A Creative Journey

The gear that I use to take landscape photographs hasn't changed too much over the years. I've upgraded my Nikon bodies and expanded my lens collection to encompass a wider range of focal lengths. Aside from that though, things have remained largely the same. After all, the gear I use suits the type and style of photographs I take.

So when Lensbaby asked me to try their Velvet 56 lens I wondered how it might fit into my style of photography. The Velvet 56 is the type of lens that you would use for portraits or close up photography, or if you wanted to add a glow or vintage look to your photographs. All the kind of things that I typically don't do with my photography.

So why did I decide to give the Velvet 56 a try then? Simple really. I wanted to expand my photographic horizons. You should never be scared to try new things. I felt that even if I decided that this wouldn't be a lens that I buy I was sure trying something new would be fun, challenging, and most of all teach me something new.

Rather than write a very lengthy blog post on my experiences with the Velvet 56, I've documented the entire experience and my conclusions in this video:

So that was my adventure with the Velvet 56. As I said in the video it was a great experience and I very much enjoyed doing something different with my photography and pushing the boundaries of what I'm used to. Sure it's not a lens I would use a lot, but in the right situation, it's a lens that can be used to great creative effect.

So how do you like to push your creative boundaries? Have you ever considered using a Lensbaby lens? Let me know in the comment below.

The Images

You will have seen all the images in the video but if you want to see what they look like in more detail so you can really see the effects produced by the Velvet 56, they are here in this handy little gallery.