Colin Dutton
Lives in
Italy
Works as a
Photographer
Has a website at
http://www.colinduttonphotography.com
Joined on
Aug 4, 2005
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Comments
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Ad12: Forgive my ignorance, but I thought it was the tilt part of tilt shift lenses that allowed the proper framing and ensuring the sensor remains parallel to the building. What does a shift achieve? Couldn’t you just use a taller tripod?
Again, forgive my ignorance, curious.
AS Roland says, it's the shift that keeps things parallel, not the tilt. The 'taller tripod' thing isn't how it works. With a shift lens you're effectively looking up (or down or sideways) without moving the camera body.. the lens looks up while the camera stays level. The height of the shift movement relates to the angle that's you're looking up, not the height of the framing. Hope that makes sense!
Fungshui: Could someone enlighten me about what can be done by this shift lens but impossible to be done by perspective transformations on photoshop, besides a little sharper maybe?
I am perplexed about the value of a tilt and shift lens in a digital age. I think the effort required for a perfect architectural photo is much more using a tilt and shift lens than perspective transformation. Why bother?
It's probably something you need to try out for yourself to understand the advantages. It's certainly not complicated. Shift lenses are super-easy to use; level your camera and adjust your perspective as required by turning a knob. Bear in mind it's not just about correcting verticals, it's also about solving problems that certain buildings and spaces present. I can shoot apparently in front of a mirror and not see myself, I can centre the perspective in a part of the image that's not in the centre of the frame... and of course I can avoid converging verticals. And all of this is WYSIWYG, no second-guessing like you would if you did it in post. I can be much more accurate with my compositions. And I'm using all the pixels on my sensor without cropping anything out later. If you're not a working photographer it's probably difficult to justify the price. Like you say, you can do similar things by pulling an image around in Photoshop, but it's not really the same thing.
MrBrightSide: Talk about disruptive technology....
This accessory poses a serious, legitimate threat to the hegemony of full frame DSLRS because medium format film is to digital photography as Rembrandt is to those zoo elephants who push paint around a canvas with their trunks during zoo fundraisers.
Shoot film on a Pentax 645 or one of the European medium format cameras like Bronica or a Contax or Rollei that have those magical Old World lenses and prepare to have the veil lifted from your eyes.
Compare medium format film scans to the very best shots from your ConSoNikon and you will see digital photography for the snare and delusion it truly is.
Thanks for the tip.
At the risk of seeming pernickety, Bronica was Japanese, not European ;-)
Sad news. I had the pleasure of meeting him some years ago and he very kindly suggested we sit down together to look through a body of work I had recently produced. He came across as being humble, generous and totally engaged in the act of looking.
Chris Dodkin: Elinchrom can't innovate fast enough for the market. They take too long, and when it arrives it's too expensive, and lacks features.
In contrast, Godox already confirmed their stand at the show.
They'll be busy eating Elinchrom's lunch I'm sure.
I agree with Chris. I'm another long-term Elinchrom user switching to Godox at the moment, at least for work on-location. I've been using Quadras for many years but now a Godox 600-pro together with a couple of AD200s and a twin head give me a really flexible set-up with HSS, TTL, 1000wS of flash and no cables... all for less than the price of a single ELB500. The Quadras have served me well over the years but they've not been without their problems and the Godox, so far, seem like very well made and designed units. Time will tell of course.
How's that bike standing up on its own in the first shot?
(unknown member): Impress would-be clients with gear? Really? Is it just me having bad luck for more than 40 years with much more cirtical and smarter customers? The first thing most clients ask is your portfolio and references. Rarely do they show any interest in the gear I use. Actually most of them don't give a hoot .... unless they have photographic knowledge and very specific demands. Again, that's rare ...
Clients get to see my camera. Would-be clients get to see my estimates.
obsolescence: Nikon should have designed a removable tripod collar so that only the camera moves and shift-stitching avoids parallax. But I guess that wouldn't work too well with their humongous pro bodies -- if only they had a mirrorless.
How about a filter holder and adjustable hood/flag for this lens. Don't they listen to us?
AD in KC.. for stitching you could also give PTGui a try which is what I've been using for years.
obsolescence: Nikon should have designed a removable tripod collar so that only the camera moves and shift-stitching avoids parallax. But I guess that wouldn't work too well with their humongous pro bodies -- if only they had a mirrorless.
How about a filter holder and adjustable hood/flag for this lens. Don't they listen to us?
Here in Italy they did design such a collar and it's distributed through Nital (the official Nikon dealer here). It keeps the lens still and moves only the camera body when shifting so, as you say, it allows perfect stitching. But bear in mind that the shift movements in this case are used for creating larger files and increasing the field of view, not for correcting parallax. It's called the Jumbo MultiBigShot. I have one and it works really well. Here's a link:
https://www.nikonschool.it/experience/jumbo-mbs.php
Jeff Seltzer: I actually own the camera. As a professional photographer, I can say it's my most favorite camera ever owned. The OVF is not a gimmick, and I like to use it in conjunction with the EVF. The camera's handling is great, and images are fantastic. It's more fun and engaging to use than my old Canon DSLRs. It might not win on every objective spec, but the whole is more than the sum of the parts. It's a great camera. Is it "worth" the price? Value is subjective. I think it's worth it.
Like Jeff I'm also a professional and I recently bought a Pro2 for travel jobs, along with a Pro1 as a second body. The Pro1 is sweet but the Pro2 has blown me away. It's my new all-time favourite. Small but not too small, super sharp and just fun to shoot with. I tried an X-T1 but couldn't get on with it. The Pro2 is like a breath of fresh air compared with my Nikons and image quality with the primes is fantastic. Whether the love affair continues over time depends on its reliability. We shall see.
The link is dead...404 page not found
Hmm, I click the link but can't see any images.
Someone should design a cartridge sensor that can can slot into any 35mm film camera.
Mike Sandman: Thanks for posting these. I've ordered the NEX-6 hoping that the 16-50 lens would be better than the 18-55, and despite the complaints here, the shots are useful and I'm somewhat encouraged about the 16-50.
At last a voice of reason! I found them useful too and am also encouraged. I was worried after looking at the 'official' shots from Alaska but these show more promise.
Clyde Thomas: Three lenses all defocusing on the right. I think someone licked the SLT mirror. I can't see DPReview having three lenses all with decentering issues. This is a camera issue. I'd bet that SLT mirror got touched somehow.
70-400G The entire right side of image is blurred. Center very sharp. Left sharp enough.
16-35 ZA Entire right side of image blurred crazy. Sharp center and left.
ZA 24-70 Wild field curvature on right side. Front grass on right is sharp. Center sharp. Trees at top rear peak sharp. But trees at top right blurred. They should be sharp, being centered between rear trees and forground grass. Image left side is sharp within focus plane.
Come on DPReview... you're not looking at your samples close enough. Something is wrong here. If you want us to look at them 100%... then you should too. Something is amiss with the landscapes on three different lenses.
They look fine?? Are you viewing at 100%? The landscapes are shockingly bad. It's nothing to do with DOF.
That 16-35mm has got to be a duff sample. The landscape 0099 is simply terrible. The centre is kind of blotchy sharp but the rest is a complete mash. Notice the trees on the right strangely get a little sharper again just before the border.
BiggerDiggler: In two years, BOTH Hasselblad and Sony will be bent over a table with their pants down around their ankles by the newest smartphone technology. They are BOTH going to circle the drain, and so will most of the professional photographers lambasting this abortion, when the next generation of smartphones, pursuant to Moore's Law, will magically turn its ignorant and untrained holder into an unsuspecting Bresson shooting a Leica.
In a $39.95 phone with a two-year contract extension.
Frankly, I will be surprised if Nikon and Canon will be around in ten years, given the exploding capabilities of the smartphone, or ANY professional photographer, for that matter.
What Hasselblad is doing here is a thinly-disguised act of desperation. The writing is on the well. Hasselblad should be congratulated for seeing, albeit at the last moment.
You're still only talking about technology. These changes are not going to spell the end of professional photography. No client has ever asked me what camera i use. They hire me because they know i'll get the job done. The 'job' usually involves organisation, schedules, budgets, travel, lighting, assistants, art directors, stylists... The camera, in whatever form it may take in the future, is not going to get the job done on its own.
Every home may have a microwave oven and everyone can warm up a frozen meal in five minutes, but the world still needs professional chefs.
BiggerDiggler: In two years, BOTH Hasselblad and Sony will be bent over a table with their pants down around their ankles by the newest smartphone technology. They are BOTH going to circle the drain, and so will most of the professional photographers lambasting this abortion, when the next generation of smartphones, pursuant to Moore's Law, will magically turn its ignorant and untrained holder into an unsuspecting Bresson shooting a Leica.
In a $39.95 phone with a two-year contract extension.
Frankly, I will be surprised if Nikon and Canon will be around in ten years, given the exploding capabilities of the smartphone, or ANY professional photographer, for that matter.
What Hasselblad is doing here is a thinly-disguised act of desperation. The writing is on the well. Hasselblad should be congratulated for seeing, albeit at the last moment.
You're forgetting something. Most pros are not hired for their cameras but for what they can do with their cameras. The technology may change but the pros will remain.
tektrader: I have a 28mm nikon PC lens whihc is quite good. But you know what? for doing stitched panoramas, its Too wide.
While this lens may be nice for single shot landscapes and architectural photos. I do 8 shots dual row panoramas and its just too wide.
50-80mm would be awesome for me. Maybe they will do that next? :)
Here in Italy Nital make a support for PC lenses specifically for three-shot panoramics. The Jumbo MBS keeps the lens fixed so shift movements will actually move the body rather than the lens. This makes for perfect stitching, even with close subjects.
meanwhile: Wondering, does this become a 35mm-ish equivalent T-S lens when put onto a APS-C crop camera, or it is more complicated than that because it's a T-S lens (that is, is there any loss of functionality)?
Yes, it becomes a 35mm-ish, as you say, and will work just the same. I've used a 24-PC on a Nikon D7000. The only limiting factor was the overhang on the top of the camera which prevented full shift movement. If you shoot Nikon make sure your body is compatible with full movements before buying.