This is the way I figure it Robert. Tilt shift photography is creating a photo that looks like a miniature model. This can be achieved by means of a regular camera and attaching a tilt shift lens........$300-$3000US. There are apps for cell phones starting at free. I have one but haven't test drove it yet. The last option is using a photo editor as I did, Paint.net., it's a free download, the poor man's Photoshop.
Upload your photo
Create a layer and then upload the same photo on the second layer
From the dropbox in the header, click "Effects">"Gaussian Blur" and use the slider to determine how much blur you want
From the "Toolbox" button, click the "Gradient Tool" this adds to the header, click "Linear" then "Transparency Mode"
Put your cursor on the photo where you want the image to be focused, right click and hold on your mouse then use one of the 4 direction arrows to increase the focused area.
Back to the header, click "Adjustments" and in the drop box click "Hue/Saturation" Slide the saturation all the way to the right.
Flatten the 2 layers into one photo and voila, c'est finis.
The above photo was my 3rd attempt. Below are some examples from people better than me, using a tilt shift lens except the last one. From top to bottom, the first 2 are by Vincent Laforet, the third is by Nicolas Pattagon the last one is from Tilt-Shift Photography Examples and using Photoshop ......
Ahhhh! Now I get it, thanks, was a little slow there! While we are on the subject I have been playing with Focus Stacking, don't know if you have ever tried but it is very applicable to photographing scale models.
Thanks guys. As mentioned earlier, the more "clutter" above/below your target, the better the effect. These two failed by not having anything below the target...
Thanks guys. Back from holidays to the coast. Yesterdays trip home involved a 3 hour wait for a ferry, two mysterious waits on the TransCanada freeway; the sources I never saw, numerous construction delays and a line-up due to cleaning up after a tractor/trailer highway crash for a total of 18 hours 59 minutes on the road. Sorting and editing the few pics I took but I'll start with this: This is the only pioneer home still standing in the area I moved to and grew up in, built between 1910-1920. Lived here for 2 years until we bought the farm across the road. I'm surprised it's still standing and it's been turned into a small museum