Canan Karatekin
April 2026 - Cattails Basking In the Sun
Original
About the Image(s)
Fuji X-T5, Lensbaby (Velvet 56mm), ISO 800, 1/2000 sec, aperture (around 1.6-4ish; Lensbaby doesn't record aperture to EXIF data).
Edited with DxO Photolab, Topaz AI (for a little sharpening), Nik Color Efex, and Photoshop.
Description: "I got a Lensbaby in March, and spent most of the month in a beautiful lens-induced haze. It has been really challenging to focus with it because it doesn't have autofocusing. The ethereal glow effect of the lens starts to become apparent at f/4 and wider apertures, but that's also when focusing with the shallow depth of field and the lens's own soft focus effect becomes most challenging. So it's a constant struggle betwen getting the glow and focusing properly.
Looking at the dead-looking brown & gray nature month after month between November & April makes me depressed. But seeing the same nature through the Lensbaby has been a revelation. It makes those dead plants look like elegant old people, somewhat disheveled & worse for the wear, but full of graceful & wavy lines & curves & subtle earthy colors, & it puts an ethereal glow on it all. A very mellow kind of wabi-sabi. And the glow is intensified with backlighting, like with these cattails. I don't feel as negatively about winter now as I did before I got this lens.
11 comments posted
Hi Canan,
I've never used a lensbaby, but your image and description have made me consider getting such a lens! I love the glow around the cattails and appreciate your explanation of how difficult it is to achieve a balance between focus and glow. I applaud your perseverance in learning how to use this non-autofocus lens! Your considerable writing skills beautifully describe the balance between joy and challenge that the lensbaby can provide. Posted: 04/01/2026 16:01:08
I've never used a lensbaby, but your image and description have made me consider getting such a lens! I love the glow around the cattails and appreciate your explanation of how difficult it is to achieve a balance between focus and glow. I applaud your perseverance in learning how to use this non-autofocus lens! Your considerable writing skills beautifully describe the balance between joy and challenge that the lensbaby can provide. Posted: 04/01/2026 16:01:08
Thanks a lot, Jennifer :-) Yes, you need perseverance for this lens, but I think it's worth it if you like playing and experimenting. Posted: 04/01/2026 22:08:06
I like the part of the photo you chose to emphasize, and the colors change this from boring winter to something ethereal. I agree with you about focusing the Lensbaby; I have the Velvet 56. There's a lot of hit or miss for me. Stopping down doesn't seem to help me because then the image gets too dark! I just choose subjects that allow me the time to work carefully on the focus, like you did. At 5.6-8 it's great for portraits of children. Posted: 04/01/2026 17:20:40
Thanks, Will. I'm glad there's a fellow Velvet 56er in this group! And I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one for whom focusing is hit or miss. I did take a snapshot of an old lady with white with this lens last week, trying to balance the special effect with focusing, and it turned out great. She looked ethereal and glowy. I think it would also be perfect with children. Have fun with your lens :-) Posted: 04/01/2026 22:10:42
I've never tried a Lensbaby, but your image does everything their advertising claims (velvety, soft, ethereal, timeless). We're so accustomed to excellent autofocus; I'm sure this takes practice - especially with lens designed to have out of focus areas. Your image is soft/pleasing; something I'd hang in my home. Well done!
Can you comment on your processing workflow? I notice you use a variety of programs (that's neither good nor bad); do you find each has a special value?
I organize my images with LR and do 95% of my processing within the LR/PS ecosystem. As LR has gotten better, I find less need for PS (and like the fact that everything in LR is effortlessly non-destructive). I use Silver efex for the best B&W conversion. Posted: 04/03/2026 08:07:02
Can you comment on your processing workflow? I notice you use a variety of programs (that's neither good nor bad); do you find each has a special value?
I organize my images with LR and do 95% of my processing within the LR/PS ecosystem. As LR has gotten better, I find less need for PS (and like the fact that everything in LR is effortlessly non-destructive). I use Silver efex for the best B&W conversion. Posted: 04/03/2026 08:07:02
Thanks, Steve. As Henri Cartier-Bresson said "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." ;-)
Yes, it does take practice, and using regular lenses after several weeks of the Lensbaby felt like I was running without weights after weeks of training with weights.
As for workflow, I feel like I'm the only photographer in the whole world who doesn't use Lightroom. But I've been using DxO's Photolab since 2020 to process my RAW images, and I feel no desire to change. It basically has the same things as Lightroom, but I think it was more intuitive and easier for me to learn and use. And its denoising is better than any of the other programs I have tried. Lightroom has a few things that Photolab doesn't that I use (e.g., Color Grading, Calibration, and Defringe), and I go to Camera Raw when I need those. Most importantly, Photolab has modules for every camera & lens combo I have (except Lensbaby), and I think (I'm not sure) Lightroom makes you choose from generic presets. And I think that makes a real difference--the RAW images look better to me right off the bat when I open them in Photolab versus Camera Raw, before I do any processing.
Last fall, I started trying to organize & catalog all my pictures since I got my mirrorless camera in 2023 and seriously considered both Lightroom and Bridge. In the end, I felt like Bridge fit me better.
After Photolab, I export my images to Photoshop & use Color Efex for all of them. Then I do various other adjustments in Photolab (like high-pass sharpening, dodging & burning, Curves, adjusting blending modes for multiple exposures, etc.) as necessary. Being able to do it all in layers, with Nik plug-ins, is really convenient because I can go back and make changes really easily. And masks are fantastic. And I think it's great at stitching pictures for panoramas & focus stacking, etc.
For black & white, I also use Silver Efex most of the time. When I want to play more, I also check out DxO's Film Pack, which has both color and bw simulations of all sorts of films and looks since the beginning of photography.
Once in a blue moon, I use Analog Efex to create a historical look. I really like Viveza's eye sharpening feature, and I also use Viveza once in a while for final adjustments. I don't use the other Nik modules much.
I got Topaz AI only 1-2 months ago. It's really good at correcting slight focusing problems--the kind that normal people would never notice but that would drive camera club judges crazy. It's much better at it than the other programs I use. It's good with macro pictures, and it's also been good with the Lensbaby because I usually don't want 100% of the image to be soft, and the Lensbaby produces soft images at wide apertures even when the camera is on a tripod & I use a remote shutter. It's not good at correcting focusing problems that are more obvious. I think its corrected version looks too artificial. I don't use Topaz AI for anything else, but I think its focusing function is worth the money for me (especially since I love macro & now the Lensbaby, too).
So this is probably not the most efficient workflow ever, but I got set in my ways, and I like post-processing and don't have any deadlines to meet. I'd be interested to see if you have any suggestions or thoughts on this. Posted: 04/03/2026 22:02:59
Yes, it does take practice, and using regular lenses after several weeks of the Lensbaby felt like I was running without weights after weeks of training with weights.
As for workflow, I feel like I'm the only photographer in the whole world who doesn't use Lightroom. But I've been using DxO's Photolab since 2020 to process my RAW images, and I feel no desire to change. It basically has the same things as Lightroom, but I think it was more intuitive and easier for me to learn and use. And its denoising is better than any of the other programs I have tried. Lightroom has a few things that Photolab doesn't that I use (e.g., Color Grading, Calibration, and Defringe), and I go to Camera Raw when I need those. Most importantly, Photolab has modules for every camera & lens combo I have (except Lensbaby), and I think (I'm not sure) Lightroom makes you choose from generic presets. And I think that makes a real difference--the RAW images look better to me right off the bat when I open them in Photolab versus Camera Raw, before I do any processing.
Last fall, I started trying to organize & catalog all my pictures since I got my mirrorless camera in 2023 and seriously considered both Lightroom and Bridge. In the end, I felt like Bridge fit me better.
After Photolab, I export my images to Photoshop & use Color Efex for all of them. Then I do various other adjustments in Photolab (like high-pass sharpening, dodging & burning, Curves, adjusting blending modes for multiple exposures, etc.) as necessary. Being able to do it all in layers, with Nik plug-ins, is really convenient because I can go back and make changes really easily. And masks are fantastic. And I think it's great at stitching pictures for panoramas & focus stacking, etc.
For black & white, I also use Silver Efex most of the time. When I want to play more, I also check out DxO's Film Pack, which has both color and bw simulations of all sorts of films and looks since the beginning of photography.
Once in a blue moon, I use Analog Efex to create a historical look. I really like Viveza's eye sharpening feature, and I also use Viveza once in a while for final adjustments. I don't use the other Nik modules much.
I got Topaz AI only 1-2 months ago. It's really good at correcting slight focusing problems--the kind that normal people would never notice but that would drive camera club judges crazy. It's much better at it than the other programs I use. It's good with macro pictures, and it's also been good with the Lensbaby because I usually don't want 100% of the image to be soft, and the Lensbaby produces soft images at wide apertures even when the camera is on a tripod & I use a remote shutter. It's not good at correcting focusing problems that are more obvious. I think its corrected version looks too artificial. I don't use Topaz AI for anything else, but I think its focusing function is worth the money for me (especially since I love macro & now the Lensbaby, too).
So this is probably not the most efficient workflow ever, but I got set in my ways, and I like post-processing and don't have any deadlines to meet. I'd be interested to see if you have any suggestions or thoughts on this. Posted: 04/03/2026 22:02:59
Thanks for your detailed explanation! We're fortunate to have so many good choices; no "right" answer.
Your images are beautiful; if it's not broken - don't fix it.
I've never tried Photolab. re: Topaz AI - in my experience, probably the best for sharpness and noise. Posted: 04/05/2026 14:09:35
Your images are beautiful; if it's not broken - don't fix it.
I've never tried Photolab. re: Topaz AI - in my experience, probably the best for sharpness and noise. Posted: 04/05/2026 14:09:35
Canan, you have presented us with a very interesting image. It is almost an abstract.
I have never used a Lensbaby, and this is the first image that I can remember seeing from one. I can see where it would be fun to use. By having that lens, you can produce images that photographers without the lens can produce. Posted: 04/05/2026 20:06:30
I have never used a Lensbaby, and this is the first image that I can remember seeing from one. I can see where it would be fun to use. By having that lens, you can produce images that photographers without the lens can produce. Posted: 04/05/2026 20:06:30
Thanks, Chan. I like to play with photography, and this is a good lens for that. I think the effect is similar to the Orton effect, but I haven't done a direct comparison. It's just another quiver in my arrow :-) Posted: 04/05/2026 20:33:05
Excellent image, very creative! I like the glow overall and in particular around the individual cattails. I also have never used Lensbaby, but I agree that it has similarity with the Orton effect. Thanks for sharing this and for explaining how this is done. Posted: 04/07/2026 20:45:42
Thanks for your comments, Dale :-) Posted: 04/07/2026 20:50:04