Expand Your View

Online Learning

  • Sean Duggan's Lynda.com Courses
  • The Photoshop Composite Project

  • The Photoshop Composite Project

  • Lynda.com Free 10-Day Trial

On the Web

Blog powered by Typepad

« Fall Cleanup | Main | Tragedy and Comedy »

15 November 2005

Comments

susan b.

wow. That's stunning.

Tami

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 . . .

Sean

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.

The comments to this entry are closed.