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My First Act of the Day!

© John A. Lind

My First Act of the Day!

Uploaded: September 27, 2001

Description

A self-portrait done in "first person" to express something about me as I see it myself. Contax IIIa (Color Dial) on tripod at eye level; 50mm f/1.5 Sonnar; f/4 @ 1/50th; Sunpak 383 tilted upward for diffused ceiling bounce; Kodak Royal Gold 100

Comments

Jim Miotke level-addict My Courses August 12, 2000

Great shot, John - very fun. How did you get the cup in such sharp focus while the pot remains out of focus? #2

Jon Close August 16, 2000

Great shot!

I'm trying to figure out how the cup and left edge of the pot are in focus, but nothing else on the same plane is. A portion of the range top at right should be in focus but isn't. How'd you do that without a tilt/shift lens?

I'm guessing a homemade diffusion/soft focus filter with a clear spot in the lower left to keep the mug sharp. Am I right? #10

John A. Lind August 16, 2000

Sharp eyes to notice the pot is in the same plane as the cup. That spot diffusion is off-center too! Therefore it can't be DOF and should be in focus too.

It's a trade secret! :-)

OK, I confess. I manipulated the scan using a digital equivalent of an off-center spot diffuser. Software used is Digital Light and Color's "Picture Window" (similar to PhotoShop).

You can do the same at time of making the photo by putting an off-center spot diffuser in front of a lens hood with reasonable depth. Home made off-center spot diffusers are easy with an old large UV filter, some vaseline, and a method for attaching it to the front of the lens hood. You keep adding vaseline from the outside in until you've got everything diffused except the spot you want. The Cokin system can also be used for things like this and you can rotate/slide stuff around to position it where you want. #11


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