Soft focus + Sunbeams = Cool

I got an early Christmas present today, the Diana Lens, Wide Angle 55mm and Close-up. I mounted it onto my Canon EOS with a special adapter (all available at B&H). You've probably seen some of those retro look photos on some blogs lately. The iPhone has an app called Instagram with filters that take very cool pictures. Problem is, I don't have an iPhone. I've tried fiddling around with photo editing software to get the same look, but that's not so fun for me. I thought about getting a Lomography camera and shooting film, but that would have become an expensive hobby with all the film and developing involved. So I figured out that all I needed was an adapter to mount the lenses for the Diana lomography camera onto my digital camera.

 

By far, the best thing about these lenses is the ease with which I can get lens flare. I've been trying to achieve this look with my Canon lenses with no luck. The next best thing, is the saturated colors that remind me of family photos from the 70s. The next, next best thing is the dreamy soft focus. OK, so you could say it's out of focus, but that also has to do with the fact that I was using a wide angle lens with a ... Nevermind, camera tech talk is the worst. I take a very dilettante approach to photography, which is why I enjoy it so much.

I was getting a bit bored with my perfectly sharp digital photographs, so this is kind of a fun change of pace. I'm sure the look would be much more "lomo" if I used film, but I'm not ready to take things that far just yet.

This is only Day One of playing around with my new Diana lenses, so be prepared for a lot more dreamy soft focus images! This weekend, I'm planning on going somewhere scenic like the lake to get some more practice. Have a great weekend wherever you are!