High resolution sensors and portrait orientation

[GreatOceanSoftware]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation. So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.


I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

--
Randy

 

[Alan Hewitt Photo]

I did it a fair bit with the GFX and GF500mm and now and again I do so with the X-Mount

 

[Morris0]

I crop to vertical regularly with my 26MP sensor cameras. The difference is tiny between rotating the camera and has the advantage of the camera's AF working better.

Morris

 

[nnowak]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation. So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

I will occasionally make vertical crops from the 26MP sensor on the X-H2s and have gone down as low as 8MP. While there is a clear loss in detail, the images are still very usable. I mostly shoot action sports and a well framed image of a decisive moment is more important than pixel level detail.

 

[José B]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation. So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

Sometimes I crop my images and IMHO my X100VI has a lot of cropping power.

 

[Dem Bell]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

I think you mean a computer screen rather than a camera screen. I still don't understand.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

Not me, but now I feel like I'm missing out

 

[Northcoast216]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

I think you mean a computer screen rather than a camera screen. I still don't understand.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

Not me, but now I feel like I'm missing out

I think very much has to do with what you are shooting; if you're in the moment and/or shooting fast, i find rotating the camera to be distracting/disorienting.

If however, I'm shooting slow, methodically, and especially if using a tripod, then yes rotating to vertical is something I do when practical.

 

[Morris0]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

Mirrorless cameras focus better in landscape orientation.

Morris

 

[chrisfisheye]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation. So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

I understand your point.

This is one of the reason I would appreciate to have larger sensors, still aps-c but square sensors.

By cropping in your case, you can not have as shallow dof (in case you want it..) and also cleaner image (but at the price of shallower dof).

A square sensor would be great also to make panoramas ! It is better to shoot in portrait mode but I do not like it and this means I have to shoot more images.

 

[GreatOceanSoftware]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

I think you mean a computer screen rather than a camera screen. I still don't understand.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

Not me, but now I feel like I'm missing out

Of course, shoot portrait mode when you need it. But if your screen only tilts up/down and you want portrait mode from a high/low angle, then what I’m doing is shooting in landscape orientation but cropping a vertical oriented final image. Sorry, I should’ve been clearer. Yes, I shoot “normal” portrait orientation photos most of the time.

But I’m beginning to think of my sensor as a smaller square “Hasselblad” in these situations.

--
Randy

 

[GreatOceanSoftware]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

Mirrorless cameras focus better in landscape orientation.

Morris

Interesting, Morris. I’m usually taking my time and shooting mostly static subjects, so I’ve never noticed.

 

[nnowak]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

As I mentioned above, I mostly shoot action sports. Head on shots can often look better in portrait orientation. Side profile shot can often look better in landscape. From when the athlete enters the frame, to when they are past me, can take as little as 2 seconds. There simply isn't time to rotate the camera. Especially when keeping the athlete centered in the frame can be enough of a challenge.

Years ago, when the D800 came out, I had heard of wedding photographers starting to only shoot in landscape orientation. With 36MP, there was more than enough resolution for the typical 8X10 when making a portrait orientation crop. Besides simplifying shooting, it made things a whole lot easier when using a shoe mounted flash. Prior to this, people were using all sorts of contraptions to keep the flash above the camera when rotating to portrait orientation.

 

[José B]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation. So that relaxes the desire somewhat to have a screen that articulates in the portrait orientation.

My two main outlets are social media and printed books (usually 11x11 format), and they just don't require that much resolution.

I'd be curious to know if anyone is shooting this way?

Sometimes I crop my images and IMHO my X100VI has a lot of cropping power.

I re-read your message.....this one is from landscape to portrait.

 

[Dem Bell]

I'm finding that the higher resolution sensors give me enough wiggle room to stay in landscape orientation, even if I intend the final crop to be portrait orientation.

What's the advantage of staying in landscape orientation when you want a portrait shot? I would just turn the camera to fit the scene.

As I mentioned above, I mostly shoot action sports. Head on shots can often look better in portrait orientation. Side profile shot can often look better in landscape. From when the athlete enters the frame, to when they are past me, can take as little as 2 seconds. There simply isn't time to rotate the camera. Especially when keeping the athlete centered in the frame can be enough of a challenge.

Years ago, when the D800 came out, I had heard of wedding photographers starting to only shoot in landscape orientation. With 36MP, there was more than enough resolution for the typical 8X10 when making a portrait orientation crop. Besides simplifying shooting, it made things a whole lot easier when using a shoe mounted flash. Prior to this, people were using all sorts of contraptions to keep the flash above the camera when rotating to portrait orientation.

Thank you for the explanation. Both points make perfect sense.

 

[Truman Prevatt]

The beauty of the 6x6 format cameras of the film days, the Bronica, Hasselblad not to mention the TLR's was you did not need to concern yourself with camera orientation. Landscape and portrait were both crops off the square negative. The Mamiya RB67 - always shot in one orientation - landscape vs. portrait was differentiated by rotating the back (RB = rotating back).

Without a vertical grip, portrait can be awkward - especially if you are flipping between landscape and portrait quickly. Shooting portrait without a vertical grip puts your hands controlling the camera in an awkward position. That's why professional cameras have fully functional vertical grips available (XH2, XH2, Z8, etc.) or even built in (Z9, R1, etc.) .

The resolution of the XT5 or XH2 is more than sufficient for shooting all images in a comfortable landscape orientation and cropping to portrait. When shooting off a tripod or monopod, the awkwardness of handholding a portrait orientation of course goes away but you would need an L-bracket.