# Tilt shift for dummies



## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

Hi.

I wondered if anyone of you had any good tips for how to use tilt shift in all its glory? It should be really introductory (fine if it goes much more advanced to, as long as the lower buildingblocks are present). I tried to go to wikipedia to learn about the Scheimpflug principle, but that explanation would make non-ingenieurs cry blood; and I am not an ingenieur 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scheimpflug_principle

A week ago I saw a great two hour presentation by the portrait photographer Gregory Heissler, featured on Petapixel. He uses quite a bit of tilt shift in his portraits, and there was this one particularly cool shot that was for the front page of Time Magazine (imho) of Rudy Guiliani on the top of a high building, where he selected focus to get at sharp focus on the Mayor and the Empire state building. 

I find these environmental portrait intriguing, and would love to learn how I can use my tilt shift for this kind of photos. Right now my lens is collecting dust, but the reason that I bought it was because it has so many uses. However the learning curve is quite steep, so if anyone can point me in the right direction of a great book, it would be much appreciated.


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## Eldar (Jan 13, 2014)

My experience has been to learn the basics and the rest is practice, practice, practice ... I have read articles, looked at videos, but when I get out in real shooting situations, every situation seems to be a one off. I have a few times decided to go out and do specific things, like the Guiliani shot you mention. Every time I come home with something entirly different 

I can also recommend Nick Brandt's portraits of African animals. He is using a T&S on his Pentax 6X7 to create some pretty cool effects. There are especially some lion portraits that stand out, but some of the elephant shots are also quite amazing.


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

Eldar said:


> My experience has been to learn the basics and the rest is practice, practice, practice ... I have read articles, looked at videos, but when I get out in real shooting situations, every situation seems to be a one off. I have a few times decided to go out and do specific things, like the Guiliani shot you mention. Every time I come home with something entirly different
> 
> I can also recommend Nick Brandt's portraits of African animals. He is using a T&S on his Pentax 6X7 to create some pretty cool effects. There are especially some lion portraits that stand out, but some of the elephant shots are also quite amazing.



His elephant walk was amazing. I am just sorry that I did not have the chance to go see his exhibit in Horten, due to me being alone with my two kids that weekend. 

I also have watched videos and read blogs, instructions and so forth, but I hope that there is a comprehensive book out there somewhere. I have used the lens on several occations (straightening lines on buildings and such is quite easy), but for the more advanced possibilities this lens offer I have a hard time. I have tried different things, gotten strange pictures, but I find it hard to learn this way


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## m (Jan 13, 2014)

Heisler mentions that he spent several evenings on that roof trying out different cameras with different lenses.

Neither the 24mm Canon lens nor the 4x5 Camera could compete with the 8x10, even though he wanted to avoid bringing a large camera.

The focus is very selective because of the large format. Keep that in mind when you tie your expectations to the look of that image while shooting with your 35mm camera.

Heisler further explains that he "turned the knob" and the empire state appeared sharp and clear.
You could do the math and calculate the angles (how far to turn the knob), but simply trying until it works seems to be appropriate, too. After all that's what Gregory did with a deadline that I assume to be a tiny bit more deadly than yours. 

With the math out of the way, Scheimpflug simply says that the plane of focus is not parallel to your film.
To set it, turn the knob(s).


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

m said:


> Heisler mentions that he spent several evenings on that roof trying out different cameras with different lenses.
> 
> Neither the 24mm Canon lens nor the 4x5 Camera could compete with the 8x10, even though he wanted to avoid bringing a large camera.
> 
> ...



Thanks  Maybe my 17TS will not yield a similar result (disregarding that I do not have such a location, subject to shoot, nor am I such skilled photographer but I would still like to experiment with it. I tried as mentioned to read and understand the principle of the Austrian, but I guess my intellectual capacity in such hard core science matters is not up to par. I was hoping that there would be a book out there that not only explains the principles of shooting TS in layman terms, but also had some sort of tutorials and/or assignments to test them for yourself. Unrelated to this topic, I am reading just now such a great book on lighting (Light, Magic and Science). While some of the principles involved in this book are a bit abstract and dense, they are immideately shown through a set of examples and illustrations, coupled with suggestions for assignments. That is a type of book I like


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## surapon (Jan 13, 2014)

Dear Quasimodo
Welcome to the Club " T&S Club ", Please go to the Link below.
http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=18845.0
http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=807.0
http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=453.0

Enjoy.
Surapon


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## privatebydesign (Jan 13, 2014)

The Guiliani portrait is a simple matter of T/S use, funnily enough I have admired that image many times and got Heisler's book 50 Portraits for Christmas.

He just used tilt in the same angle as the Empire State Building and Guiliani. So rotate the tilt plane until it goes into the orientation you want. To picture this in your mind, float above your camera and the scene, look at the filter thread on your lens and tilt it to make it intersect the angle between your subject and the camera. It doesn't take much tilt, the further from the plane of focus you are, the less tilt you need, at infinity you don't need any.

A great resource for understanding T/S is here. Keith, the site owner, is a member here and occasional poster, there are several other good T/S bits on his site too.


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## neuroanatomist (Jan 13, 2014)

Use of shift to correct for perspective is straightforward. Just have the camera level, then shift until the lines are parallel. 

When using tilt, the short version is focus to distance, tilt to closest. So, focus on the most distant subject, tilt until the close subject is in focus. It's usually iterative. 

Live view is best. 

Have fun!!


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## surapon (Jan 13, 2014)

Another Sample of Tilt position for Side Blur.
Enjoy
Surapon


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## Eldar (Jan 13, 2014)

Quasimodo said:


> His elephant walk was amazing. I am just sorry that I did not have the chance to go see his exhibit in Horten, due to me being alone with my two kids that weekend.


The exhibition was Awesome! I had to see it twice. I highly recommend his books.


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

Eldar, m, Surapon, Neuro, and Privatebydesign. 

Thank you all for your valuable input. I am looking forward to reading the links, and also to peruse the Club TS  First it is the matter of putting the kids to bed


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

privatebydesign said:


> The Guiliani portrait is a simple matter of T/S use, funnily enough I have admired that image many times and got Heisler's book 50 Portraits for Christmas.



Some fantastic shots, and I really appreciate how he reasons around portraits and light. I think the first hour of his presentation was great, afterward it was more war-stories  I am still on the fence about buying the book, as there are so many to read, and I was uncertain of how much more there was to the book vs. the presentation


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## m (Jan 13, 2014)

Here is the link to the 2 hour presentation:
Gregory Heisler ILFORD Lecture: Companion to "50 Portraits" Book and Gallery Show February, 2013

And a little bts on the mentioned shot, which goes on more detail about the lighting than the camera gear, as it's from profoto:
MASTER SERIES: Gregory Heisler whiteboards his Rudy Giuliani Time Magazine cover


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## privatebydesign (Jan 13, 2014)

Thanks for the link M, I hadn't realised it was "out there".


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## privatebydesign (Jan 13, 2014)

With a Schneider Super-Angulon 165mm f8, you are looking at a 135 format 24mm f1.4 via equivalence, interesting that Heisler puts so much importance on f1.4 instead of f3.5 (the actual 24 TS-E aperture) and a much easier shoot. He really does value that separation only possible through comparative lens speed, even in the T/S. That is a perfect demonstration from a master of the ever finer search for image quality, look, and attention to detail.

So no 135 format lens can match the specifics of the Guiliani portrait, close, but no banana. The 17 TS-E f4 is a comparative oaf for that specific look.


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

m said:


> Here is the link to the 2 hour presentation:
> Gregory Heisler ILFORD Lecture: Companion to "50 Portraits" Book and Gallery Show February, 2013
> 
> And a little bts on the mentioned shot, which goes on more detail about the lighting than the camera gear, as it's from profoto:
> MASTER SERIES: Gregory Heisler whiteboards his Rudy Giuliani Time Magazine cover



Thanks for the great lighting video. I had not seen it, and it was very interesting


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## Quasimodo (Jan 13, 2014)

privatebydesign said:


> With a Schneider Super-Angulon 165mm f8, you are looking at a 135 format 24mm f1.4 via equivalence, interesting that Heisler puts so much importance on f1.4 instead of f3.5 (the actual 24 TS-E aperture) and a much easier shoot. He really does value that separation only possible through comparative lens speed, even in the T/S. That is a perfect demonstration from a master of the ever finer search for image quality, look, and attention to detail.
> 
> So no 135 format lens can match the specifics of the Guiliani portrait, close, but no banana. The 17 TS-E f4 is a comparative oaf for that specific look.



And masters are here to inspire us  I find it interesting on how (although not with my lens, or skills) you can conceptualize the tying in of a person with some background element that gives symbolic significance.


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## NWPhil (Jan 14, 2014)

surapon said:


> Dear Quasimodo
> Welcome to the Club " T&S Club ", Please go to the Link below.
> http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=18845.0
> http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=807.0
> ...



I apologize in advance for my ignorance and probably silly question, but what's the purpose of that strip with circles attched to the lens?
Thanks


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## Quasimodo (Jan 14, 2014)

NWPhil said:


> surapon said:
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> > Dear Quasimodo
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Not sure if I understand your question?


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## NWPhil (Jan 14, 2014)

Quasimodo said:


> NWPhil said:
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opps I aplogize
got the wrong handle/quote link - the question was for Mr Surapon


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## Quasimodo (Jan 14, 2014)

NWPhil said:


> Quasimodo said:
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No problem  I just was not sure what you were asking about


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## Quasimodo (Jan 15, 2014)

Having read and not understanding the Scheimpflug principle on wikipedia, with its dense and mathematical language; I came over some great articles written by Harold Merklinger. Imo he writes in a pedagogical and clear manner explaining the principle.

http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/SHBG05.pdf,http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/SHBG06.pdf, http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/SHBG07.pdf, http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/SHBG08.pdf


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## surapon (Jan 15, 2014)

NWPhil said:


> surapon said:
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> > Dear Quasimodo
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Dear Friend , NWPhil.
The Bull eye target picture( From My BB-Gun Target Practice) , 1- I put at he back of Camera to show the Location of Sensor in the Camera, 3- of the Bull eye targets the Center is show of the Center Location of the Real Photo= at the Right Focus, The Left Bull eye target is show the Tilt of Lens toward the camera sensor( When I tilt the Lens to the Left position) = Make the Left side Details of Photos = Blur, The Right Bull eye target that show on the photo = move toward the front of the camera, or far away from the sensor, compare with the center bull eye position= that make the right side of the picture are blur. That how to change the DOF in both side of the Photo, and leave the center is only area is sharp.

Yes, I use this method to show to my Photography/ Camera club, to show them , how it work.
Here is a great Video that I adapt for my class

Using a Tilt Shift Lens: Ep 204: Digital Photography 1 on 1

Enjoy
Surapon


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## NWPhil (Jan 15, 2014)

surapon said:


> NWPhil said:
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> > surapon said:
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Dear Mr Surapon,
Thank you for taking the time to explain it so well - yes, it makes sense now


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## m (Jan 15, 2014)

surapon said:


> 1- I put at he back of Camera to show the Location of Sensor in the Camera,



Your camera comes with an indicator for that, showing where the film/sensor plane is within the camera:
Look for that symbol similar to the greek letter phi:

Φ

the line indicates the plane through the camera
The 5D cameras have that symbol on the left of the viewfinder box, near the mode dial.


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## Quasimodo (Jan 15, 2014)

m said:


> surapon said:
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> > 1- I put at he back of Camera to show the Location of Sensor in the Camera,
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Nice to finally know what that symbol means


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## surapon (Jan 15, 2014)

m said:


> surapon said:
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> > 1- I put at he back of Camera to show the Location of Sensor in the Camera,
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Thanks you, Sir, Dear M.
Thanks for Infor.. Yes My Large Bull eye Target just for Show and tell, In front of the Class, that the Members can see clear from the back of class room.
Have a good evening, Sir.
Surapon


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## ONeill (Jan 17, 2014)

The book you want is:

"Using the View Camera - A Creative Guide to Large Format Photography" (Revised Edition)
by Steve Simmons
Amphoto Books
ISBN 0-8174-6353-4 (pbk)

It's a comprehensive guide to using view cameras, but then of course the principles are exactly the same as are involved in the use of tilt-shift lenses. This book will answer all of your questions, comprehensively, without getting excessively involved in the mathematical theory and it's very readable. You can ignore the bits about film. The only thing it won't tell you is not to tighten the locking knobs on Canon's TS-E lenses too much. They're easy to break and expensive (very) to fix.


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## slclick (Jan 17, 2014)

One day..... that's what my Lensbaby mind tells me. I think the 17 and 24 have both been in my B&H wish list for 2 years!


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## Quasimodo (Jan 17, 2014)

ONeill said:


> The book you want is:
> 
> "Using the View Camera - A Creative Guide to Large Format Photography" (Revised Edition)
> by Steve Simmons
> ...



Thanks a lot I will get it soon. Nice of you also to point out that one should not tighten the locking screw too hard. I think that I might have, but luckily nothing has broken yet....


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## ahsanford (Jan 17, 2014)

Late to the party here, and I don't shoot T/S, but I did find this recent T/S video from the RokiBowYang camp quite interesting:

Samyang Tilt-Shift 24mm f/3.5 in action

Lots of examples. The idea of using T/S to keep a large depth of field in focus (albeit in a line) without having to stop down or composite multiple shots was pretty cool. (See 6:18 - 7:10).

- A


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## Quasimodo (Jan 17, 2014)

ahsanford said:


> Late to the party here, and I don't shoot T/S, but I did find this recent T/S video from the RokiBowYang camp quite interesting:
> 
> Samyang Tilt-Shift 24mm f/3.5 in action
> 
> ...



Better late than not attending at all  I will look at the video tomorrow as it is 12.30 am here now, and the kids show no mercy when it comes to sleeping habits appropriate for weekends


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## privatebydesign (Jan 17, 2014)

The entirety of what you need to understand is encapsulated in the two gif's on the page I linked to originally. 

Scheimpflug is only half the interesting bit, and his work has little relevance to us, he was only interested in huge J point distances that require very little tilt. His work was for battlefield imagery from balloons in the first world war.

Merklinger, and his J point/hinge line, are the really interesting bits for us and nothing explains this half as well as the gif does.

If you want a deeper understanding of the maths then Merklinger's free ebook, and lets not forget he actually wrote the book on this, is available here http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~ILIM/courses/vision-sensors/readings/FVC16.pdf

His other work, on depth of field for tilted images, is available entirely free too, here, http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/TIAOOFe.pdf

You do not need to buy anything to have the deepest understanding of tilt and shift use.


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## Quasimodo (Jan 17, 2014)

privatebydesign said:


> The entirety of what you need to understand is encapsulated in the two gif's on the page I linked to originally.
> 
> Scheimpflug is only half the interesting bit, and his work has little relevance to us, he was only interested in huge J point distances that require very little tilt. His work was for battlefield imagery from balloons in the first world war.
> 
> ...



Thank you PBD. I will read this first


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## LightandMotion (Jan 17, 2014)

Sorry, haven't read the whole thread, but from my perspective, Darwin Wiggett's ebook on TS was particularly helpful for me:

http://www.oopoomoo.com/ebook/the-tilt-shift-lens/


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## Quasimodo (Jan 18, 2014)

LightandMotion said:


> Sorry, haven't read the whole thread, but from my perspective, Darwin Wiggett's ebook on TS was particularly helpful for me:
> 
> http://www.oopoomoo.com/ebook/the-tilt-shift-lens/



Thanks  Surapon and others have suggested the book also in other treads here on TS. It looks good, but primarly on landscape, and not on other areas that I would like to explore.


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## JustMeOregon (Jan 18, 2014)

> Sorry, haven't read the whole thread, but from my perspective, Darwin Wiggett's ebook on TS was particularly helpful for me:
> 
> http://www.oopoomoo.com/ebook/the-tilt-shift-lens/



I'm not intending to be confrontational at all, but I found the Darwin ebook ("The Tilt-Shift Lens Advantage for Outdoor & Nature Photography") to be a complete waste of $20... It's overly simplistic and too full of "pretty pictures"... But my biggest problem with this book is with regards to his approach to finding the correct "balance" between lens-tilt & focus to achieve the "infinite depth-of-field effect" that most beginning tilt-shift-photographers struggle with... His technique of "bend (tilt) for background, [and then] focus for foreground" is the exact _opposite_ way everyone else does it; and his insistence that "if you mix these up, you’ll likely never find optimal tilt" is just flat-out wrong...

A quick Google-search will show that _everyone else_ tells you to "focus for the background & tilt for the foreground." It really isn't difficult at all to find the correct "balance" between lens-tilt & focus to get the "infinite depth-of-field effect." It's just really hard to try to explain to someone who hasn't spent an afternoon playing around (experimenting/practicing) with a TS lens. Those animated gif's referred to by privatebydesign (over at northlight-images http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/using_tilt.html) are a great way to get your head around the whole tilt vs focus thing... And once you're comfortable with the idea of balancing tilt & focus, a great short-cut (that I use all the time) is described here: http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/focus-with-tilt.html.

Richard


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