Tilt Shift Lens questions

dugmar · March 31, 2004

I take a lot of photos of products and my fiance's business is pastries, so we take a lot of food shots. Would a tilt shift lens help us? I get a lot of distortion from my normal lens, annoyingly so sometimes.

I was thinking about trying one but they are $$$. This one from Canon is $1100 - $1500

Are there inexpensive alternatives that would get me similar results? I shoot with a Canon Digital Rebel.

Thanks,

-Doug

pathfinder · March 31, 2004

dugmar wrote:

I take a lot of photos of products and my fiance's business is pastries, so we take a lot of food shots. Would a tilt shift lens help us? I get a lot of distortion from my normal lens, annoyingly so sometimes.

I was thinking about trying one but they are $$$. This one from Canon is $1100 - $1500

Are there inexpensive alternatives that would get me similar results? I shoot with a Canon Digital Rebel.

Thanks,

-Doug

I am not sure what kind of distortion you are experiencing with a normal lens - can you post a fewshots and let us see what you are trying to eliminate.

The T&S lenses are speciallized lenses and require shooting from a tripod. The are not automatic focus - they have to be manually focused - That actually is one of their advantages - T&S lenses are used primarily for architecture and landscapes - but are also the basis of studio camera product photography. Tilt and shift allow correction for perspective distortion and much greater depth of field than can be obtained with standard lenses. The increase in depth of field comes via the tilt of the lens and the Scheimpflug principle ( I think that is spelled right) More information about Tilt and SHift can be found here http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/movements.shtml

For closeups of food I wonder if a macro might be helpful. Let us see your images and then maybe we can make a suggestion.

dugmar · March 31, 2004

pathfinder wrote:

I am not sure what kind of distortion you are experiencing with a normal lens - can you post a fewshots and let us see what you are trying to eliminate. .

Sure, for example, see the dots on the background I used here for these sway bars. Bowed when in fact they are straight across.

wxwax · March 31, 2004

Would that be what they call pin-cushioning from a wider angle lens that's zoomed-out?

If so, it should be fixable with software. Or perhaps by using a non-wide angle lens?

Here's a link for fixing pin cushion distortion. And here's a link to a freeware plug-in for Photoshop to fix either barrel or pincushion distortion... if that's what the problem actually is.

pathfinder · March 31, 2004

wxwax wrote:

Would that be what they call pin-cushioning from a wider angle lens that's zoomed-out?

If so, it should be fixable with software. Or perhaps by using a non-wide angle lens?

Here's a link for fixing pin cushion distortion. And here's a link to a freeware plug-in for Photoshop to fix either barrel or pincushion distortion... if that's what the problem actually is.

Wxwax is correct - no Tilt and Shift needed here - just use a normal lens rather than a wide angle or correct with software.

How exactly are you using the steel rods and bolts in your pastries???

You said you are shooting with a "normal lens" with the Digital Rebel - do you perhaps mean the 18-55 EFS zoom that comes with the Digital Rebel? That may be the source of some of your distortion - you might consider a 50mmf1.8 prime lens in its place.

wxwax · April 1, 2004

pathfinder wrote:

How exactly are you using the steel rods and bolts in your pastries???

Gives a new meaning to the phrase "snack bar."

cletus · April 1, 2004

wxwax wrote:

Gives a new meaning to the phrase "snack bar."

Man, that was bad.

Seriously,

Pathfinder & wxwax are right. A lot of serious table top shooters use 4x5 cameras with 210mm lenses. A 210mm 4x5 lens would be equivalent to 41mm on a Digital Rebel. So a 50mm lens would be just about right.

cletus · April 1, 2004

Here's another thought.

If you're wanting to get really serious about table-top shots, in the $1100 to $1500 price range (the price of the Canon tilt/shift lens) you might be able to get either a new low end or used mid-range 4x5" view camera, a 210mm lens, and a polariod back. Shoot your stuff on 4x5" polariods and flat-bed scan them. The image resolution would probably be just as good as the shots through the Digital Rebel. This way you would have all the control in the world over depth of field and perspective distortion.

dugmar · April 1, 2004

pathfinder wrote:

Wxwax is correct - no Tilt and Shift needed here - just use a normal lens rather than a wide angle or correct with software.

How exactly are you using the steel rods and bolts in your pastries???

You said you are shooting with a "normal lens" with the Digital Rebel - do you perhaps mean the 18-55 EFS zoom that comes with the Digital Rebel? That may be the source of some of your distortion - you might consider a 50mmf1.8 prime lens in its place.

I sell performance BMW parts. Those are sway bars. The wife owns a pastry business.

Yes, the lens I used was the 18-55 EFS lens that came with the camera.

Thanks for the help!

Doug

mercphoto · May 17, 2004

The 18-55 EFS lens

pathfinder wrote:

You said you are shooting with a "normal lens" with the Digital Rebel - do you perhaps mean the 18-55 EFS zoom that comes with the Digital Rebel? That may be the source of some of your distortion - you might consider a 50mmf1.8 prime lens in its place.

What precisely is "wrong" with that lens? And I have been strongly considering the 28-135 IS/USM lens.

pathfinder · May 18, 2004

mercphoto wrote:

What precisely is "wrong" with that lens? And I have been strongly considering the 28-135 IS/USM lens.

There is nothing REALLY wrong with the 18-55 ( my wife uses the same lens for her 300D and it takes great pictures) , but like Wxwax said the short zooms tend to have some pincushion or barrel distortion - more than a 50mm macro or a TSE lens for instance. That is the distortion I was refering to.

Tilt Shift Lens questions

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