I have recently purchased a canon 90mm 2.8 tilt lens; the main purpose being for flower photography.
I've read several "how to" sheets on the net, but still cannot fathom how to use this lens correctly. I've seen some excellent results so I know it isn't the lens - it's me!
They say "focus on the distance wide open, then tilt the lens (using the t knob) and wait until the foreground moves into focus. Then, focus on the distance again and close down a stop or two for better DOF.
OK this is what I have been doing - but when you use the tilt knob only a section of the image is in focus - not the entire image. So a lot of cropping is needed to get only the in focus material.
I'm obviously lost. Can someone help me please. Thanks....Iain
The amount of tilt you need depends on the focal length and how far the camera is located above the ground (assuming it's the horizontal plane you want in focus). I think the best place to learn about how to use camera movements is the Large Format Photography site. This page has probably the best discussion on using tilt:
If you can post a photo or a link to one that shows the kind of problem you're having it will help us diagnose it. The shorter TS lenses can get fairly extreme foreground/background ranges in focus, the 90mm less so. However it also possible to over tilt. You really should be able to see what's happening as you tilt through the viewfinder, ie if you're over tilting you should see the foreground go through good focus to OOF, but if the lens can't be tilted far enough you'll see it get better but not completely in focus. By the way I prefer to focus on the middle distance, or even middle/foregound before I start tilting.
Most new users to the Tilt/Shift lenses crank the tilt or shift to its maximum. Not the best way...
If say you are shooting some products from slightly above then you will need some tilt but not a lot of tilt. Its best to start with the lens at normal and carefully increase the tilt. The refocus and check the exposure.
A good test is to shoot a tape measure on the floor. Have the end of the measure in the bottom of the photo while the camera is set vertically on a tripod. Pull the tape out like six feet. Shoot a pic at f/2.8 at the middle of the of the tape measure. Then repeat at f/11. Then play with the tilt until you think you have the best depth of focus. Repeat the test and shoot one more at 5.6.
You will find that the tilt shot shots (if done properly) yield great DOF. And the amount of tilt is not that much.
The best way of REALLY playing with all this is by fiddling with a 4x5 view camera. IMO, playing with a view camera is great experience even if all you shoot is 35mm...
it is not obvious if you completely understand that you don't technically get any more DOF from a T/S lens, just the ability to tilt the plane of focus within the scene.
Hopefully you have a body with a good focusing screen... then I just focus on my subject and rock the knob and pay attention to the extremes and see how good I can get... even handheld I am usually very happy with my results. The 90 is a great lens! To avoid metering problems I mainly rely on manual mode and Sunny-16 outdoors.
it is not obvious if you completely understand that you don't technically get any more DOF from a T/S lens, just the ability to tilt the plane of focus within the scene.
Yes I understand this - I just need to play I guess....Iain
