Projector Series: What is Throw Distance & Lens Shift?

What is Throw Distance & Lens Shift?

Over the next few weeks, we will explain some of the main terminology that you will see when purchasing a projector, including the brightness, contrast and resolution. Hopefully you will feel better equipped to look into the quality home theatre projectors that are available today.

Once you have selected your new gear, it is important to purchase the correct sized screen for your room. In a perfect world, we would choose the most advanced, most expensive projector on the market and the biggest screen possible, to replicate the cinema experience at home. While this sounds ideal, it is simply not the way to go.

Firstly, it is important to take into account the dimensions of the room you have designated for your home theatre.  You will need to know the height, width and depth of the room, and also the distance your seating will be set from the screen.

Epson Australia have a fantastic, interactive throw distance calculator available on their website, which can be used as a guide to selecting the correct screen when using their projectors.


Click HERE for the Epson Distance Calculator

Simply select the Epson projector you have or wish to purchase, and enter your room dimensions. Not only will this give you an idea of whether the projector is suitable for your room size, it advises the best distance to mount the projector from the screen, and what screen size would suit.

Of course, there are instances where the projector can’t be mounted directly in the middle of the room. Maybe there is a light or ceiling fan in the way? Do not worry, as most modern projectors now come with a Lens Shift function.

Lens shift is a great feature, allowing for added installation flexibility. This allows the lens to move within the projector housing and is usually controlled by either a dial or joystick located on the projector. Other projectors have the same function, controlled by buttons in the main menu.

There are several different kinds of Lens Shift available in modern projectors. Some can provide 1 form of shift, often vertical, while others can perform a wider range of motion, including vertical, horizontal or diagonal.

Lens Shift allows the entire projected image to be moved from side to side, or up and down, without warping of distorting the image, making installation that little bit easier.

I hope researching and purchasing a new projector won’t be so daunting after reading through our recent articles, but if you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our friendly tech staff on 1800 692 225.

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Other topics coming up in our Projector Series include:

How big should my Projector Screen be?

What is Contrast Ratio?

What are Lumens?

What is Resolution?