andreuagusti Posted February 6, 2012 Share #1 Posted February 6, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) Dear Leica users, I have a small problem that sometimes spoils my pictures... is quite hard, for me, to frame the picture in perfect horizontal. Most of the times it look like the horizon has slope! Do you know any tricks or tips to improve my framing? Cheers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 6, 2012 Posted February 6, 2012 Hi andreuagusti, Take a look here tips or tricks to frame in perfect horizontal with leica M. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Gerard Posted February 6, 2012 Share #2 Posted February 6, 2012 One can easily be fooled by 'vertical' objects when shooting quickly and when your key attention is on the subject and nailing the focus. As part of your shooting 'habit' use one of the frame lines to level on the horizon (rather than a vertical). Sounds simple, but this should help, as many 'vertical' objects (trees, posts, etc) are far from plumb. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Negative Posted February 6, 2012 Share #3 Posted February 6, 2012 ^ Exactly, especially as you tilt up/down. Use the framelines or RF patch to help align on the horizon. With digital at least you can always do a minor rotation and crop in post. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
microview Posted February 7, 2012 Share #4 Posted February 7, 2012 You can always fit a small spirit level to the hotshoe, but this means camera held at waist level of course. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinnfell Posted February 7, 2012 Share #5 Posted February 7, 2012 Perfect alignment is almost impossible unless all three directions are considered. (forward/backward, left/right, up/down). That goes for any camera, but I agree it is a bit harder with a rangefinder. The cheapest and easiest way to augment this is to buy a hot shoe spirit level. Most well equipped photo stores have them, roughly 30 dollars. Unfortunately it takes up the space for the external viewfinder, but correct alignment requires a tripod and plenty of time anyways. Either way you need to review images afterwards, so framing could be done throug a little trial and error. IMO a cheap price to pay for not having to carry a 10kg large format camera and tripod kit. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/172126-tips-or-tricks-to-frame-in-perfect-horizontal-with-leica-m/?do=findComment&comment=1920321'>More sharing options...
StephenPatterson Posted February 7, 2012 Share #6 Posted February 7, 2012 I find the built in bubble level of the Leica Universal Viewfinder (Frankenfinder) to be very useful when shooting landscapes and architecture. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manolo Laguillo Posted February 7, 2012 Share #7 Posted February 7, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) skinfell, you are right, of course, but your message is sort of exagerated... actually we can limit ourselves to only one direction, the left-right, and get rid of the other two. training in order to cultivate and develop the sensation on the muscles of being on the horizontal is the way, IMHO. photographying yourself, looking through the camera's VF, on a mirror (in the bathroom or somewhere else) is a good exercise. If the mirror doesn't have horizontal lines you can always draw them using a permanent marker. this exercise can tell a lot about your posture, the way you press the shutter, etc. the leica M is an instrument, as is wisely being said somewhere in this forum in these days. and like a musical instrument, muscle training has to be cultivated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wda Posted February 7, 2012 Share #8 Posted February 7, 2012 Dear Leica users,I have a small problem that sometimes spoils my pictures... is quite hard, for me, to frame the picture in perfect horizontal. Most of the times it look like the horizon has slope! Do you know any tricks or tips to improve my framing? Cheers. Do you wear bifocals? That can sometimes introduce a slight distortion when trying to frame accurately. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted February 7, 2012 Share #9 Posted February 7, 2012 Some horizons ARE slanted. But like the OP, I find that I tend to err 1.2 degree. Enough to be irritating. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thighslapper Posted February 7, 2012 Share #10 Posted February 7, 2012 My horizons tend to tilt down to the right...... Same with some DSLR's in the past ... but oddly, not all of them. Must be something in the way I hold cameras and press the shutter. With architecture and broad landscapes I have to make a conscious effort to make sure I am aligned..... Rotational correction is one post process I prefer to avoid as it often causes a noticeable drop in sharpness.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokoshawnuff Posted February 7, 2012 Share #11 Posted February 7, 2012 I typically have this problem more often with a 135mm on my M cameras, but with patience, deliberation, and some practice it has gotten a lot better. Like others have suggested, the use of frame lines becomes an invaluable tool (if you don't want a spirit bubble attached). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreuagusti Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share #12 Posted February 7, 2012 thank you guys... I'm using bifocal correction on leica M. About using spirit bubble i found it interesting when shooting with tripod, but handheld is very complicated. Drawing lines on the viewfinder, doesn't work I see the line out of focus and annoys me alot. I hope that this will be solved on leica M10 in 2013. if not leica won't catch the train of digital cameras watch out with fuji xpro!!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manolo Laguillo Posted February 7, 2012 Share #13 Posted February 7, 2012 .....Rotational correction is one post process I prefer to avoid as it often causes a noticeable drop in sharpness.... I do not agree with this affirmation, with all due respect. I rotate and correct the verticals convergence quite often with Lightroom, sometimes heavily, and I don't see a "noticeable drop in sharpness". To see it you must look with very sharp eyes. :-) Here is an untouched photo and the same with +0.6 rotation and -25 vertical adjustment. I attach 100% fragments as well. But don't be fooled by these fragments, where a small difference in sharpness "seems" to exist. In reality, printed on A2 paper there is no real difference in sharpness between both. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/172126-tips-or-tricks-to-frame-in-perfect-horizontal-with-leica-m/?do=findComment&comment=1920769'>More sharing options...
andreuagusti Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share #14 Posted February 7, 2012 Some horizons ARE slanted. But like the OP, I find that I tend to err 1.2 degree. Enough to be irritating. hahaha.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
algrove Posted February 7, 2012 Share #15 Posted February 7, 2012 You can always fit a small spirit level to the hotshoe, but this means camera held at waist level of course. +1, but I use a level that works at any angle, cost like US$10-12. When using a VF and a spirit level I got a double Thumbs Up, now no big deal. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thighslapper Posted February 7, 2012 Share #16 Posted February 7, 2012 I do not agree with this affirmation, with all due respect.I rotate and correct the verticals convergence quite often with Lightroom, sometimes heavily, and I don't see a "noticeable drop in sharpness". To see it you must look with very sharp eyes. :-) Here is an untouched photo and the same with +0.6 rotation and -25 vertical adjustment. I attach 100% fragments as well. But don't be fooled by these fragments, where a small difference in sharpness "seems" to exist. In reality, printed on A2 paper there is no real difference in sharpness between both. Data degradation and loss of sharpness does occur. By the very nature of the algorithm used which involves interpolation it must occur to some extent, and seems from my experience worse with small angles. Depends on the type of image as to how much it is noticeable. Try it with something with large areas of fine texture such as grass..... with Aperture at least, the fine detailed bits of the rotated image get distinctly fuzzy if you look closely Ok, printing on A2 may be ok, but to me it is easily noticeable on a large high resolution screen such as iMac. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nggalai Posted February 8, 2012 Share #17 Posted February 8, 2012 Funny thread. I must say, though, that I too tend to err by about 1 ° when shooting an M and not using the horizontal framelines for proper alignment. (I “slope” to the right, too.) When I got the M9 this worried me; I never had this issue with my other cameras, digital or film. Or so I thought. I then disabled the composition grid on an Olympus E-P2 and shot it for a day. Same thing as with the M9, slanted horizons. Shows how much I grew dependent on guides in my viewfinders … With training I’m getting better at properly aligning a shot. But just out of interest – are there DIY methods to add a grid to an M viewfinder, or are there external viewfinders with grids? Cheers, -Sascha Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NZDavid Posted February 8, 2012 Share #18 Posted February 8, 2012 Grid pattern on the D-Lux 5 helps. With the M, it's harder. To prevent or minimize converging verticals, try to aim the camera at a point at eye-level. Focus first, then check camera level. There may be a minimal but indiscernible difference between the two points. It's easier to do than explain. If you are 6 foot or over, you find you aim downwards quite a lot of the time; kneeling or crouching may help for some subjects. Sometimes wonky horizons actually are curved (lakes, sea shore) but look better straightened up. Lightroom 3 has some good tools for straightening out crooked angles. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Negative Posted February 9, 2012 Share #19 Posted February 9, 2012 Getting things straight right in the camera is obviously the preferred way to do it, but even if you have to do it in post, it's not so bad. A minor rotation of +/-2º max is all that's usually required - which needs only minor cropping at 1º and a little more extreme at 2º. Either way, it's a little fat trimmed off the borders. Just try to frame more loosely if you're the type to get crooked shots a lot. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.