Not every golf course offers an opportunity for a dramatic panoramic image, but when one does, this is a powerful new tool in the golf course photographer’s kit.

Last year, when photographing Horseshoe Bend Country Club, in Roswell, Georgia I was inspired by the view above the 9th green.  Bob Cupp's renovation of this wonderful property opened up the property and offers a huge, wide vista.  So, I decided to capture a panoramic image, something I've done in my landscape work, but had not previously used in a golf course shoot.  Shooting a panoramic image not only gives a dramatic, wide-angle view of a scene... it also yields an image, capable of handling enormous enlargement with no loss of detail.  I shoot with a Nikon D800, which outputs a native image of 16 inches X 24 inches, so by combining a series of images into a panoramic, a dramatic photograph is created, with a stunning level of depth and detail.  The shot below goes from the 9th fairway and green on the left, all the way to the 10th tee and fairway on the right, something no single shot could accomplish.  Its native size, without enlargement, is a full 16” high by 88” wide.

Last week, at Crooked Stick Golf Club, a highly-regarded Pete Dye golf course in Carmel, Indiana, I had yet another wonderful opportunity for a panoramic.  This time I used a new toy I recently acquired to enable even larger panoramics... an L-Bracket that allows me to shoot vertically and make full use of my camera's 24" width as the height of the final image.  The image below is 2 feet high by 10 feet wide, native size.  It was taken from the 10th tee and provides a gorgeous view of the back nine.  Note the life-sized bronze sculpture of Pete and Alice Dye that greets golfers walking off the 18th green.

Every time I step onto a golf course with my camera, I'm working to create the best images I've ever done, and panoramic shooting is one way to do just that.  At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it!