Magic

Lesson 1 “When subject matter is forced to fit into preconceived patterns, there can be no freshness of vision.” -Edward Weston

Welcome to my Lensbaby Magic Class!

The Basics Craig Strong invented the Lensbaby when he was trying to find a different look for his images. He was looking for a way to be able to do this in-, instead of spending hours sitting at his computer. He wanted to combine the soft, imperfect look produced by film , with the convenience of digital imagery. He says that the Lensbaby he developed gave him some options to match a certain mood in a theme, or to render an image the way he envisioned it. With the trend these day being the most refined, precise, high speed automatic , the Lensbaby is a refreshing

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 1 step backwards. It’s sort of an odd combination of an old, manual focus where you had to do it right the first time, and a modern day video game joystick. The original lens models are mounted on a plastic bellows, which allows you to manually focus by pushing, pulling and bending. A selected part of your image will be in focus, and you control just where that ‘sweet spot” of focus will be by manipulating either the bellows section (the part that looks like vacuum cleaner hose) on the Muse and the original models, or the focus ring on the Composer, which has a ball and socket type design. The remaining areas of your image are softly and gradually blurred, creating unique, eye-catching images. The lens opening, or (f/stop) is controlled by the set of aperture rings that comes with your Lensbaby unless you are using the Sweet 35, Edge 80 or other optic which allows aperture changes via a dial on the optic.The aperture will change the size and sharpness of your sweet spot of focus.

I will admit it, I am a Lensbaby Addict, I LOVE my Lensbaby lenses! I have done some of my most creative work ever using them, and I really love the originality they bring to my images. Being able to interpret a scene, decide what I want to highlight, and focus on just that part of the scene is a refreshing change. This lens challenges the idea that everything in an image must be perfect, and perfectly in focus. Over the years, my work has shifted from the literal to more of an interpretive nature, and the Lensbaby fits in perfectly with that change.

I first discovered Lensbabies on an Autumn Workshop in New Hampshire with a group of photographers. When we all shared what we had been shooting, one woman wowed us with her amazing foliage images, all done with a Lensbaby. I think I had one ordered the day I arrived home from the workshop. Here are four images from my very first walk around my neighborhood with my Lensbaby, fresh out of the box. I didn’t quite get the focus I wanted on all of them, but I was hooked by the blur and . All of these images are right out of the camera, resized only.

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 2 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 3 The Lenses-The Early Models

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 4 Though there are different models of Lensbaby lenses, the image concept remains the same. Choosing a model really depends on your personal taste, needs, and the type of results you are seeking. The first 3 lenses are no longer being produced by Lensbaby, But many of us still use and love them! Many stores still have them available, and I frequently see them on E-Bay.

The Lensbaby Original (LBO) has one single uncoated lens element and an aperture range of f/2.8 to f/8, with a of approximately 50mm. It utilizes a retaining ring to keep the aperture rings in place. The sweet spot of the LBO is a bit softer that the other models, and there will be more diffusion in the highlights when you use it at the wider . Used wide-open, your images will have a very impressionistic appearance. If a soft, dreamy look (similar to a Holga or ) is what you are after, this would be a good choice. It can also provide quite a nice sharp sweet spot of focus when you use the smaller apertures. It makes a great portrait lens with the softer sweet spot and gradual sweet spot to blur transition.

The Lensbaby 2.0 (LB2) has a coated double glass lens, and a very sharp sweet spot of focus, even when used wide open without an aperture ring. Bent highlights will take on an oblong shape or streak near the edges of the frame. The aperture rings are held in place with a magnet system. This lens is sharper and faster than the LBO. If you want your sweet spot to be really sharp, this lens is a better choice for you.

The Lensbaby 3G (as in 3rd generation, LB3G) also has the coated doublet lens that the LB2 has, as well as 3 additional f/ stops- f/11, f/16 and f/22. This version is basically a Lensbaby 2.0 that allows you to lock your focus and do separate fine focus adjustments and fine tune your sweet spot placement. A button on the top right allows you to lock the lens once you have it in the position you want, and two knobs at the bottom release it. There are also three round knobs for fine focus adjustment once you have locked it down. Three metal threaded rods stick out from the front of the lens and allow you to fine tune “the bend” once it’s locked. This model is pretty funky looking, and almost always attracts questions from people who see it on my camera. If you need repeatable results (for product , for example), the ability to fix the position of your Lensbaby and fine tune the adjustments, this is the lens for you. This lens is also best for long exposures, bracketing difficult exposures, capturing movement, and night shooting. It does take some time for the LB3G controls to become intuitive, I still find myself fumbling for knobs at times. I find this model much easier to use mounted on a tripod, I feel like I need an extra hand for adjustments if I try shooting handheld with it. (Note! Do not store your LB3G in the locked position, you could permanently bend the bellows section!)

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 5 The New Generation Lensbaby- A Lens System

photo by Lensbaby.com

In the fall of 2008, Lensbabies introduced 3 new models, The Composer, The Muse, The Control Freak and an Optic Swap System that can be used with each of the new models. This optic system consists of separate which can be purchased as a set, or individually. They basically give you the benefits of a whole new lens, with just an inexpensive optic change. They have since added even more models.

The new lenses are:

The Composer was an entirely new concept of Lensbaby, with a ball and socket design, which stays where you put it when you aim the front element at your subject. It came with the Double Glass optic installed. If you have this model I suggest you use that optic when just starting to use your Lensbaby, it’s much easier to focus with that element. Recently discontinued but you can still find them.

The Composer Pro has the same design as the regular Composer, but it’s a little smoother in terms of the ball and socket and focus. You can buy it with either the Double Glass optic, Sweet 50 or the Sweet 35 optic. Any of those are fine for the assignments.

The Muse resembled the Lensbaby Original and 2.0 in design, and came with either the Double Glass or the Plastic Optic. Though it’s not the easiest to learn/use, I do love it! Please use the Double Glass optic at first if you have it. Recently discontinued but you can still find them.

The Scout is Lensbaby’s only straight lens, this one does not bend, so your sweet spot is always in the center. Though limiting, it’s great for the Fisheye optic! Recently discontinued but you can still find them.

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 6 The Spark- This Lens resembles the Muse, but is made with a fixed aperture of f/5.6. If this is all you have, it’s fine to use it for the assignments.

The Control Freak- An updated version of the Lensbaby 3G for very precise focusing, no longer in production. My least favorite model ever.

The Optic Swap System: (More on Optics later in the course too)

The selective focus optics are:

Double Glass - sharp and crisp, 50mm. Apertures are changed manually with a collection of aperture rings included with the optic.

Single Glass - soft and diffused, the effect is much like the original Lensbaby Plastic - soft and dreamy, Holga type effect, a little harder to focus but the results are lovely, 50mm, Apertures are changed manually with a collection of aperture rings included with the optic.

Plastic- the softest of the selective focus optics, a dreamy effect, 50mm, apertures are changed manually with a collection of aperture rings.

The Edge 80- This optic creates a slice of focus across your image, 80mm. I would prefer that you not use this optic for at least the first three assignments. It’s a little trickier to use and you’ll have an easier time with a sweet spot of focus instead of a slice. I’ll talk more about it in Lesson 4. Apertures are changed with a twist of a ring on the optic.

Sweet 50- Just like the Double Glass but apertures are changed with a twist of a ring on the optic, much easier to use.

Sweet 35- Similar to the Sweet 50 but 35mm, apertures are changed with a twist of a ring on the optic.

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 7 The Creative optics are:

Pinhole/ - No real sweet spot, very soft dreamy images, my least favorite.

Soft Focus- This optic doesn’t really have a sweet spot. Instead, it provides an all over softness to the image, the aperture you choose will control the amount of softness and definition in your subject.

Fisheye- an ultra-wide 12mm focal length and a 160 degree filed of view, and the ability to focus as little as an inch away from your subject, to infinity (requires an adaptor to be used with the Muse). Great choice for the Scout lens.

*For now, I’d like you to use the Double Glass Optic or the Sweet 35 or Sweet 50, these optics will provide you with the sharpest sweet spot, and are easiest when starting out with your Lensbaby.

Getting Started You will need to set your camera on either Manual or Aperture Priority mode. I usually set mine to Aperture Priority when using a Lensbaby. All Canon cameras will work with this setting. users will need to shoot on Manual with some models. Check the user guide which comes in your Lensbaby box for specific information about requirements for your camera. Here are a couple of charts that will help too:

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 8 Your camera will meter the light coming thru the lens and set an appropriate , you may need to use +/- compensation to get a correct exposure. Consider each first shot of a subject as a test shot. Have a look at the image on your camera’s LCD or check your histogram, and adjust your shutter speed for less or more light if needed. The Lensbaby handles light a little differently, recheck the exposure with each new subject or if you change angles of view.

All Lensbaby models come with the f/4 aperture ring installed (except the Composer Pro with Sweet 35 or 50 option). To start, I’d like you to use that ring, Sweet 35/50 users can dial in f/4 right on the optic. This is the aperture I find myself using most often. It gives me plenty of blur, and the sweet spot is pretty easy to find, which is essential when you are just starting with these lenses. It’s a great all-around aperture. If you would prefer to start with f/2.8 for additional blur, that’s fine, but the sweet spot will be a little tougher to see. I would also recommend starting with an ISO of 100 to keep digital noise in check if possible. If you are using the Spark, you’ll be shooting at f/5.6 and that’s fine.

Focusing All focusing with the three early Lensbabies (Lensbaby Original, 2.0 and 3G) as well as the Muse and the Spark, is done using the bellows. If you don’t move the bellows, your Lensbaby will focus about 18 inches to two feet away. Squeezing it all the way in towards you will focus to infinity. Pushing the bellows out, away from you, will give you a focus distance of about 8 inches. To focus on subjects between these two distances, you need to partially compress the bellows, pulling it towards you. Start by pulling your bellows with your fingers on the focus collar (the larger ring on the bellows) all the way in, and then gradually release it straight out until your subject comes into focus. Your sweet spot will be in the center of your frame. (I am right handed, and use my left index and middle fingers and my right middle finger for moving the bellows. This leaves my right index finger free for the shutter button.) If you don’t bend the bellows, your image will be very sharp right in the center and blurred out to the edges.

Focusing with the Composer/Composer Pro is much different. You simply point the front element of the lens wherever you want to focus and it stays there, an amazingly simple

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 9 design and so easy to use! You can adjust how tight the ball joint is with the black ring just outside the lens mount. Once you adjust it to your liking you can just leave it there, there’s no reason to change it. Focusing is done by twisting the focus ring on the front element. The Double Glass and Sweet 50 optics will allow you to focus about 18 inches away to infinity, the Sweet 35 will focus about 8 inches away to infinity.

If you are using the LB3G or Control Freak, pull and push the bellows to find your focus, press the locking button (top right of the focusing collar that you are pushing/pulling) to lock the bellows in place. Now you can make any necessary fine adjustments by rotating one of the fine focus rings, as you would fine focus using a manual focus lens.

Don’t take just one shot of a subject when shooting with a Lensbaby, especially in the beginning. It takes time to get the hang of these lenses, so shoot lots and lots! If you always use auto focus and never have to judge if something is in focus without the camera telling you it is, this will be really tricky in the beginning. If you are having difficulty getting a sharp sweet spot, try bracketing for focus. By that, I mean to make slight adjustments to your focus without recomposing. This will definitely up your “keeper” ratio in the beginning.

I would like you to practice getting a centered subject in focus this week, we’ll work on bending in Lesson 2 because bending adds a degree of difficulty in focusing. A centered focus is easiest when you are beginning to use these lenses. This type of manual focusing will slow you down, which can be a good thing. It will really force you to concentrate on your subject! I would suggest you focus on non-moving objects in the beginning to make things easier.

Here are some images taken with a centered sweet spot. Notice how your eye is drawn to the area in focus.

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 10 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 11 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 12 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 13 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 14 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 15 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 16 When just getting started with your Lensbaby, prepare to delete, delete, delete. It does take some time and lots of practice to get the hang of this lens. But the more you use it, the easier it will become. Once it starts to click for you, you’ll find yourself as addicted to this lens as I am! This is an imperfect lens, so knowing your images won’t all be keepers will keep you from being disappointed when you look at them. I know quite a few photographers who have given up on their Lensbabies before really giving them a chance. When you get the hang of it, using your Lensbaby will be sort of like riding a bicycle, you will need to think less and less about hand control and more about what you are seeing through the lens.

If you have the Macro Kit or Macro Converters, you may want to wait until you are happy with your focus before you use them. Macro make the focusing a bit harder, and I don’t want you to get discouraged. If you feel confident, give it a try, macro shooting with a Lensbaby is loads of fun! I would advise you to start off with a centered focus with the macro filters as well.

Also, don’t delete your images until you see them on your computer. You really cannot look at Lensbaby images on an LCD panel and see if you’ve gotten the focus down, and the wonderful blur effects aren’t easy to see there either. So, wait until you have a look at them on your computer, and delete the ones that don’t please you.

BACK FOCUS

As you start shooting more with your Lensbaby, Keep an eye out for Back focus. Back focus is what happens when you focus even ever so slightly beyond the point of focus. If you are using a Bellows model, it’s what happens if you squeeze that bellows just a tad beyond the point of focus. If you are using the Composer, it means that you turned your focus ring just a bit too far. It can also be caused by moving forward slightly toward your subject after you focus, a tripod will eliminate that cause. The result is a swirl of blur in your sweet spot, surrounded by an area in focus, and then more blur. So basically, you have a sweet spot of blur, surrounded by focus, just the opposite of what you want. It can actually add to an image in some cases as it is quite a funky effect, but in most cases it does not as it is quite distracting. It can be hard to see in your viewfinder when you first start using your Lensbaby.

Here are some examples of back focusing, you can see that it happens me occasionally too:

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 17 Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 18 You can view this week’s assignment by clicking the assignment tab. I can’t wait to see what you shoot! The variety of subjects that our students find is always inspiring to me. Let me know if you have any questions at all. Feel free to share your out takes in the Q and A so that your classmates can see them.

If you need any additional equipment, remember that you can save 10% at Lensbaby.com by using my student discount code, wclemons.

Happy shooting!

Ka"leen

Lensbaby Magic Kathleen Clemons 19