As filmmakers, we know that lenses are not merely pieces of glass. They are our go-to devices to catch light and turn it into pure magic. Each lens has its own characteristics, special effects, and visual style, but not only that. Every one tells a different story – even the wildest ultra-wides. Today, we’re talking about a fisheye lens, its distinct look, and narrative use in films. The name “Fisheye” comes from its inventor, physicist Robert W. Wood. In 1906, he developed a lens that should have mimicked how a fish would see the world underwater. Originally – as in the case with anamorphic optical systems – it had nothing to do with film and photography and was mostly used for sky research, to study cloud formations in meteorology. That changed in the 1960s, and since then, we can enjoy its narrative powers in our favorite movies. Style through aberrations In the MZed course “The Art and Science of Lenses,” filmmaker and educator Tal Lazar explains the term “aberration,” which we might often come across in regard to lenses (and especially extreme ones like a fisheye). The technical definition goes like this: Aberrations are the failure of an optical system to focus all of the incident light rays coming from a point on the object to an image point. A definition from the course “The Art and Science of Lenses” However, as Tal Lazar adds, the truth is that every lens has aberrations. In fact, it’s what gives them their...
Published By: CineD - Friday, 12 July, 2024