Hi Charlie,
A lot of photographers have taken to using the tilt-shift effect on their landscapes in recent years. Part of the appeal is that it can make any landscape look like Lilliput, the fabled miniature land from Gulliver’s Travels.
By creating a dramatic shift in depth-of-field the image mimics the charactristics of a macro photo where the subject is in focus but nearby elements are out of focus. Normally, in a landscape, because the main elements are a long way from the camera we wouldn't expect to see much of a change in depth of field.
There are a couple of ways to create the tilt-shift effect. First, you can use a tilt-shift lens which varies the plane of focus between the subject and the camera sensor, and shortens the depth of field. This is probably the easiest way to create the miniature effect, though most tilt-shift lenses are restrictively expensive.
A more popular way to achieve the effect is with software, either in-camera or with a program like Photoshop. In Photoshop the key is to make sure the blur effect is 'graduated', meaning the blur increases gradually as you move away from the pont of focus. You also need to be careful to allow for high and low points that may be on a similar focus plane to the subject.
So, in order to make the tilt-shift effect look convincing, you need to be tricky about it.
In the example below I opened your image and then duplicated the Background Layer. I named the new layer 'Tilt Shift Effect'. I then gave myself a head start and used the new Tilt/Shift tool in Photoshop CS6 to apply a Tilt Shift effect to the top layer.
The new Tilt/Shift tool does a good job of mimicking a real tilt shift lens but to make the effect look convincing you then need to selectively blend the original image (the Background layer) with the new layer.
To do this, add a Layer Mask. This will create that white panel next to the layer in Photoshop. Then use the Paintbrush Tool, (select the colour Black in the foreground palette) and begin to paint in the parts of the top photograph that you want to hide while revealing the background.
(One word of advice here. When working with Layer Masks make sure you have the mask selected before painting onto the image).
Have another play with this technique and see if you can get your original file looking even more convincing.
Cheers,
Anthony
Image Doctor's edited version
Image Doctor's edited version
