[ptx] [PanoTools-devel] PTmender, and update

[jwatters at photocreations.ca]

>  >> Thanks Pablo. One thing I have not done yet is the feathering.
>  Pablo> Also, enblend 2.5 contains an optimized version of the seam
creation
>  Pablo> algorithm, so it would be good to look there.
>
> The algorithm in PTstitcher for seam calculation is really bad, and
> creates seems in very strange locations (it is already implemented, by
> the way. Feathering will also help "ease" the transitions.
>
> I would prefer a seam that is computed in the following manner:
>
> * For each photograph, choose a pixel that is closest to its center
>   (center as before the panorama transformation).
>
> My assumption is that the "best" pixels tend to be closer to the
> center of a given photograph. Of course there is no way to avoid
> ghosting this way.

Check out paper writen by Ken Turkowski "Registration, Calibration and
Blending in Creating High Quality Panoramas".  If I remember correctly it
has some good info on creating seams.
http://www.worldserver.com/turk/computergraphics/papers.html


>  >> 16 bit PSD  seems to be out of the question. We need some legal
>  >> agreements with Adobe and that complicates matters.
>
>  Pablo> Hmm. well thats bad (not for me, but for all the photoshop users
out there...).
>  Pablo> Is the agreement required for getting documents about the file
format, or has
>  Pablo> Adobe patented the file format?
>
> They want agreements, and I am not sure what they would make me
> commit to. Jim is probably the one that knows the best what the issues
> are.

Must sign an agreement that the implimentation will not expose the method
of creating 16bit layered files.  It can not be included in open source
code.  The only option I can think of is an closed source binnary library
or utility to combine TIFFs into a layered PSD file.  My solution would be
Windows only.


> BTW, I should correct. One layer 16bit PSD _is_ supported. We just
> can't generate multilayer PSD. One option is reverse engineering of
> the format, but I think we have many other things that can use our
> time. One can get around this restriction in photoshop by using
> actions.
>
> dmg

Now that I have a DSLR that shoots raw (Nikon D70s), 16bit PSD file are
more important and I may end up reverse engineering this in the long run.
Personal need will drive development.

Jim Watters