How important is it...........

[Tannin]

PS: Adey's picture, I think, needs the tree to be off-centre before it will work. I'd prefer the tree on the right as that is the downhill side

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by Tannin

PS: Adey's picture, I think, needs the tree to be off-centre before it will work. I'd prefer the tree on the right as that is the downhill side

HeHe, I didn't like to mention that, especially as I realised it was only being used to illustrate the point

[Adey Baker]

My shot is full-frame and as Tannin says it could probably do with the tree being off-centre. Left of centre would be best but you can probably see a twig just in the right of the frame that is the outermost part of a closer tree which prevented such a composition. The shot was with a telephoto through a gap and the only other composition really open to me was vertical, which I didn't like.

It's probably a bit of a clichéd shot but I was drawn to the single 'lonely' tree surrounded by yellow. However, without any uprights to give a reference to the horizon, I thought it hadn't worked properly so I didn't put in in the gallery.

It's a good starting point for this thread, though, isn't it!

[Adey Baker]

...oh, and a nice blue sky to off-set the opposite colour of yellow would have been nice, as well!

[yelvertoft]

Interesting question. I'd say there are no real hard and fast rules here, it all depends on what the photographer intends to convey. The important point is to think about what you are doing. Look at what you really see in the viewfinder and decide if it is what you want to convey.

As has been discussed, there are times when the horizon isn't really level, in most cases, I would keep the horizon true to its natural form. I would (hopefully) consider the alternatives and maybe experiment with different options, there's nothing to be lost by trying after all.

The only time I would say that a non-level horizon doesn't work at all, would be a seascape. The sea on the tilt really doesn't look right, for this type of pic I'd say a level horizon is essential. For landscapes I'd say go with what feels right for the particular shot you are taking; I tend to stick with reality for these pics.

Duncan

[Tannin]

(Didn't mean to criticise your shot, Adey - indeed, I think it is an excellent example as a basis for discussion.)

Yelvertoft brings to mind another point: I have a shot I really like of a land/seascape (an estuary actually) and it's out of true, quite noticably so. My usual graphics editor allows me to rotate to correct that, and crop to suit, but - and here is my point - I can rotate by any given number of degrees, and 3 degrees is too much but 2 degrees isn't enough. Drives me nuts!

Excuse me: here is my point: at least with some pictures, the orientation has to be exactly right, and it is very surprising how small a difference the eye picks up on.

[Tannin]

Here is what I mean: the original shot, then same shot rotated by 2 degrees (too far) and 1 degree (not quite far enough).

And guess what? I just discovered that the ever-excellent PMView is perfectly happy to rotate by (e.g.) 1.4 degrees, you just have to type the number in. So I'll go back and reprocess that picture of the Huon Estuary in Tasmania now.

Meanwhile, I think the visual obviousness of those tiny differences in rotation is worth posting.

(PS: I didn't trouble to crop any of them just so ... Like Adey's shot, therse are just examples, not gallery material - though I happen to really like that scene and have it in my wallpaper folder of favourite shots.

[John]

Tannin,

Hope you don't mind me using your image (example 1)

Is this horizon level enough for you? It was done automatically in Photoshop using the measure tool, then rotate image/arbitary.

John

[Tannin]

Not at all John. I probably should use Photoshop more often, but I confess that I hate the damn thing. So horribly slow and clumsy and a dreadful user interface - I unly resort to Photoshop when I can't think of any more pleasant and practical way to do things - which is no doubt why I'm not much good at it!

[Canis Vulpes]

Originally Posted by John

Tannin,

Hope you don't mind me using your image (example 1)

Is this horizon level enough for you? It was done automatically in Photoshop using the measure tool, then rotate image/arbitary.

John

The measure tool is probably the fastest way to level a shot but always use at 100% zoom and check by viewing with the grid displayed afterward to be sure.