4b bug?

[Robert Harshman]

Tried to process a 12,000 by 6,000 or so EQ 16 bit tif into QT default window size of 1600 by 1340, cube face of 3800 or so, jpeg at 90. While it appeared to worked, QT mov file was only about 900K in size and just black, no image at all.

Same input EQ file, same QT settings works in Pano2QTVR. 1.6.5, produces a 38megabyte mov file.

regards,

Robert

[360Texas]

by design Pano2VR will produce 8bit cube face and equirectangular output.

Pano2QTVR will process 16 bit in/out
Pano2VR will process 8 or 16 in/ 8 out

Has something to do with the .dll library set used in Pano2VR

[Robert Harshman]

"Pano2QTVR will process 16 bit in/out"

This is not correct, at least for EQ to cube conversion. Pano2QTVR will output 8 bit cubes, not 16. Wish it would stay with 16 bit, but it's never done that.

Pano2VR will process 8 or 16 in/ 8 out"

I would hope that by the time Pano2VR is production it's a choice, that is 16 or 8 bit output s/b be a choice, not a default conversion down to 8 bit.

And, not sure what if anything this has to do with the issue I noted.

Regards,

Robert

[360Texas]

Thomas confirmed Pano2qtvr work flow will maintain the 16bit work flow EQ -> Cube -> EQ.
Maybe I should add 16bit TIF work flow. 16bit TIF EQ -> 16bit TIF Cube -> 16bit TIF EQ.

Thomas also confirmed that the Pano2VR .dll library only supports 8 bit. The .dll library has not been updated to handle 16bit content.

See also November 2007 thread about 16bit work flow

http://gardengnomesoftware.com/forum/vi ... ?f=6&t=812

[Robert Harshman]

"Thomas confirmed Pano2qtvr work flow will maintain the 16bit work flow EQ -> Cube -> EQ."

Dave, sorry but try it, EQ 16bit -> Cube in Pano2QTVR produces an 8 bit cube, not 16, at least with Lanczos3 interpolator. Perhaps there is a difference in the various interpolators? If there is, it would be nice to know which ones produce 16 bit output if input.

But, also no where in the thread you noted does Thomas or anyone else say Pano2QTVR supports a full 16 bit workflow, in fact it's quite the opposite.

And again, what does this have to do with the bug I noted at the start of this thread?

Regards,

Robert

[360Texas]

A 7000 x 3500 16bit TIF image file size will drop to around 1/2 when changed to 8bit format. PTGUI and TIF with out Alpha channel and 300 ppi... will be a monster file size. restitch using 72ppi and resulting image will be considerable smaller.

I do convert my 16Bit tiff's to cube... I edit the nadir cube face.. Photoshop reports the cube face is a /16bit image.

Ok.. maybe Thomas told me about Pano2QTVR's 1.6.6 16bit and Pano2VR 8bit while chatting on IM a while back. I thought he had followed up with a forum comment to that effect.

What has all this to do with your 4b bug? not sure

[Robert Harshman]

"PTGUI and TIF with out Alpha channel and 300 ppi... will be a monster file size. restitch using 72ppi and resulting image will be considerable smaller."

Output from PTGUI and Tif, alpha channel is an option, not required. Also, note the ppi setting in PTGui is simply a marker that's inserted into the output file, it does not change the size of the file at all. It's simply an entry in the file header that's output. If you doubt this, check PTGui's help and/or try outputting two files of the same image with different ppi settings in PTGUI, they will be the same size.

And I do not consider a 7,000 by 3,500 pixel image huge by any current standard. The real EQ image I would like to run through Pano2VR or Pano2QTVR is over 24,000 by 12,000 pixels. I cut it by half in Photoshop since I know from my past that today neither Pano2QTVR nor PAno2VR will work on a EQ file larger than about 19,000-20,000 pixels or so.

And lastly, if you're getting a 16 bit workflow in Pano2QTVR what interpolator are you using?

Regards,

Robert

[erik leeman]

Hi Robert,
I can confirm that Pano2QTVR processes 16-bit colourdepth PTGui files @ full resolution (originally from my EOS 5D), the resulting cubefaces have always been 16-bits (TIFF!). Those PTGui files are 16-bit TIFF's without any compression and without an alpha channel.
The interpolator i use in Pano2QTVR (most of the time) is Lanczos2, but i have also used other ones.
There have been some occasions though where Pano2QTVR simply 'refused' to convert 16-bit cubefaces back to equirect, displaying a memory error notice itself or an error notice from Panotools. I have never been able to find out what caused the problem, but opening and saving those cubefaces in Photoshop (still as 16-bit TIFF) helped a couple of times. If that didn't help converting them to 8-bit in Photoshop was the only 'solution'.
So, like you i have experienced problems with 16-bit files several times.
When working with Pano2QTVR it could be worth it to try different versions of the PanoTools .dll, it didn't help me, but who knows...

I haven't encountered your problem with Pano2VR because i always use Pano2QTVR for generating cubefaces and .mov files. I only use Pano2VR for making Flash9 versions, using the cubefaces made by Pano2QTVR.

Regards,

erik leeman

[Robert Harshman]

Hi Erik,

Thanks for the info, guess I'll have to start a new thread in the Pano2QTVR section as I've tried a couple of alternative interpolators and still get 8 bit cubes from 16 bit EQ files. As far as I can tell there is no control or option settings over this. And as a check I've downloaded the 1.6.6 Pro version and installed it so I'm at least on the absolute latest release.

And I'm just using the default installs of both Pano2QTVR and Pano2VR so it should not be a case oif using the wrong DLL.

Regards,

Robert

[360Texas]

Ah those are very large files. Destination : MS HD View or Gigapan?

Sometimes its good to stretch the technical envelop and see what does or does not break.

[Robert Harshman]

OK,

I've figured it out and why we have been seeing different "bits".

Pano2QTVR by itself IS an 8 bit world. There is an option under the Pano2QTVR menu to "Use Panotools if Available". If this option is NOT checked Pano2QTVR will use it's own DLL to process conversions and this will result in 8 bit files. If this option is checked, and you have Panotools somewhere where Pano2QTVR can find it, then the output will be 16 bit.

Too bad as the conversion using Panotools take much, much longer and any color profile info is stripped out and if I remember there may be some other downsides to using the Panotools dll for conversion.

Regards,

Robert

[erik leeman]

"if I remember there may be some other downsides to using the Panotools dll for conversion."

That may be so, but you won't hear me complaining too much about my results using it : )
There could be (quality) problems with extremely large files though.
Regards,

erik leeman

[360Texas]

Ah HA ! you are correct. We do have Panotools checked - See Toolbar item called "Pano2QTVR.. menu Panotools is on the bottom of the list.

I actually did not realize that was what it allowed it to work with 16bit. It must have been smart enough to go search the hard drive, because pano12.dll is located in the SYSTEM\System32 folder and PTGUI 7.4 knows to look for it there. Thanks for bringing that to our attention.