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http://GigapanMagazine.org vol 1 issue 2
Here is a panorama of the Amundsen Scott South Pole Station on the evening of December 31, 2008. The snowy landscape around the Pole is fairly quiet, as almost everyone is getting ready for the New Year’s Eve party in the gymnasium of the elevated station. We have not yet taken apart our Christmas tree, and the 2008 Pole marker remains in the snow where it was placed on January 1 of last year. Tomorrow during a 1pm ceremony, the Geographic Pole marker will change to its 2009 version, which was designed and made by the 2008 overwinter crew. The new marker will be set onto a post in a new hole in the ice that is located about 30 feet closer to the Dome. The American Flag and the sign with its brief written accounts of Amundsen's and Scott's arrival at the Pole will move along with it. The South Pole Station is situated on top of the largest sheet of ice on Planet Earth. The elevated station, the Dome, and everything else that you see here drift a little bit toward grid northwest each day. Once each year the location of the Geographic Pole is officially corrected to place it once again over the axis of rotation of the planet. In 2008, we use GPS to confirm the location of the Pole. All of this constant, predictable glacial motion and the annual marker movement create an interesting pastime for the crew and visitors to the station, especially for the folks who brought their own GPS’s to the Pole. In the summer of 1911-12, Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott had a much more difficult time confirming that they and their parties had in fact arrived at 90 degrees south latitude. On the left of the image you see the ice-carving efforts of some of the station crew. They have been working on these giant blocks for several weeks, and their art will be judged on January 4. The ambient temperature, which has now risen to approach 0 degrees Fahrenheit, makes ice carving a comfortable exercise, as long as the wind is fairly calm. It looks like they had some great ideas and that they have been busy at their task. Which carving would earn your vote? The 30 images of this panorama were photographed with a Nikon D 80 and stitched with Autopano Pro. Please enjoy The South Pole on New Year's Eve 2008. |
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THIS IS MY FIRST EVER GIGAPAN: The Royal Burgh Standard Bearer James Cheyne casts the Burgh Flag at the culmination of the Common Riding festivities followed by six other standard bearers. The one on this photo is Hammerman Jason Hendrie. (sorry Jason you moved between shots). The Burgh Standard bearer represents the one man (Fletcher) who returned to the town after the Battle of Flodden in 1513, bringing with him an English flag. The ceremony is preceded by one of the largest horse and rider cavalcades in Europe ( up to 600 horses have taken part some years) They leave the town, led by the Standard Bearer, at 7 am and ride the boundaries of the town land, returning at the entrance to Selkirk and then marching behind the bands to the town centre for this moving ceremony. Try http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26053 and http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26062 too.http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=25995
See video of the ceremony at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8En98D57CA0 |
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What: 2008 State Fair of Texas
http://www.bigtex.com When: Sept. 26 - Oct. 19 Where: Fair Park, a 277-acre entertainment and recreation complex owned by the City of Dallas, is located two miles east of downtown. The park is the year-round home of the Music Hall, Cotton Bowl and eight museums. Fair Park is a National Historic Landmark and boasts the largest collection of art deco exposition buildings in the United States. Big Tex Big Tex made his debut at the 1952 State Fair of Texas. Wearing size 70 boots and a 75-gallon hat, Tex towered 52' above wide-eyed visitors. His denim jeans and plaid shirt were donated by the H. D. Lee Company of Shawnee Mission, Kansas. Cosmetic surgery the following year straightened his nose, corrected a lascivious wink and allowed him to talk. From The Great State Fair of Texas – An Illustrated History, by Nancy Wiley. HISTORY: The first State Fair to be held in Dallas was presented at this location in 1886. Fair Park was the site of the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition which ran for six months and attracted 6 million people. An extended 31-day Fair in 1986 celebrated the Texas Sesquicentennial and drew almost 4 million visitors. |
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Selkirk Common Riding is a commemoration of the loss of the young men of Selkirk (Scotland) at the Battle Of Flodden on 9th September 1513. Legend has it that only one returned carrying a flag from one of the English armies. The flag casting ceremony held in the town square ends with two minutes silence followed by the playing of "The Floors of the Forest" a lament written for the men lost in the battle. This ceremony is preceded by the Riding of the Marches which is a ride round the town boundaries by the largest cavalcade of horses and riders in Europe (up to 650 riders have been in the cavalcade in past years). The ride is led by the Burgh Standard bearer carrying the town flag. After returning to the town they process behind the bands to the Market Place for this ceremony.
The trouble with getting Gigapan of this ceremony is that the whole event is over in about 20 minutes and so the 800 pics suggested by Gigapan at 550mm would have taken longer than the event to photograph. I compromised by zooming out to around 200mm so as to take fewer snaps in the time and therefor managed to get three gigapans shot. There is a problem with some of the elements which must be due to camera shake as I reduced the time between pictures to .8 sec. My next shots will be landscapes which don't move away after half an hour!! However as a first try I'm not too disappointed. Try http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26053 and http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26062 too. See Video of the ceremony at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPtceF7L9Cs |
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Detroit's Tiger Stadium a landmark in the city is a massive pile of rubble after the upper deck collapsed upoon itself as demolition continued at the ballpark. The American Flag is flying in what used to be centerfield.
To see another GigaPan of the Tiger Stadium demolition click here: http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26966 |
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This is taken from the center of the parade grounds, looking north. On the west (left) side is officer’s Row, you are seeing the back side of the houses, the fronts face the bay. The buildings on the east side are barracks for the enlisted men. Fort Hancock was decommissioned in 1972. It is now part of the National Park Service. |
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Overlooking the Main Concourse looking West. A Beaux-Arts style building and U.S. National Historic Landmark. About 125,000 commuters pass through everyday.
The ceiling depicts an elaborately decorated astronomical Zodiac that is depicted backwards. A large American flag was hung in Grand Central Terminal a few days after the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. The main information booth in the center of the concourse marks a common meeting place. The four-faced clock on top of the information booth is a Grand Central icon. |
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Detroit's Tiger Stadium, a landmark in the city, is a massive pile of rubble after the upper deck collapsed upoon itself as demolition continued at the ballpark. The American flag is flying in what used to be centerfield.
To see another Detroit Tiger Stadium demolition GigaPan click here: http://share.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=26552 |