Lf portrait movements?

[Ed1111]

Hello. I’ve been surprised how little info I can find about the movements one might use in making large-format portraits. I can hear your reply: “LF portraitists don’t use many movements, rookie. That’s why the old studio cameras didn’t even offer many movements.”
And yet…there must be some movements especially useful in portraiture. One tip I stumbled on was to use shift, rise, and fall for minor framing adjustments without spoiling the moment (and focus) by moving the tripod or subject. Maybe that’s obvious, but I didn’t think of it.
Tilt for focus plain control: That’s also obvious. But what about tilt for eliminating distortion? If you put your camera high and aim down for a waist up portrait, do you put your rear standard vertical to avoid distortion? Any other movements you use? Thanks!

[MenacingTourist]

My portraits are generally made with very old lenses and camera, so no real movements to speak of. But when I use the little 4x5 Cambo I use movements for the distortions. I like to add a little surrealism once in a while.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I usually use some rise/fall for framing and maybe a little tilt to adjust the focal plane, but not much else. If you place the camera high and more or less level and use rise/fall to frame, then you shouldn't have too much distortion to be concerned about, and unless you're photographing SpongeBob Squarepants, you don't usually have to worry about very noticably converging verticals.

[Frank Petronio]

I wish I was a good enough photographer to monkey with tilts and swings to create different focus effects with my portraits. But when I shoot people I have enough going on rather than adding another level of photo nerdiness to the situation. Instead I try to streamline the process so I can shoot 4x5 quicker. I don't "machine gun" but spending an extra 30 seconds under a dark cloth can really kill the mood.

[Michael Gordon]

It won't hurt to experiment to find movements or a combination of movements you like. The ground glass will tell you all you need to know.

[PViapiano]

Look for photographer Brooks Ayola on Flickr. He has a bunch of 4x5 portraits that use tilt to alter the focus plane, and is very effective. You may have to search through his photostream, as he is a very prolific professional, and you have to find them interspersed throughout his d*g*t*l output, too, but don't tell anyone else here...sshh!

[Christopher Perez]

I use rear tilts to bring the various elements of a portrait into a single plane of focus. For instance, just yesterday I was photographing a child seated in a chair and wanted to get the eyes and hands as they rested on the arm of the chair into focus. So a little tilt was required to get things the way I wanted them.

Then... there's that oh so trendy use of extreme tilts to get everything out of focus but the eyes. I personally can't stand that much tilt. But to each their own.

[Mark Sawyer]

With the renewed appreciation of soft-focus optics, and especially the use of such lenses on larger-than-intended-for formats, I think the movements are important for moving the sharp center of the image to juuuuust the right place...

[Ken Lee]

Every situation is different.

This one (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/portraits/g0806.htm) required some tilt to get the feet and legs into focus.

This one (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/portraits/chey1.htm) required a bit of rise to get the legs into the frame.

This one (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/portraits/biker.htm) required some swing to get the wall in focus.

.. and this one (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/portraits/tavern.htm) required some shift to move the building to the left a bit, while keeping the line straight.

[Alan Davenport]

Ken, thanks for the excellent examples.

[dietcookie]

Every situation is different.



.. and this one (http://www.kenleegallery.com/html/portraits/tavern.htm) required some shift to move the building to the left a bit, while keeping the line straight.

sweet shot

[Maris Rusis]

When doing face portraits on 8x10 with very shallow depth of field (360mm lens wide open, for example) I swing the back to get the catch-lights in both eyes simultaneously sharp. Then I tilt the back to get the edge of the bottom lip sharp as well. Some back and forth, some rechecking is required but when all three points are sharp its time to shoot.

The eyes and the lips are the parts of the face one attends to when looking intently and respectfully at someone. Maybe this is why ultra shallow depth of field portraits can be very powerful even though almost all the picture is mush.

[Steven Barall]

I think it was Shaw who said that the best way to learn to write plays is by writing a lot of plays. Experimenting is the best way to go because then you'll really learn instead of just remembering what people have told you. That said, get a good view camera book to learn the important basics. Everyone recommends Steve Simmon's book.

[Frank Petronio]

I don't! I like Jim Stone's book better ;)

[C. D. Keth]

When doing face portraits on 8x10 with very shallow depth of field (360mm lens wide open, for example) I swing the back to get the catch-lights in both eyes simultaneously sharp. Then I tilt the back to get the edge of the bottom lip sharp as well. Some back and forth, some rechecking is required but when all three points are sharp its time to shoot.

The eyes and the lips are the parts of the face one attends to when looking intently and respectfully at someone. Maybe this is why ultra shallow depth of field portraits can be very powerful even though almost all the picture is mush.

That's a really excellent way to do it. I like the three-point approach as it speeds things up. Thanks!

[John Kasaian]

I can't say that I use any movements, or if I do they are minimal. I do prefer a wider lens sometimes (250 WF Ektar in 8x10) to take advantage of the 'gentle' distortion.