World's largest panorama: London

Jeffrey sez, "I spent the last 4 months stitching 48 THOUSAND images together into a single panorama which lets you see things up to about 15 miles away. This image is about 4 times larger than the previous world record image, a 114-gigapixel image of Shanghai (at the time incorrectly labeled as 271 gigapixels) The panorama was shot from the top of BT Tower, using 4 cameras, lenses, and robots for moving the cameras. Three photographers using about $100,000 of gear spent 5 days up there. Ultimately we used 1 set of images which was shot over 90 minutes. Stitching was done on two workstations with 192GB and 256GB of RAM, using Kolor Autopano Giga stitching software. Sadly, the software choked on the gigantic dataset, and the stitching work ended up taking about 3 months longer than planned. This took a serious toll on my mental health. I am extremely happy to be finally putting this image out to the public and letting it see the light of day. Of course there are errors in the image. In the end we had to deliver it to the client with a deadline which had already slipped by months. At any rate, there are FAR fewer errors in the image that I expected. I hope you enjoy it. Can anyone find the pig?"

BT Tower 360 Panorama of London (Thanks, Jeffrey!)

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: london • pano • uk

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http://twitter.com/digitalArtform Joseph Francis

The controls feel backwards. I want to click and drag the background, not pilot a camera around.
- Kenmrph
  
  OK, so the guy spends months of his life and some portion of his mental well-being… and the first comment is “the controls feel backwards”.
  - Jeffrey Martin
    
    Hi,
    
    We’ll try to add a button to toggle “click/drag” and “pilot a camera around” modes of navigation, ok? ;-)
- bcsizemo
  
  Ironically it works exactly like I expected. Perhaps I grew up playing to much Descent, but it feels like I’m looking at something, not being shown a picture. I think it’s the fact that it is a spherical representation, not a flat picture that makes my mind want to “look” around and not move what I’m seeing.
- http://twitter.com/tadasyoyolt Tadas Jelinek
  
  Use arrows and shift to zoom in, ctrl to zoom out. Also, spot a couple having sex.
  - Just_Ok
    
    no sex, they’re British.
    - monkey magic
      
      Mutant! http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=14.5461&view.vlookat=19.3065&view.fov=1.2798&imarkerath=14.5461&imarkeratv=19.3065
      - mikei
        
        Nightcrawler, I suspect. Just try zooming right in on him.
  - garyg2
    
    pics or it didn’t happen.
    - http://www.mmdc.net/ Jim O’Connell
      
      My GF was astounded at the complete lack of cats on windowsills, but managed to find what could be a couple locked in an embrace on a bed:
      http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-137.7247&view.vlookat=35.8525&view.fov=0.2419&imarkerath=-137.7247&imarkeratv=35.8525
  - gamophyte
    
    aww all I found was a bald guy reading the tabloids http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=116.4067&view.vlookat=46.6858&view.fov=0.4686&imarkerath=116.4067&imarkeratv=46.6858
    - gamophyte
      
      aww teh heck, it didn’t keep my spot, he’s in that building and the tabloid is partially readable.
http://www.frogworth.com/blog/ Peter Hollo

Why have they got the click and drag backwards? I’m someone who changes the post-Lion OSX scrolling back to what I find natural, but this is actual clicking. And dragging. Not a flight simulator.
Actually makes it really quite hard to use.

Edit: Oh, also what the commenter above said, oops!
Cowicide

Hey! Are you allowed to raise chickens in the city?

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=90.2043&view.vlookat=32.4587&view.fov=0.4015&imarkerath=90.2043&imarkeratv=32.4587

I also found people growing marijuana, but I’m not going to snitch.

INCEPTION!

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-96.8153&view.vlookat=6.0807&view.fov=3.1203&imarkerath=-96.8153&imarkeratv=6.0807
- glittertrash
  
  Chickens on a rooftop no less! Lots of impressive rooftop gardening visible, actually.
- PrettyBoyTim
  
  *heh* they have the same style of coop that we have.
- http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby
  
  If there’s anywhere in the UK you can’t keep chickens, I’m not aware of it – maybe very specific areas, but I don’t think whole towns.
  - Cowicide
    
    I was just teasing, I figure if you’re allowed to keep pigs, you can probably keep chickens too. ^_^
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stefan_e_jones/ Stefan Jones

I wish I had a map for reference. What little I know about London comes from a few history books, and is centered around the river.
- Logolepsy
  
  Here you go. Tha panorama was taken from this location: https://maps.google.com/maps?q=51.521675,-0.139058&ll=51.521168,-0.138837&spn=0.003331,0.003578&num=1&t=m&z=18
http://profile.yahoo.com/UNTAH3RJBXI3KBIFRD73LHR23I Windex

So much about this is wonderful. I enjoyed looking at the reflection in the back window of a small red car in Fitzroy Mews. The reflection shows BT Tower. I can see the tower fine, but I can almost imagine seeing the cameras as well.
Thumbs Up!
- euansmith
  
  Enhance 224 to 176… Enhance. Stop… Move in. Stop… Darn, I still can’t see Pris the Basic Pleasure Model…
Cowicide

CowTip: Don’t leave any important documents with your social security number or whatever on them by any windows in London.
waking11

No, but I found the disembodied torso on Tottenham Court Rd.
http://profiles.google.com/spacewatcer Marios P.

I can’t believe there isn’t a single couple engaged on sex acts pressed against a glass window somewhere. Please someone proove me wrong!
- Kenmrph
  
  You just haven’t looked hard enough.
MythicalMe

This is stunning!

Having never been to London, though, I’m not sure what I’m looking at. I did find the Olympic stadium and I think Buckingham Palace.

As you are zooming in, there seems to be a point where the image blanks then resolves to a telescopic image, pull back out a little and the image again blanks and you’re back to a brighter non-telescopic image. Having used telescopes, it’s like changing the focal point quickly.
Antlan

So, what’s going on with the roof of this building? http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-149.5150&view.vlookat=22.0551&view.fov=3.1024&imarkerath=-149.5150&imarkeratv=22.0551
- euansmith
  
  The Matrix is glitched today.
skimedic

I found “Buzby,” and apparently that means you’re supposed to enter a contest.
- Cowicide
  
  Yep, here’s Buzby, but I can’t win anything because I live in the great satan. If you live in the UK, here he is! (There’s still two more to find, BTW)
  
  http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=169.3720&view.vlookat=43.0028&view.fov=3.4527&imarkerath=169.3720&imarkeratv=43.0028
  - Daneel
    
    If you see Sid, tell him.
peregrinus

The only building I can’t find is the BT Tower. Weird.
rtresco

This must be a Sunday morning, or London traffic is a treat. Also, Dick Van Dyke lead me to believe the rooftops of London were a little more magical.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  That was before the Blitz.
Jeffrey Martin

Hi, Author here.

1. Sorry about the panning direction. We’ll work on getting a button to toggle click/drag and “look to” behavior.

2. It’s a real honor to be here. Thanks for the kind words! The project was so big, the software choked, and it really did drive me batshit crazy. I basically turned into the guy from “The Monkey Chow Diaries” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YYh_brHe4U for 3 months.

Finally I’m returning to normal. Cheers everybody!
- euansmith
  
  Everyone should have a hobby. Dare I ask, what’s your next project?
  - http://lemoutan.blogspot.com/ Lemoutan
    
    Today, London. Tomorrow – the World!
  - Pag
    
    ”I spent the last 4 months stitching 48 THOUSAND images together [...] Three photographers using about $100,000 of gear spent 5 days up there.”
    
    “Everyone should have a hobby.”
    
    Man, it’s tough for a professional photographer to have his work taken seriously.
    - euansmith
      
      :D
  - Jeffrey Martin
    
    I shot Tokyo just before London. That will be released shortly. :-)
    
    Also, I have been working on a 360 video camera:
    http://boingboing.net/2012/12/13/kickstarting-a-360-streaming.htmlhttp://boingboing.net/2012/12/13/kickstarting-a-360-streaming.html
    http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1996234044/sphericam-the-easy-360o-video-camera
- lizdesign
  
  This is really wonderful. I’m really enjoying looking around. Thank you!
daev

Dammit. I’m gonna need a bigger PC.

/beautiful bit of work, gotta say…
Chris Ingram

Found this guy, he seems to know he’s being photographed..
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=171.9808&view.vlookat=40.5691&view.fov=0.1620&imarkerath=171.9808&imarkeratv=40.5691
- ppk1
  
  He’s from BBC’s The One Show, and also appears on the roof of St Paul’s:
  
  http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-44.1114&view.vlookat=1.7649&view.fov=0.2050&imarkerath=-44.1114&imarkeratv=1.7649
- URLNTS
  
  Hey that’s Adam Sandler!
euansmith

Its been lovely knowing you all… but… I think I saw the Slenderman reflected in one of the windows… I won’t tell you where… save… your… selves…
http://twitter.com/TempleDene Peter Freeman

ok this is weird, it’s so symmetrical could it be a deliberate mistake?

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-96.5898&view.vlookat=6.2663&view.fov=4.1102&imarkerath=-96.5898&imarkeratv=6.2663
- Jeffrey Martin
  
  No. It’s only the last “major error” that I didn’t fix, because I ran out of time. An error like this would normally take 30 minutes to fix, but with this size dataset and the software’s problem with the amount of data, this takes about a week to fix :( I will fix it soon, hopefully.
http://twitter.com/randywalters Randy Walters

Talk about a panopticon…
http://profile.yahoo.com/OMHO6ER5QJE3SIZ35VAXIRCLYM Stephan

I can see my house … oh an btw:

Hail Satan!

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-11.0866&view.vlookat=1.1431&view.fov=1.0833&imarkerath=-11.0866&imarkeratv=1.1431
http://twitter.com/hncviii bob

Young Spider-Man http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-150.3102&view.vlookat=11.4271&view.fov=0.2022&imarkerath=-150.3102&imarkeratv=11.4271

never mind. I screwed up the link
http://twitter.com/TempleDene Peter Freeman

I guess the pig flew away

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=35.1538&view.vlookat=3.6695&view.fov=2.0060&imarkerath=35.1538&imarkeratv=3.6695
glittertrash

I feel like I’m operating a real-life version of that magical imaging software in crime shows that can “enhance” around corners and from miles away. It’s a really amazing experience to navigate, it feels much more like an environment than an image- are there any plans to extend it with, for instance, a map layer or similar in future?
sqrrlwrench

Those little mini cranes on rails on the rooftops; are they required by building codes in London? Seems like they’re on the roofs of anything built after a certain date.
- euansmith
  
  Are they the ones used by window cleaners… or maybe they are the gallows we use every Mass Executionmas; the one day a year when we close our borders and hang our politicians.
  - Gilbert Wham
    
    If only…
  - Wreckrob8
    
    Problem is they just grow back even stronger, like weeds. We need a better solution than pruning.
fred allen

There is a Very short black car… http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-133.8440&view.vlookat=54.7860&view.fov=3.5967&imarkerath=-133.8440&imarkeratv=54.7860
Pobol Pobotrol

The Mystery Vortex
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-146.2270&view.vlookat=57.1763&view.fov=5.0138&imarkerath=-146.2270&imarkeratv=57.1763
http://twitter.com/tadasyoyolt Tadas Jelinek

I looks like it was a cold and lonely day: http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-7.9159&view.vlookat=49.2469&view.fov=0.8772&imarkerath=-7.9159&imarkeratv=49.2469
winkybb

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-97.0213&view.vlookat=6.0620&view.fov=3.6564&imarkerath=-97.0213&imarkeratv=6.0620

The building standards lapsed a bit here…
PrettyBoyTim

Oooh – a lovely shot of Alexandra Palace: http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-146.2228&view.vlookat=1.1098&view.fov=2.4397&imarkerath=-146.2228&imarkeratv=1.1098

Site of the world’s first public TV broadcasts.
PrettyBoyTim

And of the Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal Football club (yeah, they just beat Villa 2-1)

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-122.3102&view.vlookat=2.1370&view.fov=1.0031&imarkerath=-122.3102&imarkeratv=2.1370 #BTTowerView
Antlan

Here’s a car that’s partially vanished:
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-13.6796&view.vlookat=22.6812&view.fov=4.4478&imarkerath=-13.6796&imarkeratv=22.6812
pepsi max2k

shockingly detailed – can just about read documents through people’s windows. not sure if this is good, bad, or just time consuming… :o|
http://profile.yahoo.com/LF3ZYYSMGVJW4G2ODWICW7IAAI Roger

What I find really odd is how few people are just…well around.

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=21.0601&view.vlookat=46.2369&view.fov=0.9886&imarkerath=21.0601&imarkeratv=46.2369
- Pobol Pobotrol
  
  It must be early closing on Wednesday afternoons.
- rtresco
  
  At this link, if you zoom out a tad from these gentlemen and go up to the rooftops behind them you will see a rooftop playground/soccer pitch for a school…and then just below the playground you will see a small roof area where all the soccer balls have gone to die.
PrettyBoyTim

One of my favourite street names: http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-31.2350&view.vlookat=43.0108&view.fov=0.4525&imarkerath=-31.2350&imarkeratv=43.0108
Philboyd Studge

Hey UK Boingers – I found you a Buzby
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=175.1026&view.vlookat=38.3777&view.fov=23.6907&imarkerath=175.1026&imarkeratv=38.3777
Philboyd Studge

Here’s another Buzby
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=174.1947&view.vlookat=3.2220&view.fov=0.4654&imarkerath=174.1947&imarkeratv=3.2220
- sqrrlwrench
  
  Buzby # 3
  http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-37.2571&view.vlookat=2.8967&view.fov=0.2108
tw1515tw

Wembley Stadium
http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=141.1503&view.vlookat=1.0004&view.fov=2.4397&imarkerath=141.1503&imarkeratv=1.0004
sborgeson

If this took 90 minutes to capture on equipment costing about $100k and 4 months to assemble on two computers, is no one else wondering what you could do with a $1B budget and a whole data center at your disposal? Live video panopticon? Facial tracking 3D panopticon? From now on, I’m sticking to thoughcrime!
- Jeffrey Martin
  
  Hi,
  
  The 4 months was mainly to get it NICELY aligned and blended. If you don’t care about artistic merit and aesthetic quality, you can probably get this whole thing online in a day.
  
  However, the optics are more or less stretched to the limit, and air is not transparent, so this aspect of the image is, I believe, taken to the farthest extreme that today’s technology allows.
Ben Hutchings

Rotating scenery: http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-96.9719&view.vlookat=6.1804&view.fov=5.3595&imarkerath=-96.9719&imarkeratv=6.1804
http://twitter.com/digitalmonk1 digitalmonk

Here’s a fellow who’s chopped in two: pic.twitter.com/l4HnD9yJpX
Mike Gust

This is amazing. Kudos. I used to have to stitch together small panoramas for movie scouting. It could be extremely frustrating. I couldn’t imagine what it took to manually put this together, even with all the advances in tech.
http://twitter.com/violentbloom violentbloom

It doesn’t seem like the largest…

there was the view from the shard at dusk:http://www.the-shard.com/views/360.htmlAnd also Will Peterson’s view from the shard:http://www.willpearson.co.uk/virtual-tour/gigapixel-view-from-the-top-of-the-shard/
- twianto
  
  Now I’m not an expert but from what I can tell, both of them are just a fraction of the resolution of this project. Granted, the second one is much better than the first one you linked to (which you can’t zoom at all really) but it’s still much, much less detailed.
Brianfit

Wow. All those TV antennas, and no analogue TV signals going out in London anymore? Harvest and recycle startup ideas, anyone?
- http://themanwithsalthair.myopenid.com/ TheManWithSaltHair
  
  Digital TV still uses aerials!
benher

Nifty bar sign here (note, maybe not a bar):

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-105.6721&view.vlookat=22.2409&view.fov=1.0542&imarkerath=-105.6721&imarkeratv=22.2409

And a few random scalawags, hoodlums, and ruffians up the block on their way for a pint no doubt! ;)
- http://themanwithsalthair.myopenid.com/ TheManWithSaltHair
  
  That’s the Jeremy Bentham pub http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Bentham. The guys are most likely University College London students (the Greek style building behind).
Antlan

So far, I have only found one building with solar panels.
- Symbiote
  
  Probably because pretty much everything you can see is rented (not owner-occupied), and there’s such a shortage of housing that landlord’s don’t have much incentive to make expensive improvements.
  - Symbiote
    
    I thought I should back that up. It’s 65% renting in Camden (containing the building the photagraph is taken from, and extending north, but not most typical “tourist bits” of London).
    
    http://www.camden.gov.uk/ccm/navigation/council-and-democracy/about-the-council/camden-data-and-the-census/;jsessionid=73C82BCCC86D01551EE8B17D229392BA
    
    For all London it’s 48.4%, but will be higher in inner London: http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/londonfacts/default.htm?category=10
eviladrian

Well, it took 18 hours, but I finally found Wally!
peregrinus

A Renault Segway. You lie down sideways controlling the vehicle with a dash mounted mouse, watching a screen below the dash. 150 of them were produced in 2007-2008, but most ended up in Tokyo.
Luke Butcher

It looks like the front and the back of the car have been conflated by the image-stitching program. The hand belongs to the driver, he’s resting it on the dashboard; you’re looking at the windscreen, not the boot.
http://profiles.google.com/spacewatcer Marios P.

http://btlondon2012.co.uk/pano.html?view.hlookat=-144.0514&view.vlookat=18.4171&view.fov=0.6157&imarkerath=-144.0514&imarkeratv=18.4171

the owners must have had a London based conference during the shooting. The city is full of them!
DreadJester

Well you don’t have to be so serious lol. I mean it’s pretty obvious what really happened. More fun to pretend for just a moment that this is a real world image and that’s a real world item……..