Part II of my session with Nataly using vintage lenses – See Part I Here. While most of my work here focuses on Victorian photo methods, I also do film and digital photography. One of my favorite things to do is adapt old “vintage” lenses to my digital cameras. Old lenses are technically inferior to modern lenses, they “flare” in bright light and have aberrations and distortions that show up in the image. Sharpness and resolution are issues. So why use them? Because they lenses produce beautiful and interesting images! The images have character and the “flaws” add ambiance…
Nataly and I went out on a not-so-cold December afternoon to make some portraits with vintage lenses. Our goal was to explore the flaws and see how we could use them to creative benefit. The image above is a classic rendering of the Helios 44 which is known for its background swirls.
What a dreamy portrait!
The other use of a vintage lens like the Helios is to generate light flares. These occur when light is reflected off the glass in the lens and forms circles and other artifacts. Modern lenses use special glass and coatings to minimize flares – so you can take pictures into the sun without any character! Here the setting sun bounces around inside the lens to make fascinating patterns!
We also did a few portraits with a Vintage Takumar 135mm lens. The Takumar is not as wild as the Helios in terms of swirls and flares. It does give beautiful dreamy portraits when used wide open…
Here are more of our photos from this session
You can see more of Natalie’s work on my wedding photography site at “Fiery Portrait”
Nataly has also posed for wet plate portraits Riverside Tintypes with Nataly
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