Exactly. Then use the cross version (Pano2VR creates a horizontal cross) setting Softimage's environmental mapping to horizontal cross. Is this not working for you, now?
On Mon, Jul 29, 2013 at 2:54 PM, Nicholas Breslow <[email protected]>wrote: > The basic workflow I’ve used for this in the past is to convert the > equirectangular panorama to a cubical projection. Then you can paint out > the nadir (poles) on the top/bottom of the cube in PS/other to get rid of > the distortion. You can use Pano2vr > http://gardengnomesoftware.com/pano2vr.php for the conversion. After > convert it back to equirectangular. Very similar to the Polar method > mentioned before.**** > > ** ** > > Hope that is what you were going for – just glanced and thought I would > share this.**** > > ** ** > > *Nicholas Breslow* > > ** ** > > ** ** > > *From:* [email protected] [mailto: > [email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Nancy Jacobs > *Sent:* Sunday, July 28, 2013 6:25 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: Environment sphere issues**** > > ** ** > > Thanks for this info, Stephen, but I really need the spherical environment > for a seamless space experience. **** > > ** ** > > Now that I've got the implicit projection working, it does a better job > rendering the image at the poles, but still not good enough. Guess ill have > to drag a sphere into Mari and try painting out the distortion. That > plugin you linked me to gives some cool vortex effects at the poles, maybe > ill find a use for that! But I still wonder why it's working for your > images and not mine. Maybe it's in the type of image and what is happening > visually near the bottom and top of the image.**** > > ** ** > > > On Jul 28, 2013, at 1:19 AM, Stephen Davidson <[email protected]> > wrote:**** > > Here is a nice article on creating cubic environment maps from stitched > panoramic photos, using Blender.**** > > very clever:**** > > http://www.aerotwist.com/tutorials/create-your-own-environment-maps/**** > > ** ** > > On Sat, Jul 27, 2013 at 9:42 PM, Nancy Jacobs <[email protected]> wrote:*** > * > > Stephen, this plugin really didn't work for me. It way overdid some kind > of smearing, spiraling algorithm. Looks a lot worse than the original. I > wonder what he's thinking, or what went wrong here... Any ideas?**** > > ** ** > > Thanks for the link, however. I was really stoked when I thought it was > going to solve this problem. Maybe something in Softimage mapping is trying > to solve this and doesn't quite do it, so this plugin overcompensates?**** > > ** ** > > I still think implicit mapping would help, as the help files indicate, if > I could get any image to show up on the sphere.**** > > ** ** > > Thanks again,**** > > Nancy**** > > > On Jul 27, 2013, at 8:18 PM, Stephen Davidson <[email protected]> > wrote:**** > > If you have Photoshop, here is a link to something called spherical > mapping corrector:**** > > http://www.richardrosenman.com/software/downloads/**** > > ** ** > > No 64 bit support, I believe.**** > > ** ** > > here is the install and use docs:**** > > Spherical Mapping Corrector - v1.4, © 2008 Richard Rosenman Advertising & > Design. Release date: 03/15/03, Updated 09/28/08.**** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > INSTALLATION:**** > > ** ** > > Simply unzip "spheremap.zip" and copy "spheremap.8bf" to your > "\Photoshop\Plug-Ins\" folder, or whichever plugin folder your host program > uses. Load your program, open an image, go to the plugins menu and select > the plugin.**** > > ** ** > > ** ** > > DESCRIPTION:**** > > ** ** > > This filter produces texture map correction for spherical mapping.**** > > ** ** > > When projecting a rectangular texture onto a sphere using traditional > spherical mapping coordinates, distortion ('pinching') occurs at the poles > where the texture must come to a point. Given the different topology of a > plane and a sphere, it is impossible to avoid this, or any kind of > distortion. However, by properly distorting the texture map, it is possible > to minimize and even compensate for the polar distortion.**** > > ** ** > > Special thanks to Paul Bourke for allowing his algorithm to be ported to > this plugin. For more information, please visit Mr. Bourke's site at > http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/~pbourke/.**** > > ** ** > > Sub-Sampling: Specifies what type of pixel sub-sampling to use. (Nearest > Neighbor being fastest, Bicubic being best.**** > > ** ** > > On Sat, Jul 27, 2013 at 6:46 PM, Nancy Jacobs <[email protected]> wrote:*** > * > > Greetings, > > I'm using the old-style environment spheres with an HDR image wrapped to > light the scene, but invisible to rendering, and a beauty image visible to > the render. The problem is the very visible distortion near the poles of > the sphere. I need 360 degree visual acceptability. I am using a background > which I've made seamless in both directions, a 2:1 rectangle. It seems this > worked in renders at one point years ago in another software. Perhaps even > XSI....I don't recall. > > I'm also trying to substitute this arrangement by using both an > environment (using the HDRI), and 'Spherical Mapping' (using the beauty > image), in the Pass Shaders. But I'm getting very strange results, so not > sure if this is the way to go. Also, it's difficult to line them up > properly so that the light in the HDRI is coming from the same place as the > equivalent visible areas in the beauty image -- which of course one can do > easily in the wrapped spheres. But in the pass shaders, they don't seem to > use the same rotation systems... > > Any advice on getting an undistorted, seamless image going here? With > proper orientations? > > Thanks, > Nancy**** > > > > **** > > ** ** > > -- **** > > Best Regards, > * Stephen P. Davidson** ** > **(954) 552-7956* <%28954%29%20552-7956>* > * [email protected]**** > > *Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic***** > > > - Arthur C. Clarke**** > > [image: cid:] <http://www.3danimationmagic.com/>**** > > > > **** > > ** ** > > -- **** > > Best Regards, > * Stephen P. Davidson** ** > **(954) 552-7956** > * [email protected]**** > > *Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic***** > > > - Arthur C. Clarke**** > > [image: > http://www.3danimationmagic.com/3Danimation_magic_logo_sign.jpg]<http://www.3danimationmagic.com/> > **** > > -- Best Regards, * Stephen P. Davidson** **(954) 552-7956 * [email protected] *Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic* - Arthur C. Clarke <http://www.3danimationmagic.com>
