Anyone have experience using 35mm tilt & shift ?

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John McGraw - 16 Jun 2004 09:49 GMT

Please forgive me for asking this question in lg. format NG. But I'm
hoping that you folks might know more about this, than the people at
smaller format NGs.

I've been invited to be to participate in an architectural project.
The goal is publication. My tools of choice are a 4x5 monorail using
scanned negative color film w/ 4 lenses of 240mm; 150mm; 90mm; & one
shorter. I have the first four. I would have to obtain the shorter
one.

However the financier of the projects wants to use digital. (For
environmental, health, and reasons of economy. [Her opinions, not
mine] Plus she is very skilled w/ Photoshop) Do to the incredibly high
cost of digital for any format larger that full 35mm, we are left w/
no choice other than 35mm or smaller.

1. Of the several 35mm format, or smaller, tilt & shift lenses, do any
give enough shift to actually be of much value for correcting
perspective?

2. Also how does one compose & focus on a mirror that's between the
lens & focal plane w/ the lens shifted? Wouldn't the angle of mirror
being between the lens & focal plane cause distortion or misalignment
of the image between the focal plane & the SLR ground glass?

Oh by the way, I'm basing these questions on the assumption that all
4x5 digital backs are in the >$20K range. I hope I'm wrong. Are there
any <$10K? That would fit the budget, and be ideal.

Thanks for any help John

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obakesan - 22 Jun 2004 11:48 GMT

HiYa

>Please forgive me for asking this question in lg. format NG. But I'm
>hoping that you folks might know more about this, than the people at
>smaller format NGs.

no problems ... I've been using an EOS with a 24TS-E and 90TS-E for a bit
before I got into LF

>I've been invited to be to participate in an architectural project.
>The goal is publication. My tools of choice are a 4x5 monorail using
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>cost of digital for any format larger that full 35mm, we are left w/
>no choice other than 35mm or smaller.

can't see that ... a new flatbed epson scanner will do a nice job for
scanning the LF and while won't do the 4000dpi of the 35mm scanner, will do a
much more than you'd need for all the publications I can imagine ...

I'd suggest that you can scan your 4x5 to someting like 10,000 pixels across
the top, and thats about double the size you'll get out of 35mm

now assuming your using film, not a digital slr, the lenses you have will give
you the angle of view you expect

I've had some problems with scans of 35mm that had a slight buckle in it,
finding that it reduced the available detail from the image ... then there's
grain at those magnifications ....

>1. Of the several 35mm format, or smaller, tilt & shift lenses, do any
>give enough shift to actually be of much value for correcting
>perspective?

I've been very impressed with my TS-E 24 for that, but less so the 90, however
tilts on the 90 are very handy for some landscapes I do ....

>2. Also how does one compose & focus on a mirror that's between the
>lens & focal plane w/ the lens shifted? Wouldn't the angle of mirror
>being between the lens & focal plane cause distortion or misalignment
>of the image between the focal plane & the SLR ground glass?

nope ... works perfectly ... HOWEVER you do have to be careful with exposure
on shifting as the exposure changes, something to do with the way the ground
glass is 'etched' to increase light ... the manuals say set exposure without
shifting ... I use manual, expose, and shif ... either that or my Pentax
spotmeter :D

>Oh by the way, I'm basing these questions on the assumption that all
>4x5 digital backs are in the >$20K range. I hope I'm wrong. Are there
>any <$10K? That would fit the budget, and be ideal.

why not use film, and scan it with the epson ... you'll get more pixels :D

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/consumer/consDetail.
jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&oid=40524123

>Thanks for any help John

See Ya
(when bandwidth gets better ;-)

Chris Eastwood
Photographer, Programmer
Motorcyclist and dingbat

please remove undies for reply

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obakesan - 24 Jun 2004 14:31 GMT

HiYa

>no problems ... I've been using an EOS with a 24TS-E and 90TS-E for a bit
>before I got into LF

ohh ... thought I'd mention, the 90 is about one of the sweetest lenses I've
used :D

See Ya
(when bandwidth gets better ;-)

Chris Eastwood
Photographer, Programmer
Motorcyclist and dingbat

please remove undies for reply

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brian - 22 Jun 2004 22:34 GMT

> Please forgive me for asking this question in lg. format NG. But I'm
> hoping that you folks might know more about this, than the people at
[quoted text clipped - 26 lines]
>
> Thanks for any help John

My experience with shift lenses for 35mm format has not been good due
to lens aberration problems. Image quality is OK for small prints,
but nowhere near 4x5. With modest digital equipment you can easily
exceed 4x5 image quality and perspective control via stitching, but be
prepared to put in some effort. The stitching technique is ideally
suited to architecture.

Brian
www.caldwellphotographic.com

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