why cant i get wide angle distortion like this?

hey guys

to further my automotive photography, i recently picked up a tokina 12-24. i have seen a lot of pics where the front end of a car is accented with the lens, while the back is small and stretched.

here is an example of what i am talking about:

You have to get closer.

Yep. And that's really all there is to it.

you do look quite a ways back. go ahead. take a step forward. it won't bite =) keep up posted.

Yes, get lower and closer.

The effect you speak of may also have been "Photoshop-induced". Especially being such a dark picture, PP would be less conspicuous.

You can create similar effects in post-processing (here is a crop of your example with literally 1 minute of PP (spherize + warp))

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cdifoto wrote in post #4097140
You have to get closer.

Indeed, both closer and lower.

And I suspect the vertical perspective in the BMW image was a little exaggerated in postprocessing.
It seems a bit steep to me - but it might as wel be 'real'.

I agree....lower and closer...get low enough that you have to tilt the camera upwards. Don't leave any room for cropping...if you're cropping you're losing out on wide angle distortion.

I've got some up close wide shots of a hummer that I took recently on my hard drive at the office. I'll post it up here tomorrow morning. The great thing about that UWA lens is the ability to take advantage of the minimum close focusing distance which allows you to get within mere inches of your subject and get it all in the frame.

thanks for the info guys, ill see how much of a difference i get when i get closer :P i got a supra to shoot on friday.

lord_malone - im looking forward to your post

yeah - i'd love to see that hummer shot as well. there's a couple of hummers parked in front of the hotel where i'm staying at here in florida and i'd like to try my hands on it. altho i'm only using a 16-35..but what the heck. i dont get to see hummers often in the UK. lol

You need bigger wheels and lower aspect-ratio tires!

As jra mentioned, "shoot up" to take advantage of wide angle distortion compositionally and keep your lense level to minimized it. This technique is outlined in John Shaws Landscape Photography.

e r y k wrote in post #4097514
thanks for the info guys, ill see how much of a difference i get when i get closer :P i got a supra to shoot on friday.

lord_malone - im looking forward to your post

Yes, you've received the right answer.

Just tried my 17/55, and I can get the end of the lens within 10 inches of the subject and be in focus.

But if you do that, even at 17 mm, all you'll get is a good closeup of the bumper.

Don't mind the IQ, or the junk in my garage, or the scratch on the bumper, or...

12mm

i dont think its a matter of focal length at 12mm vs 10mm since at that range you are only getting more coverage on the outside edges of the frame. i think the 12 vs 10 debate comes in when shooting something like landscapes.