Tilt shift lenses are kind of mysterious to many folks. They’re expensive, they’re excruciatingly manual, and what’s with all the knobs on them? Here’s an example, my Canon 17mm T/S (Amazon affiliate link) which I purchased used from a buddy. I also have the Canon 24mm T/S, which is one of my favorite lenses ever.
Tilt shift lenses are used for a variety of disciplines but most often you’ll see them used in architectural and food photography. They allow you to control perspective while adjusting your composition in a way that a wide angle lens just cannot. To help you understand what I mean, I put together a quick 10-minute overview of how tilt-shift lenses are used and take you into the field with me for some test shots!
I’ve even used some of the images taken with the tilt shift lenses as some previous pictures of the week, like this one from that same bridge in Dallas.