Pics are crooked; help through a viewfinder!

[jpeka65844]

Using my Canon S5, I always used the screen which had a grid on it and my pictures always came out straight!

Now that I've upgraded to a T1I, my pics are crooked! And not the good, artsy fartsy kind of crooked! I must have one leg shorter than the other. They tend to tilt to the right. I'm aware of this when I shoot, attempt to correct the problem but wind up overcompensating.

Any tricks a newbie like me can use to center myself? Other than just to DO IT!????

 

[racreel]

Try lining up with the edges of the frame in the viewfinder. The top and bottom should be parallel to what ever you want to be level.

 

[SrisonS]

I probably could've been the op to this thread. Except when I had the S3, I didn't use the grid lines that much (although I probably should've).... I have a T1i now. All I can say is good luck on keeping the pictures straight. I have yet to determine a set technique to do this. But maybe just try to find a good way to straighten the pics afterwards.

It's actually my lack of keeping pictures straight, that I've sort of developed a unique style of shooting. So now, I tilt most of my pics for effect.

Again.... good luck!!!!

 

[Code]

No good advice from me, I'm just used to fixing my crooked photos after the fact.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I'm sure you have a grid on your dSLR as well. It just might take you a while to find it buried in there somewhere (as it did with mine; heck I still have trouble finding it).

Someone also mentioned a level you can buy to place on the top of the camera.

Crooked landscapes make me crazy.

 

[Shutterbug]

You can get grid lines if you use liveview function..see page 108 of your manual, the manual is your friend

Now if you want to see grid lines through the view finder you need to replace the focusing screen in the camera.
They make one for the 40D and 50D which I have. It appears though that canon does make one for your camera.

Though here is a place that does make one for you camera, though its really pricey...at $150
http://www.katzeyeoptics.com/page--Custom-Gridlines-and-Croplines--gridlines.html

 

[boBQuincy]

Crooked horizons are mostly caused by a not uncommon eye problem, the scientific name of which escapes me right now. I have it and usually use the focus points in the viewfinder to get close, then correct the rest in editing. You could try the other eye and see if it gets better.

 

[jann1033]

make sure you are not tilting your head unconsciously ...i had a bunch of crooked photos then realize i had gotten in the habit of tilting my head slightly
they are much straighter now that i have stopped that lol

 

[boBQuincy]

make sure you are not tilting your head unconsciously ...i had a bunch of crooked photos then realize i had gotten in the habit of tilting my head slightly
they are much straighter now that i have stopped that lol

Tilting our heads slightly can be caused by an eye muscle imbalance (which I also have), where our eyes do not want to aim in the same direction and the head tilt is a sort of workaround.

 

[bob100]

you can get a little hot shoe bubble level like this -

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...y_Bogen_Imaging_337_337_2_Axis_Flash_Hot.html

I also suffer from tilted horizons but it's usually fixable in post processing