Straightening Vertical Lines in Photographs (Page 2): LR can correct a lot of perspective issues by using the Upright feature under the Lens Correction pane in the Develop section. LR...

FotoPhreak Loc: Whittier, CA

LR can correct a lot of perspective issues by using the Upright feature under the Lens Correction pane in the Develop section. LR will attempt to correct for level, vertical, and full. There is also an Auto correct. I apply the auto correct to my landscape photos when I import. Sometime it come up with a wacky tilt to the pictures, but then I manually turn Upright off or do the correction manually. The full option gives a decent automatic full perspective correction and it is a lot cheaper than a very pricey perspective control lens. The only problem is that you need a lot of space around the object of interest in the picture to prevent cropping the object of interest. The placement of Upright is a bit of a misnomer because I use in on film scans where the lens correction available for the film camera/lens combination.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

FotoPhreak wrote:

LR can correct a lot of perspective issues by usin... (show quote)

true but the OP was on 5.7 and upright is not there. It does have hor/virt but not as strong Upright.

The first time I got caught with wide, close up and corrected I lost the top of a steeple rendering the photo useless. Now when I am shooting wide and close I leave lots of room to make the correction. ;) Other times i will will use 2-3 shots vertical and use LR pano.

cdayton

If I were a pro making architectural shots, I would certainly either straighten verticals or purchase an appropriate camera. However, I shoot to recreate memories of scenes that have some importance to me (trips, events) so perspective is part of the memory. Thus, I try to create an image where the perspective is an interesting element. Having said that, I have used horizontal perspective adjustment when I couldn't get centered for the view I wanted.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

cdayton wrote:

If I were a pro making architectural shots, I would certainly either straighten verticals or purchase an appropriate camera. However, I shoot to recreate memories of scenes that have some importance to me (trips, events) so perspective is part of the memory. Thus, I try to create an image where the perspective is an interesting element. Having said that, I have used horizontal perspective adjustment when I couldn't get centered for the view I wanted.

Appropriate lens tilt-shift! :)

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

Tikva wrote:

I was told by a photographer and teacher that I should straighten my vertical (as well as horizontal) lines in my photos. She said the walls should be straightened and not left leaning. I see many photos with leaning walls that look like they are trying to touch each other at the top. Is this a matter of personal choice, or should the walls, and all vertical lines, be straightened in most photos (not with fisheyes)? Appreciate any comments on this subject.

Off vertical verticals annoy me so do off horizontal horizontals, oh and I really do not like water flowing out the side, VBG, PSP makes it easy to correct tilts and converging lines, Bob.

dsmeltz Loc: Philadelphia

Side note: I really have been developing GAS for a T-S lens.

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

As an aside- it is a lousy instructor (of any subject) who insists that you gotta do it his way. Yes in photography. as in many other things, there are "rules". But they must not be rigidly followed. My thought for the day.

pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY

boberic wrote:

As an aside- it is a lousy instructor (of any subject) who insists that you gotta do it his way. Yes in photography. as in many other things, there are "rules". But they must not be rigidly followed. My thought for the day.

Not fair, you weren't there for the discussion. Often instructors cover the general guidelines(1/3's, no bulls eye, etc) and then tell you it is fine to go off key for effect. Now, just a slight tilt either way is not for effect, it's "sloppy".

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

pithydoug wrote:

Not fair, you weren't there for the discussion. Often instructors cover the general guidelines(1/3's, no bulls eye, etc) and then tell you it is fine to go off key for effect. Now, just a slight tilt either way is not for effect, it's "sloppy".

My comment was labeled as an aside, regarding rules and following them. And as far as "tilt" is concerned- in landscape photography there are times when the land "tilts" one way or the other, should a photographer fix that scene and level the "horizon" when in fact it's "tilted"? I have any number of images where the tree is dead plumb but the land is "tilted" so take your pick. I prefer the straight tree.

cameraf4 Loc: Delaware

Quick answer: If the "Keystoning effect" bothers you, then fix it. Many here have told you how to "do it in post". As an "old" photographer, I still have and use a Perspective Control Lens that I bought years ago. Something else that may work for you (it does for me) is to use a lens wide enough to capture all of the vertical subject you want, hold the camera level, and crop out the "unwanted" foreground later.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

jerryc41 wrote:

Yes, you can straighten, but it isn't essential. Be aware that if you do correct for tilting, you will lose some of the edge, so compose the shot to allow for some edge loss.

Not necessarily if you use Photoshop's Perspective Crop Tool. It just depends on which corner you choose to move to get that "crop." If one way causes you to lose an edge that you want to keep, undo what you just did and choose a different corner to move. Eventually you'll discover which corner causes you to lose some edge and which corner adds white space so that you don't lose any of the picture at that edge.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

johneccles wrote:

Some perspective with buildings can be adjusted us... (show quote)

See my comment directly above about NOT cropping about the image. Which directly and which corner you move will determine whether your image gets cropped or whether white space is added to your image in order not to crop it.

pendennis

Perspective control (PC) lenses only work to include imaging which resolves within the coverage circle of the lens. The film/sensor plane must stay parallel to the subject to keep lines from converging, but only to the lens coverage limits.

Once the film/sensor planes move from parallel to the subject, lines going away from the camera will converge.

The solution, as others have mentioned, is to use the editing software to change the convergence of vertical line.

The other option is to use a view camera and use the camera's movements to "adjust" the subject pre-exposure.

As others have stated, it depends on what you want your image to represent. The image is an interpretation of what you saw, not the instructor.

Rab-Eye Loc: Indiana

Tikva wrote:

I was told by a photographer and teacher that I should straighten my vertical (as well as horizontal) lines in my photos. She said the walls should be straightened and not left leaning. I see many photos with leaning walls that look like they are trying to touch each other at the top. Is this a matter of personal choice, or should the walls, and all vertical lines, be straightened in most photos (not with fisheyes)? Appreciate any comments on this subject.

It is definitely a distortion. The question is, does it add or detract from your image?

cdayton

I don't see how perspective convergence is a "distortion." That's the way things appear to your eyes. Also, objects at a distance look smaller - should we enlarge them to life-size? I think straightening a horizon or adjusting for camera tilt are different issues.