I recently pushed off my hesitancy to buy the Lensbaby Obscura Optic and went ahead and ordered to. It’s not really a lens for a camera but explained as more of a pin hole camera experience. Pin hole cameras have been used as far back at the fifth century BC. On the original pin hole camera there was no lens…just a pin hole. Today’s version of this camera by Lensbaby does have a covering over the hole but it’s not a lens.
The f/stops scared me when I first started researching the optic. F/32, F/64, and F/161. I tend to shoot around f/2.8 and f/4. That’s a huge difference. I also wasn’t sure it would compliment my style of photography. Those f/stops show a great deal of depth in an image. My work shows very little. So why would I try something so out of my element? In all honestly I didn’t have a good reason. Not having an answer to that question is the reason I bought the optic. Every time I try something new in photography, I walk away energized. My eyes are opened just a bit more. New lens, new techniques, new genres…they all help me to keep my creativity boosted. This is the reason I’m going to work at this optic. And it’s going to take work. I’ll need different subjects, different locations, and different light.
The worst that can happen is that I can decide it’s not for me or maybe not for every day use but it might be fun to have it my bag for that occasion when I’m looking for something different from my normal work or to help propel me out of a rut!
What have I got to lose?
And just so you know I don’t get them all right, this is day two. My composition leaves a bit to be desired, but I’m liking that the old bnw film feel.
