Tilt Shift Photography Tutorial
I have always had an interest in the features that can be produced using specialist Tilt Shift lenses. Available from both Canon and Nikon, they allow the photographer to make tilt and shift adjustments relative to the image plane. However, these lenses are very expensive unless you will be specializing in this area. Even the cheaper Lensbaby is still expensive if, like me you only want to experiment with the techniques. However, there is a cheaper alternative using Adobe Photoshop.
Tilt shift photographs can produce some interesting results, making the image seem like it is in miniature.
Even though the effect is produced entirely in software, it can produce some amazing results. I have included some links to galleries at the end of this article. You will be amazed at what can be produced, and it shows that I have a long way to go …
This article was inspired by the great tutorial from Receding Hairline. Many thanks for the great work you have put into producing that article.
To help explain tilt shift photography, I have found this article written by Ken Rockwell to be very helpful.
I used the following image for this article, with processing in Aperture 2.1 exporting to Photoshop CS3.
The starting image is very important in determining the quality of the final image. I have found that images taken from a high vantage point, with either traffic, people or small buildings to be the most successful. However, I am yet to match the quality of some of the galleries I have seen, so I will be continuing to experiment with different images. To be honest, the image above is not the best to use, but it does show the possibilities that can be achieved.
Gradient Mask
After exporting your photo from Aperture (iPhoto also allows exporting and editing in Photoshop), you will need to enter the Quick Mask mode by pressing q. Select the Gradient Tool by pressing g and set default the tool colors to black/white by pressing d. Invert the colors to white/blank by pressing the small double-ended arrow nest to the color selector. The following shows the changes to the default colors.
to
Select the Reflected Gradient tool, which is the 4th gradient tool from the left. The tool settings should match those shown below.
You now need to apply the gradient mask to the image. Start by selected the focal point of the image, which is typically around the center. Now, whilst holding the mouse down, move the cursor towards the top of the image (you can also move towards the bottom.) You do not have to reach the top and you can make a slight angle to match any particular angle within the image.
Now press q again to take you out of the Quick Mask mode.
Lens Blur
To add blur to the image, the Lens Blur filter is used. Select Filter -> Blur -> Lens Blur. The blur settings I used were taken directly from the original tutorial and make a great starting point. As applying the lens blur can be quite slow, repeatedly adjusting the values and applying the filter to see the result can be a time consuming exercise. I also felt that the available preview modes (both Faster and More Accurate) were not always an accurate representation to that when applied to the image.
If after you apply the filter, the image does not really have that ‘Tilt-Shift’ look, you may need to either adjust the mask position and size or adjust the lens blur settings.
It is worth repeating how important the initial image is. A lot of the images I passed through this technique did not really work out that well. After a while you gain a greater understanding of what changes the mask and lens blur filter will make, therefore helping determine the likelihood of a successful result.
Curves
Even though this step is optional, I feel that it helps to give an even more artificial effect to the image. Open the curves adjustment Image -> Adjustments -> Curves and adjust the curve to be similar to that shown.
The following close-up of the final image shows the area where the tilt shift effect can be seen.
Clicking on the image below will open a large version of the complete image.
Links
I have found a lot of useful information of the Web related to Tilt Shift photography (both with and without a specialised lens.) The following provided both inspiration and a source of information and direction.
- The article that inspired me to look further at Tilt Shift photography
- Tilt Shift Photoshop Tutorial: How to Make Fake Miniature Scenes
- Tilt-Shift Photography: It’s a Small World After All
- Flickr Group dedicated to Tilt Shift photography
- Ken Rockwell detailed description on tilt shift photography
Extras
The images below are some other images I made during the development of this article.
Tags: Photography Techniques, Photoshop
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