So, if the disadvantages/advantages of using software are acceptable, then no, the individual photographer does not need a T/S lens.
One advantage to using software that I would like to add is the weight saving. This is especially important for meeting airline restrictions, reducing fatigue, being less of a target in airport/customs, etc. Traveling with a camera and two zoom lenses is so convenient.
It's not always possible to visualize beforehand how the image will look like after keytone correction in post. I do this with cityscapes and the success rate is quite mixed. The workaround of course is to go as wide as you can to allow buffer space, but then you won't have as much per
I shoot hotels, and generally each picture is allocated no less than 1 hour of time, so I get a chance to do the corrections and crop accordingly. I thought using a tilt shift lens might save me some time, by removing that step, but since they never come as zooms, I would still have to test the composition by cropping in software. I figured I would not be able to save as much time as I would like. It would be amazing if there was a zoom TS lens.
The software that mimics tilt basically blurs out sections of the image
Helicon Focus can't match and exceed tilt effect?
For shift, there are perspective control options, but unless they are very sophisticated and have data for each lens at multiple focus distance settings then its not going to get close to doing actual lens movement on camera.
I use PTLens to manually correct perspective. Are there programs that can automate this process much like PTLens can automate lens distortion corrections by employing pre-saved lens profiles?
Well, for architecture... absolutely. Why start off with an inferior image when it's possible to shoot it the 'right way'? Also, Canon's 24mm TS-e is about the sharpest 24mm on the planet. So, it's a great way to start a shifted image.
Hello Chris, nice to see you again. Inferior in what way, composition or resolution especially in the corners? It's the first part I am most interested to learn about.
By the way how does the canon 24tse perform when aimed towards windows? When I shoot bedrooms I often get flare from my 17-40L, especially when the window is small and the furniture is dark. You see it especially on the curtains where they are completely washed out on the edges.