Canon tilt shift mod?

I'm currently in the market for a 45/90 TS and I was wondering if I could get some clarification before I make the plunge.

On wikipedia it mentions: "Unlike most view cameras, the shift mechanism allows shifts along only one axis, and the tilt mechanism allows tilts about only one axis; however, the rotation of the mechanisms allows the orientations of the axes to be changed, providing, in effect, combined tilt and swing, and combined rise/fall and lateral shift. The tilt and shift functions cannot be independently rotated. The lens is supplied with these functions at 90° to each other (e.g., providing tilt and lateral shift); they can be changed to work in the same directions (e.g., providing tilt and rise/fall) by removing four screws, rotating the front of the lens 90°, and reinstalling the screws."

I have a hard time visualizing how this affects the image. Can someone provide me with some insight or examples where this mod matters?

If this is different than the 17 and 24's, and is sounds like it is, then I did not realize these were different and it could be a pain for some applications.

For instance, for landscapes I usually use up-down shift. In addition I'd want to tilt up-down (well down) along with that shift to maximize DOF. With this lens if you want to use tilt to maximize DOF you are restricted to sideways shift without the mod.

Now suppose you have it set up so you have up-down tilt with up-down shift in landscape orientation. Now you want to shoot a portrait orientation with up-down shift and tilt, you're OK because you can rotate both 90deg.

For architecture, I would rarely use tilt anyway, but being able to shift in any direction is IMO important (and you can with this lens). I can imaging a situation where you want to tilt at 45deg for a building and tilt down to get somehting in the foreground in focus. But doing this with a 45mm lens is going to be less effective than a wide lens like the 24mm or 17mm - it's likely that tilt wouldn't solve that problem anyway.

So for me, I would definitely want tilt and shift in the same directions. Not being able to rotate them independently would not be a show stopper though.

For some specialized applications it could be an issue, like if you want focus along a wall but shift in a direction other than vertical or horizontal. Seems not all that likely to me, so probably not too much of an issue if you have time to change the configuration.

Hope this helps.

So you have a bit of a restriction, but if you're not doing something really funky it shouldn't be an issue.

I don't own neither of those lenses, but it seems rather easy to modify the lens so you can tilt and shift in the same direction.

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk …ify_canon_tilt-shift.html

Nice link.

I thought the mod might actually be by design, but just not as easy as a button-press and rotate.

That and the fact that the 45 isn't the sharpest lens out there leaves me anticipating the new (allegedly in 2014?) version.

I modified my 90 TSE to put tilt and shift on the same axis. Pretty straight forward, the only issue I had was a screw head stripping out.

It's not really intended to be a Do It Yourself mod.... The lens should be checked that all is still in alignment after the modification.

I have the older 24mm and 45mm, have never seen reason to modify them. In use, I just don't find need for both movements aligned. So on my lenses they are still as set from the factory, with the two movements each on an axis 90 degrees from the other. I'm either using the swing to correct for one thing or the shift to correct for another purpose, so this has never been an issue for me.

All five of the Canon TS-E lenses have one plane of rotation, that allows you to align the movements as needed to shoot any particular subject.

The two newest lenses (17mm and 24mm Mk II) have a second plane of rotation, that allows you to either align ur unalign the two movements with the simple press of a button. The others (24mm Mk I, 45mm and 90mm) need to be disassembled to do this, as shown at that link.

I've found the 45mm to be an excellent lens, mostly using it for close-up, near macro work (small products, in studio). The 90mm is also excellent for macro work, though it will need an extension tube or two to get into serious magnifications.

The early 24mm tends to have some chromatic aberrations along high contrast boundaries, but otherwise it pretty darned good. The new 24mm is a nice improvement, but at substantial cost.

I'm still looking for an excuse to buy the 17mm (such as a paying job that requires it and where I can build in the cost of the lens)!

I would expect the 45mm and 90mm will be updated fairly soon.... but it's anyone's guess when. I'm sure they will also have the second plane of rotation feature. They will also likely be 50 to 100% more expensive than the current 45 and 90, unfortunately. Neither of the current lenses is an "L". They just don't need exotic glass to do what they do, so don't qualify to have a red stripe painted on them (per Canon's definition of what constitutes an L). If Canon figures out a way to stick some fancy glass in the next version and give them a red stripe, I'd guess the price will be toward the higher end of my estimate.

amfoto1 wrote in post #16224802
They will also likely be 50 to 100% more expensive than the current 45 and 90, unfortunately. Neither of the current lenses is an "L". They just don't need exotic glass to do what they do, so don't qualify to have a red stripe painted on them (per Canon's definition of what constitutes an L). If Canon figures out a way to stick some fancy glass in the next version and give them a red stripe, I'd guess the price will be toward the higher end of my estimate.

Thanks for the comments, nice to know. Yea, I'm hoping the new 45 will be in the $2500 ballpark. I would be shocked it it were less than $2000.