{"id":3669,"date":"2009-09-28T20:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-09-28T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dev.wordpress\/?p=3669"},"modified":"2025-05-02T13:32:27","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T17:32:27","slug":"a-faux-lensbaby-effect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adorama.com\/alc\/a-faux-lensbaby-effect\/","title":{"rendered":"A Faux Lensbaby Effect"},"content":{"rendered":"

The dramatic, unique look generated by Lensbaby lenses can be created\u2014sort of\u2014with Photoshop. Here’s how to do it.<\/p>\n

I love the soft background (and foreground) achieved by very wide lens apertures. A somewhat similar but more dramatic effect can be obtained by the Lensbaby<\/a> series of lenses. I own a Lensbaby 3 and love to play with it. Here\u2019s an example of what it does. I can change aperture rings to give a stronger or weaker blur effect, and I can distort the lens barrel to move the sweet spot around. I move the lens bellows in and out and\/or turn a ring to focus. Its great to be able to produce these dramatic effects in-camera!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

But Lensbabies have a limited focal range. You can get accessory kits that stretch the focal reach from 20mm to 80mm<\/a>, and also a macro adapter<\/a>, and that covers a lot of ground. [Also read: “How to use a Lensbaby<\/a>“] However, every so often, I want the effect on something I can only shoot with a much longer focal length lens.<\/p>\n

I thought it would be fun to see if I could achieve a faux Lensbaby effect in Adobe Photoshop<\/a> for those occasions when I’m using a longer lens. No, it isn\u2019t quite the same, but it\u2019s close. The faux effect isn\u2019t quite as \u201corganic\u201d and doesn\u2019t mimic the oval highlights you get at the edges of a real Lensbaby image with bright lights. But it is still fun to play with, even if it isn’t quite the real thing.<\/p>\n

Much of the charm of a Lensbaby lies in the way it simplifies an image, sometimes to the point of drop-dead elegance, by eliminating distractions and focusing attention where you want it. Even if you don\u2019t care for faux effects, playing with this method can be a worthwhile exercise in seeing. It will have its best effect for images with distracting elements near the periphery. Here is a before and after example:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

There are several ways to get this effect. I\u2019ll show you two. I\u2019m using Photoshop CS4 but you can do the first method below in versions that go way back, and probably in some other image editors.<\/p>\n

The easy way:<\/p>\n

This is the simplest and most obvious method, but you have no control after the fact except to redo it until you get what you want:<\/p>\n