Freelensing

Maybe you have heard of freelensing.  Odds are though, even if you have heard of it you have yet to try.  Freelensing is taking photos with a (d)slr and the lens DETACHED from the camera and moved around to focus.  It's what many refer to as the poor man's tilt/shift.  I have been doing a great deal of experimenting with it over the last couple of days and I have figured out a few things.  First, check out Luke Robert's site for more info on how to than you will get here.  He is the originator of this really cool technique:  http://lukeroberts.us/2009/12/freelensing/

OK, first off it is best to select a lens with a minimum focal length of 35mm and 50mm is even better.  A large maximum aperture is also good.  Like f2.8 or bigger.  I have been using my oldish Nikon 50 1.8 D.  The D is very important in that Nikon D lenses have the ability when detached from a camera body to have the aperture blades remain fully open. 

Now you have a detached D lens or the Canon, Panasonic, Leica, etc.. equivalent.  Like I said earlier, I am mainly using my Nikon 50mm 1.8D.  Set your focus manually to infinity.  You will also need to manually meter the scene.  As your aperture will not change I shoot in full manual mode and I suspect shutter priority would work the same.  Now, with your lens detached but very close to the body of your camera, point your lens at an object (assuming you are using a 50mm) within 2 to 5 feet of your outer lens element.  Here's the fun part; swing your lens just a little left or right until something comes in to focus.  You can also lift (rise) or tilt downward (fall) the trajectory of your lens.  You can also move closer or farther from your subject to see what comes into focus...

Note: It is possible and even very likely your sensor, as your lens is not attached, when trying out this technique will get dusty.  Bring a rocket blower or whatever you have to clean your sensor.

It quite a bit of fun to play with.  There's a very good wedding photographer, Ryan Brenizer, who uses this method quite successfully.  Check out his blog here: http://www.ryanbrenizer.com/blog/  He's a very talented photographer...

 

Oh, one more thing.  You need to check out this short tilt/shift, stop motion piece on Haiti: http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2011/01/11/132832171/haiti

Here are some of my shots from the Silver Creek area taken today:

The extremely razor thin depth of field is evident in the image below:

 

An attempt at freelensing product photography...

 

By virtue of not having the lens attached you can get "light leaks" which wash out the image even more.

 

The image below was taken with the Nikkor Micro 105mm 2.8 D lens.  I used it to allow for a greater distance between me/my camera and what I could have in focus.

 

Below was my first attempt.  I was too far from my subject and could not get anything in focus...

Lower Big Lost River Regulation Change

A big new change for our local fishing quietly happened at the new year.  The Lower Big Lost River--lower is designated as below the Mackay Reservoir--is now open ALL year.  That's right.  It's now catch and release from Dec. 1st to the Friday prior to Memorial Weekend.  It will be great to have a Spring Tailwater Fishery in our back yard.  Generally speaking, the river flows around 110-200 cfs until late May when irrigators start making their annual "calls" for water.  What this means is we should have two very good months of dry fly fishing.  As I have never fished the Lost in April but having fished it the final day in March for many consecutive years, the baetis should be very, very strong.  Once the snow is cleared from Trail Creek Summit sometime in May that will make for an even shorter drive.  I have also observed over the years that the rainbows on the Lower Lost begin spawning far earlier than rainbows on any of our other local water.  By February many fish can be spotted on redds and by the end of March they have been in full spawn mode for some time.  Rainbows on the Big Wood, however, generally start their spawning in April and are done sometime around mid-June. 

 

Here are two images of ice on the Big Wood River:

 

Landscape And Sky

Here are two images where the sky melds with the landscape and vice versa.  I like how it is hard to discern where the landscape and sky merge...

 

 

More From Northern California

Here's an image of a couple standing near the water.  They were taking pictures of each other and had no idea I was there.  I noticed the woman put her arms up into the wind and I quickly lifted my camera and took a single frame.  I unfortunately do not know who they are.

 

Hidden from view, I quickly took this single image below of a good friend and his son.

 

My favorite moments shooting were after the sun went down.  The image below is of Pillar Point.

 

Here's another image of Pillar Point but in black & white and of the massive radar ball at the base.  You can see the radar ball on the right hand side in the color picture above.  This image was taken from the water.

 

Montarra Point Lighthouse.

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I stood on a cliff near high tide and sped the shutter up...

 

Beachbreak...

 

I captured the next 3 images from the water.  It was misting and dreary...

 

 

Ano Nuevo Surf Session

I had the chance on my recent trip to the Bay Area to shoot an old friend, Jon Dorn, for an afternoon surf session.  We drove from Half Moon Bay to Santa Cruz and ended up at Ano Nuevo.  A little windy and hot mid-afternoon light but well worth it.  I stood waist deep with my tripod and fired away.  Just one other person out.  All but one of the images below are of Jon Dorn...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below:  Unknown surfer reaping the moment....

Pillar Point Wharf. El Granada, California

I had a fun evening taking 15 to 30 second exposures of the dilapidated Pillar Point Wharf.  Having no lights, the wharf takes on a mysterious vibe.  Below are 5 images from that evening.

 

 

 

 

 

Nor Cal

I got back last night from a fun shot down to the Northern California coast and a good night out in San Francisco.  I had a moment of panic when my 80-200 2.8 lens fell from the camera mount while slung over my shoulder on a boat.  The lens went bang and rolled around a bit on the wet floor of the boat.  I must have accidentally pressed the lens release button.  Ooops.  The lens seems to be functiong fine however.  I have yet to edit many images but here are a few I have had a chance to look at...

 

 

 

 

Northern California Coast

Here are a few iPhone images from the Northern California Coast after a storm. Plus a broken stand-up paddle board just for good measure.

Winter Anamoly

Here's an image of an entomological anomaly.  I took this image about two weeks ago on the Big Wood River near Ketchum.  An entomolgist friend refers to this limnephilidae as an "evolutionary dead end."  A question then to ask is, should this bug on the same day I took this image have drifted over feeding fish, would any fish even give it a glance?  My answer is probably not as it looks like nothing else we have on the water in December and January on the Wood.  I have recently used a caddis imitation that resembles this limnephilidae as an indicator pattern without a look...  Midges however have been THE surface choice and will continue to be until February when we start to see a few small stones here and there.  The dry fly fishing on the Wood has been about as good as it can get for January.  Warmish weather is forecast for at least the next 5 or 6 days and without any major wind the surface activity should remain strong.


 

 


Open Space

Large open space has always mystified me in many ways.  Many flat, arid and super expansive landscapes serve, to me at least, as an easy segue to the concept of infinity.  Visually from the ground, there often appears to be no end or rather no geological change in features or, flatness, all the way to and beyond the horizon.  Vegetation in these places is often thin and the soil hardened from wind and lack of water.  I really have never felt drawn to this type of landscape nor have I felt inclined to try and capture it until now.  The first image below is a start.  Just a start.  I was in Boise yesterday and while driving back I noticed a power line that appeared to have no rise or fall or end.  It was just carried by a landscape that I have never appreciated or liked aesthetically.

 

Big Beach Lifeguard Tower At Dusk

I took this image handheld at dusk at f2.8, 1/10 of a second and 800 iso not really thinking it would work and knowing full well there would be some noise (grain).  It's almost 2 stops under exposed.

 

Keawakapu Beach

Here are a few in color taken just after sunset on the south side of Maui.  This was a day after a rainfall Maui had not seen in 4 or 5 years.  As a result the skies were spectacular.

 

On a fishing note, I guided the Wood today and other than the brisk wind the fishing was quite good.  Plenty of fish up eating midges!  The time to be on the water is roughly 11:30 to 3.  No crowds and willing fish especially on days where the high is near or over 30.

 

 

 

Sky And Clouds And The Pacific

A black and white from about 36,000 feet of clouds and shadows over the Pacific. Image taken with the iPhone 4 and edited with the tilt/shift generator.

Fencing A River

Unfortunately the image below represents a pretty common sight on many navigable Western rivers wherein the public is allowed yet intimidated and led to believe otherwise.