Arsat TS lens opinions

[rodeo_joe1]

<p>Since Nikon have seen fit to do a "me too" by copying the exact same focal lengths as Canon for their tilt/shift lenses, this has left a hole around the popular 28 to 35mm range, which I consider ideal for use on a full-frame D700. That leaves the Arsat 35mm tilt/shift lens as practically my only option in this focal length - unless somebody knows of another T/S lens available in 28 or 35mm.</p>

<p>I already have a rather old 35mm PC-Nikkor, but now want the additional tilt movement to control depth-of-field.</p>

<p>Anyway, my question is: Has anyone any experience with the Arsat TS lens? Optical quality is my main concern here, I'm not too interested in zero aperture automation or the fact that it's as ugly as sin, or that it grates a bit when you focus it.</p>

[ChrisSpeaker]

<p>I have heard of harblei who makes TS lenes that will fit the Nikon mount however their widest is the 40mm. See <a href="http://www.hartblei.de/en/sr40if.htm">http://www.hartblei.de/en/sr40if.htm</a> for more information.</p>

[wolf_rainer_schmalfuss]

<p>The ARSAT 2,8/35mm shift lens is really not bad, if properly assembled. But they are not produced anymore. The MC is not really Western standard.</p>

[Andrew Garrard]

<p>I have an Arsat f/2.8 35mm, but I've barely had the chance to use it. I can comment on the ergonomics, though - most notably, the tilt and shift are fixed at 90 degrees to each other, an arrangement I've always hated, and the construction is such that they can't be brought in-line as is the case for Canon and Nikon T-S lenses (the Arsat shift actually slides along the tilt hinge). The Nikon mount is also insecure (it doesn't latch properly) and the square shape makes it difficult to get on the camera. It *does* fit on a D700, with some finger pain shifting the mount, but I could only get it on my F5 by removing the prism. In theory the live view of the D700 ought to make it easy to use (again, I wish Nikon would let live view be split into quadrants to magnify different sections of the image), but I've not really had the chance to really play with mine yet. The ergonomics are really sloppy compared with, say, the 65mm super-rotator I had in Canon fit; the only times I've wanted to use it I've been put off by the ergonomics, so I never really tried it for long enough to vouch for the optics. (I injured myself on my last landscape tour and didn't have a chance to set it up; it was too dim to rely on hand-held for a bride-down-the-aisle shot at a recent wedding.) That said, I may fall in love with it the next time I get to point the camera at some nice scenery. I hope that's some help.</p>

[rodeo_joe1]

<p>Thanks Andrew, your information about the tilt being coupled to the shift is news to me, and makes me wonder now just how useful I'd find the lens. Sorry to hear about your injury BTW.</p>

<p>Not sure if you're aware, but you can shift the magnified liveview anywhere you like on the image by using the "joystick" button on the D700 (in Tripod mode at least). It also stays put from frame to frame as long as you don't mess with the positioning during playback.</p>

[Andrew Garrard]

<p>Hi Joe. Glad to help. Just out of paranoia, I'm assuming that we're talking about the same lens version - mine is as described <a href="http://araxfoto.com/specials/tilt-shift-35/">here</a> (just found by googling, I know nothing about the site). It's not so much that the tilt and shift are coupled, as that the shift mechansm and tilt hinge are part of the same block, so there's nothing to unscrew and reattach at 90 degrees as in the Nikon or Canon. The shift is also a little fragile-looking, in that the screw thread is exposed as it's shifted, but since I rarely use shift this didn't bother me too much. If it's not obvious, the metal "cogwheel" near the mount rotates relative to the lens, so you can change the tilt angle relative to the camera (just not relative to the shift). You may have to hold the lens steady and rotate the mount in order to attach it to the camera, depending on the prism - hence the finger pain comment. I was a little concerned that it didn't seem to latch into place in case I unscrewed it and it fell off - or if the continued rotation damaged the camera. I've not actually had a problem, though.<br>

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Thanks for the sympathy - I just twisted a knee getting into a tour bus for a grand canyon/Zion/Bryce tour, which meant I could only take photos from a standing height and couldn't get ahead of people to set up a tripod. Frustrating, and it ruled out having time to set up the tilt-shift or being able to get low enough to make the most of it for a sharp foreground, but not catastrophic or life-threatening. Shame I can't report more on the lens for you, though! (The 14-24 put in sterling service, on the other hand.) I <i>can</i> say that the tilt mechanism, with its worm gear, is much more fiddly than the rotating ring on a super-rotator - not least because you aren't supporting the lens while using it, and it's so separate from the focus ring; I suspect this is why I found the super-rotator much easier to use hand-held. If you shoot with a tripod, as most people tend to use tilt-shift lenses, it's probably not a problem - I think the on-brand tilt-shifts use the same mechanism, although I've never used one, so I may be spoilt by the Hartblei's ergonomics. I tend to get the angle roughly right and then move the camera, relying on cropping the image as needed afterwards, but then I only recently got a tripod that has a hope of holding a D700 steady while fiddling with a tilt/shift lens.<br>

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I use the magnified live view - in fact, the live view on the D700 for tilt/shift work was one reason I switched to Nikon (the 5D2 came out just after the aforementioned holiday; the D700 just before). However, you can only zoom in on one part of the image at a time. I'd really like to split the screen into quadrants, have one showing the whole frame for composition, and zoom in on three different points in the other quadrants. That would give me three points that I could check for focus as I adjust the lens without needing to touch the camera. Mathematically, three points are enough to define a plane, which means I just need to get three points right and I know I've got the tilt and focal length right. Having to pan around each time slows me down and means I'm likely to move the camera as I poke the joystick (although less so since my tripod upgrade). It's one of the things I'd gladly take on coding into the BIOS myself, if only Nikon would allow a way for third-party coders to mess around - meanwhile I suggested the feature to them a few years ago now... it'd be useful for others as well, but since it's mostly a tilt/shift feature I kind of accept that T-S users are third-class citizens. I'd probably have more of the moral high ground if my lens was a Nikkor, though!<br>

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Best of luck if you get one, and I'll be interested to hear your findings.</p>