Using Front Tilt For 4x5 Camera Portraits
I’ve been working a lot this year with large format 4×5 film. In particular my Wista 45DX which I have to say, might very well be the most beautiful camera I have ever had the pleasure of using. Seriously, it is a work of art in and of itself, and sometime I find myself sitting at home just fiddling around with the various shifts and knobs just because I can.
Yes… I’m a dork.
Working with large format cameras has two obvious advantages unique to the format. The first, and perhaps most notable, is of course those big beautiful sharp negatives. I’ve been a photographer for decades and have dabbled in large format film for much of that time and still to this day I’m blown away by how beautiful the negatives look when working with sheet film. Looking at scans on a computer screen, or heaven forbid your phone, just simply do not do them justice.
My desire to get into the darkroom and make anologue silver gelatin prints on nice fiber based paper goes into overdrive whenever I handle my large format negatives. One of these days I’d like to step up to 8×10 and even 11×14, but for now my home darkroom capabilities limit me to a maximum of 4×5.
The second big advantage would be the camera movements. Most large format cameras have a variety of movements one can do that ultimately change the outcome of your final images. You can tilt and shift the front or back of the lens or film plane. You can raise or lower the front or back of the camera changing perspectives. Far and away too many options for me to explain in a single blog post, but Japan Camera Hunter has a nice article explaining the various movements one can do.
I would also recommend the book, Using the View Camera by Steve Simmons if you want to really dive into it. Books are still a great way to learn new skills.
One of my favorite movements when working with portraits and figure studies is to tilt the front lens element forward, which really narrows the plane of focus. This can be great when a photographer wants the eye to be drawn to a very specific part of the frame.
I’ve posted two images here that were taken one after another. I changed the camera position just slightly between these two images, but the biggest difference is in the top images I had the Wista 45DX in a completely neutral position (i.e. I am not employing any camera movements) and in the second image I tilted the front lens a little ways forward.
It makes a big difference in the final work. One is tack sharp across the model’s entire figure, while the other leaves only her head and shoulders in sharp focus.
I decided to use these two images as an example because in all honesty I’m not entirely sure which one I like better. I suppose this isn’t a bad problem to have, choosing between two relatively successful images and it just illustrates how fun large format photography can be. One gets to scrutinize and make choices in your own work, both on the scene and in post editing.
Camera: Wista 45DX 4×5 Field Camera with Rodenstock 210mm f/5.6 lens.
Film: Fomapan 100 in 4×5 sheet film.
I support my photography in part with fine art print sales. All prints are limited edition and printed using traditional darkroom techniques on fiber based silver gelatin paper. If you like my work, consider supporting the arts and buying print via my Saatchi Store.
