your head from side to side. Notice
how your finger moves with respect
to the background. This relative
movement is due to the fact that
you’renotrotatingyourhead around
your eye’s nodal point, which is
somewhere in the center of your
eyeball.Instead,you’rerotatingabout
your spine which is several inches to
the rear and off to one side.It is this
relative side-to-side motion that we
will strive to eliminate when setting
upacameraforVRpanoramas.
Step1:Theside-to-side
adjustment
Onceyourcameraisfastenedtoyour
camerabracket,moveto thefrontof
thetripodheadsoyou’relookinginto
thelens.Adjustthecamerabracketso
that the center ofthe lens is directly
overthepivotaxisofthetripodhead.
Tryto be as accurate as possible.You
should strive to get this adjustment
withinplus/minusa1/16thofaninch.
Whatisitand howdoI findit?
Parallax error can be easily demonstrated. It’s the relative
movementcausedbyashiftingpointofview.Inthisexample,
you eye is moving with respect to your hand and the back-
ground.

NodalPoint(continued)
Step2:Fore-AftAdjustment
Thisstepismosteasilyaccomplished
out of doors. Find a vertical edge or
line, such as a doorway or edge of a
building. Position your camera and
tripodabout2-1/2feetaway,orasclose
aspossiblewiththeedgestillinfocus
when you look through the
viewfinder.Ifyou’reusingamultirow
head such as the QuickPan III
Spherical,settheswingarmtoalevel
horizontalposition(zerodegrees).
Looking through the camera’s
viewfinder,findanotherverticaledge
orlinethatisfaraway,suchasanother
building or telephone pole. Align the
twoobjects and rotate the pan head
sotheyareinthelefthandsideofthe
viewfinder.
Rotate the pan head so the two
objects move over to the right hand
side of the viewfinder. Unless you’ve
managed to unwittingly locate the
right position, you should notice the
twoobjectswillmovewithrespectto
eachotherasyourotatethepanfrom
If, as shown above, the two objects move with respect
to one and another in the viewinder, slide the camera
fore or aft in order to eliminate this movement. Here,
the telephone pole has moved behind the brick wall.
left to right. Slide the camera to the
frontorrearasrequiredtoeliminate
thisrelativemovement.
Step3: RecordYourResults
After you’ve discovered the two
locationdimensions,besuretorecord
the settings. The QuickPan III has
convenient indicator scales for this
purpose. These numbers represent
thenodalpointforthisgivencamera
and lens combination. If you change
camerasorlenses,thisproceduremay
havetoberepeated
Step 5: How About Rangefinder
Cameras?
A rangefinder camera is a camera
where you look through a separate
viewfinder and not through the
actuallens. Theprocessisbasicallythe
same. Locate the Side-to-Side
adjustment as discussed in Step 1.
When it comes to the Fore-Aft
adjustment,youwon’tbeabletolook
throughtheviewfindertodetermine
Whatisitand howdoI findit?
Lookingthroughtheviewfinderalignacloseobject(brick
wall)withafarawayobject(telephonepole).Asyourotate
the camera from side-to-side there should be no relative
movementbetweenthetwoobjectsasshowntotheright.