2019 3D-Con - Akron, Ohio

July 30th - Aug. 5th

workshop Sunday Aug. 4th  9:00 am

Let's talk about manipulating light! We will be looking at a handful of non-traditional lenses and exploring the characteristics of each. These affordable lens options can bend, refract, and soften light to produce scenes not as we see them, but as we feel them.

As a stereo photography enthusiast, my first goal was to mimic human sight. Focal length had to be considered in conjunction with camera sensor size and of course... there was the elusive stereo base concept.  After years of application, the factors of 3D became familiar and comfortable but something was still amiss.

In actuality, it was TWO somethings, focus and time.  When we walk outside and take in the view, our eyes are constantly repositioning and refocusing on different items of interest. Although we see a wide field, our focus point remains a small sweet spot in the center of that field and the rest is in soft focus.  It feels like we are viewing a large scene clearly because we have the advantage of time to refocus.  Our brain stitches the passing moments together giving the illusion of perfect sight but the truth is that at any given instant, our sight is quite limited.

I had been shooting for everything in focus and getting scenes that seemed to stop time. This effect was quite satisfying. Each image could be evaluated with clarity from edge to edge. There was a downside though as it eliminated the tools for conveying emotion that I enjoy in regular 2D shooting.  Alternative lenses have led me to rethinking the end product and making images that go beyond documenting a location with clinical clarity. These lenses have allowed my camera to represent the experience of being in a location.

Join me for a talk on manipulating light, see some lenses and sample images.