Museé Morpho
(click in the image for a larger version)
This photo is actually about a year old. It popped back up on my radar screen today when the Maine Photo Workshops asked if they could use it in an ad and for the cover of their Summer 2006 catalog (I will be teaching in 2006 at the Maine Workshops, as well as the Santa Fe Workshops, but dates have not yet been set).
For the curious, the only Photoshop work in this image is some minor contrast, brightness and toning adjustments. The selective focus was created by using a Lensbaby, a very cool lens that allows the user to flex and extend it manually to move the focus "sweet spot" around. If you appreciate what I call the "beauty of the blur" then you should definately check out a Lensbaby.
wow. That's stunning.
Posted by: susan b. | 19 November 2005 at 11:28 PM
I was wondering what your thoughts were re: the Lensbaby lenses . . . do you use it very often? Is it more proficient and precise to create the same effects via Photoshop? I have been curious to try one . . .
Posted by: Tami | 29 January 2006 at 07:09 AM
Tami...Lensbabies are very useful if you want to create the type of effect seen in this photo. Doing something similar in Photoshop can be done, of course, but it requires more work and several extra steps. Doing it in Photoshop, however, does mean that it is reversible; so you can start with a perfectly focused image and add the blurring effect. It may be more precise to do it in Photoshop, but it's more of a technique and you lose some of the magic that comes from shooting it that way in the first place.
But the Lensbaby's blurring creates optical and chromatic distortions that are very random, and as such, result in effects that you might not have imagined and that wiould be difficult to apply in Photoshop. Typically, when I use it, it is because I know I want the image to have that effect, similar to when I take photos with my Holga or pinhole camera. You have to sort of buy into the idea that...for the next 20 to 30 images, I will be using this funky lens that creates funky, cool effects.
If you go to the June 2005 archive (links are on the right side--scroll down a bit) the 2nd, 3rd and 4th photos are Lensbaby shots.
Posted by: Sean | 29 January 2006 at 09:54 AM