When using movements in an effort to bring the entire frame into focus, Does everything come into tack sharp focus or will part of the image still be a little bit soft?
I have only tried this with table top shots. and when the lens is wide open to focus the further out from the center which comes into sharp focus, the softer the image becomes. of course when I stop down to make the shot my DOF will increase.
Generalizations are made because they are Generally true...
Unless your subject is a flat plane (like a wall), chances are you will see what you have already experienced...especially for table-top work where your DoF will be shorter due to the close working distance. Distance scenes where only simple movements are needed you might have everything in focus wide open.
I find the 'best' place to set the focus in the scene by focusing part way into the scene (about 1/3 of the way into it), then close the lens down while looking at the GG. My working theory is that if both near and far parts of the scene come into focus at the same time (as I close the aperature down), then I have it focused in the right place. If the foreground comes into focus at, lets say f11 and the background does not come into focus until f22, then I might refocus a little further out and try again.
"Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China
Let's say you're shooting this scene with a view camera and you tilt the front standard so that the plane of focus goes from the closest grains of sand to the distant mountains.
With the lens wide open (especially a long lens with shallow depth of field) the camel and the item being carried by the camel will be jutting out of the plane of focus. They will not be in focus.
You'll need to stop-down the lens considerably to get the top of the camel into focus.
A view camera can correct for certain things, but not for everything.
See Fred Newman's excellent YouTube video View Camera Movements for a live demonstration of how to arrange the standards, then stop-down.
A Google camel! cool...but spooky how the handler leaves no footprints!
"Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China
Stopping 'way down' has a bad reputation for losing sharpness. Don't you believe it. Adjusting aperture, not fiddling around with camera movements, should be the first step in achieving a sharp image. THEN the flexibility of a view camera is a significant bonus, but should not be made into a fetish. (Note: this is just MY opinion, may not be shared by many LF photographers.)
Wilhelm (Sarasota)
Oh, Bill... you went there. You're brave!Originally Posted by Bill_1856
My sentiments exactly. So much so that I've been told that I really don't know how to use a view camera, and if I do then I surely don't use it to maximum advantage. Anything could be true, but I've seem way too many beginners get too frustrated fiddling with too much movement when a bit of DoF would have done the job.
Only one geometric plane can be in focus at one time.
Ha ha, the camel must be in 'street view', but the handler is not.
My cameras have tended not to have zeroing indents on the standards, or a minimum of them, so adjusting the standards (movements) relative to the image on the GG usually directly follows the basic framing the image for me. Movements are part of structuring the image on the GG, though sometimes the standards end up being 'zeroed', or neutral position. I guess since I move the standards to reach the zeroed position, it seems strange to say I used no movements...
Sometimes I will meter before I set the camera up so that I know what f/stop and shutter speeds I have to work with in creating the image. If I am limited to closing down to f22 due to wind, light or whatever, then I might create a slightly different image, perhaps using more movements than I would if I had the opportunity to close down to f64 or f90.
So I guess I am saying that aperture, shutter speed, and the position of the standards and lens board all come into play in creating an image. Using camera movements are part of my creative process...I just load that info towards the front end of the process. Not the 'best' way...just one of many ways people use cameras.
"Landscapes exist in the material world yet soar in the realms of the spirit..." Tsung Ping, 5th Century China
Everything in the focal plane should be tack sharp, unless you have positioned the image circle too close to the edge of the frame.
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