Straight horizons

[Skoropada]

I've came across several comments mentioning something like "the picture is good, but the horizon should be straight".

Given the perspective on some pictures, if the horizon is straight, the subject is tilted.

I believe that this issue has to be taken care of while shooting, and not afterwards, but what are your thoughts about this?

[private]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the artist. Now that being sd, I have never seen a crooked horizon...

[imagesbyjk]

My philosophy has always been if you're shooting a landscape shot then most of the time you'll want a level horizon. Now, I've seen people who level their horizons with a spirit level and will argue all day long with you that the horizon is level even if it appears to the eye not to be because of an uneven horizon or other optical illusion from shadows or what have you. To them I say it doesn't matter if you tell me its level if it doesn't look level.

For portraits I don't give a rip what my horizon is doing (for the most part). In fact I love adding diagonals to my portraits and tilting the horizon is a great way to achieve that.

In general I would add that tilts, as with any effect you use, should be deliberate enough to look like you did it on purpose and not carelessly.

[GEli]

Used conservatively, heavily tilted horizons are great for portraits or any other photograph where a landscape isn't the subject. For landscapes, I would consider long and hard keeping the camera level before doing anything else, as for many people a tilted horizon will distract them terribly when attempting to view the work.

Slightly tilted horizons always look like an error on the part of the photographer and as such should be avoided in all but the most exceptional cases.

[edmDusty]

Or you could just move to SF where we don't even use the word straight....

[wulf]

It is a factor you need to consider when composing your shots. A level horizon and straight verticals are a good default choice - if you don't get that result, it should be your deliberate choice and not just carelessness.

That said, sometimes it can be hard to get right in camera. If you have a great picture but horizon seems a bit off, see what it looks like with a small degree of rotation.

Wulf

[OsmosisStudios]

I have my camera set to show the thirds grid in my viewfinder. This, along with the multi-point display already there, allows me to level my horizon as well as possible. If there needs to be any adjusting, use Photoshop, and put a guide line over where the horizon should be, and line it up.

[wulf]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

I have my camera set to show the thirds grid in my viewfinder. This, along with the multi-point display already there, allows me to level my horizon as well as possible...

If you've got any kind of marks etched in your view finder (the D40 has [ ] [ ] [ ] indicating the focus points) you can use them for that purpose - they give me six verticals and two horizontal references in addition to the four edges of the viewfinder.

Wulf

[Skoropada]

Thanks everyone for your comments!