Camera skills Shooting start shots for a panoramic image

Take advantage of bare trees in winter in order to capture more extensive woodland scenes

Composition

Decide on the start and end points, and shoot beyond these areas so that you have room to crop the image later. Avoid using a wide lens, otherwise the final image can appear distorted – 35‑50mm on a full-frame camera often works well.

Overlap

Position the camera vertically so that you capture the maximum height for your panoramic image. Make sure that there’s an overlap of at least a third between each frame, as this will make it easier for your software to stitch the shots together.

Go manual

Use as many manual options on your camera as you can, so that you get a consistent result for each frame. This includes the exposure, white balance and focusing. Shoot raw so that you have more flexibility when it comes to editing.