What is a tilt-shift photography lens?

Part of the tilt-shift effect comes from the camera's plane of focus. Normally, the plane of focus and the image plane are aligned, meaning you get even depth of field in a photograph wherever you decide to focus (foreground, background, etc.). Tilting the lens separates the plane of focus from the lens axis, so you can create a depth of field wedge. This technique can be used to put an entire photograph in focus, but it's often used to play with depth of field to help create the miniature model effect we mentioned earlier. Tilting is a way to gain more control over depth of field.

Shifting alters the relationship between a camera's image sensor and the lens's imaging circle. Light travels down the circular lens and is then captured and cropped by the rectangular image sensor, which is why our photographs are normally rectangular instead or round. When you're taking a tilt-shift photo, you're really playing with perspective. When the lens shifts, it separates the lens's center of perspective from the sensor's. By changing the part of the lens circle the imaging sensor captures, photographers can capture more of an image above or below the normal horizon of a photograph. That's why shift lenses are popular in architecture photography: They can change perspectives to capture tall buildings without leaning the camera back and creating unnatural perspective.

Here's the bad news about tilt-shift lenses: They cost upwards of $1,000. Tilt-shift lenses have larger imaging circles than normal lenses (necessary for shifting the center of perspective) and are built to move horizontally and vertically, which is something no normal lens can do. That's why the cost is so high. But there are some alternatives out there. For a little taste of tilt-shift, there's Photojojo'sTilt-shiftcamera. The lens is angled already and isn't adjustable, so you can create the miniaturized look tilt-shift photos with a $150 camera. It's great for a gimmick camera, but real tilt-shift photography is typically used in architecture and landscape work to control perspective or capture wide panoramas. Photojojo's camera is no good for that.

Want something more powerful that doesn't cost $2,000? Check out photographer Bhautik Joshi's guide to building a DIY tilt-shift lens. The walkthrough details how to convert an existing lens into a tilt-shift lens for less than $50.

Tilt-shift photography is such a cool effect. It's not something you can mimic with weird framing: It's born from a real, physical movement of camera elements, and the way the lens and the image sensor interact lets photographers pull off some pretty amazing tricks. I was really happy to find a cheap tilt-shift do-it-yourself solution while writing this. Something so cool shouldn't have to cost two grand.

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