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Scott Withrow wrote: > What do you align the grid to? The horizon? Poles? Signals? Just curious. I usually do not actually use a particular line on the screen to line up with anything in my composition, but I first look at my subject through the viewfinder and compose it the way I like it, then kind of subliminally, I just level my camera by what looks right to me. With all of those subtle lines on the screen, it just seems to happen automatically now. I'm not actually paying attention to the lines, but if I have a major discrepancy, it really sticks out like a sore thumb with a grid screen. Hand-held or on a tripod. I have used it before to align it with known straight edges, like buildings which are almost always perfectly straight and level, but I avoid making a habit of looking for something straight to align the screen with. In the event that I have some leaning signal poles, mile markers, or a sloping horizon, I seem to be able to split the difference and get it level anyway just by looking through the viewfinder with the lines there. I almost never align anything with the train itself, which is often leaning into a superelevated curve or on a grade. Thinking about it for a minute, I must use the horizon as a starting point, and then I just go into auto-brain fart and it happens and usually turns out level for me somehow. In the studio and for architecture, I do check vertical alignment (perspective) with the screen lines, because with a view camera, I can correct any crooked lines or leaning perspectives, and the lines are a must for that. Some other photographers have told me that they also like grid screens because they can aid in composition (the rule of thirds). I don't let that sway my composition too much though. I seem to have broken every 'rule' of photography that I know of at one time or another. :) Dave Cohen Photographer, Member ASMP Action Photographic Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.anet-stl.com/acphotog/home/ ======================================================= -> SPORRS: 'Serious Photographers Of Railroad Related Subjects' -> Web Site: http://www.anet-stl.com/acphotog/sporrs/ -> Message © 1998 SPORRS® - All Rights Reserved =======================================================
