20 17 August 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
KIT LIST
▲ ▲ ▲Technique LENS CHOICEPracticemakesperfect
TheideabehindtheLensbabyis thatit replacesyour
normalcameralensandallowsyoutoexperimentwith
creatingartisticimageswhereonepartof theimageis
sharpwhileeverythingelseis blurredandoutof focus.
They’refairlyeasytouse,andgreatfuntoo,butlike
mostthingsphotographic,youdo need to practise a
bit to get the hang of things.
TilttheSpark
AlthoughtheLensbabylendsitselftokeepingyourmainsubjectin thecentre
of theframeandsurroundingit withblur,youcanalsoproducesomegreat
effectsbytiltingtheLensbabySpark,sothe‘sweetspot’is movedtowardsthe
edgeof theframe.Begentlethough– it onlytakesa slightshifttomovethat
point, so if you’re heavy-handed you’ll struggle to get the effect you want.Keepit simple
Stickto simple,boldandcolourful
subjects– if thecompositionis too
cluttered,thefinalimagewillbemessy
andconfusing.In sunnyweather,shoot
froma lowviewpointto captureyour
subjectagainstthesky.TheLensbaby
effect also works well on backlit subjects.Trydifferentmodes,
includingmanual
There’snoelectroniccontact
betweentheLensbabyandyour
camerasoit’srecommendedthat
yousetyourcameratomanual
exposuremode.However,youcan
shootin aperturepriority,shutter
priorityandprogrammodeaswell.
Justbeawarethatin contrasty
conditionsyoumayneedtouse
a fairamountof exposurecomp
to gain an accurate exposure.LeeFrost
Leeis oneoftheUK’sbest-knowntraveland
landscapephotographers,sellinghisimages
internationallythroughleadingpicturelibraries.
He’salsoa prolificauthorontheartandcraftof
photographyandleadsphotoworkshopsandtours
around the world. Visitwww.leefrost.co.uk.Lensbaby for arty effectsLensbaby
Trythe‘Spark’,whichhasa
fixedf/5.6apertureplusa
focallengthof50mm.Orthe
CreativeBokehSpark,which
hasa fixedf/2.5apertureand
canbefittedwithshaped
discstochangethebokeh.
See http://www.lensbaby.com.Toycameralens
A cheaperalternativetothe
Lensbabyis a toycameralens
foryourDSLR.Holgalenses
in commonmountssuchas
CanonandNikoncostaround
£20(www.wexphotovideo.
com).Dianalensesarepricier
at £39 (www.lomography.com).Pinhole‘lens’
Whynottryyourhandatdigital
pinholephotographyby
replacingyournormallens
witha pinholebodycap
thatactsasbothlensand
aperture?SeePinhole
Solutions(www.
pinholesolutions.co.uk).ALL PICTURES ON PAGE 20 © LEE FROST