zaterdag 24 december 2011

Merry Christmas everybody!

























I could not think of a better portrait than this to wish all
the viewers of this weblog Merry Christmas and a happy
2012! I hope to resume the photo shoots after receovering
from a bad concussion.
The portrait was taken on August 24th and the model is the
one and only Melissa ("the glasses face ever") posing in a
nameless pair of blended myodiscs from the 1980's.

woensdag 14 december 2011

A case of not seeing the wood through the trees

























This beautiful portrait of Christien somehow escaped my
attention when I posted a selection from her photo shoot.
The portrait will also be posted on Deviantart under the
user name Lentilux. The title there is "Eve and the apple".

woensdag 23 november 2011

Frontier guards

























Alas - no lady on this picture, but lots of crystal veils from
my collection.... This is a scan of a photo which I took from
a window on the first floor, some ten years ago, long before
I started working with models.
The title of  this photo is "Grenswachters" (in Dutch), or
"Frontier guards". It was fun to use glasses in a playful way
but part of my inspiration for this photo was the rapidly
increasing xenophobia in the Lowlands of Holland.

I am slowly recovering from a bad concussion so doing the
next photo shoot may take a while.   

zaterdag 5 november 2011

Lucy 210

























This beautiful portrait of Lucy posing in modern myodiscs
by Zenni concludes her photo shoot which lasted three hours.
Lucy is the 34th Lady behind Crystal Veil.

Lucy a chara, I wish to thank you for the brilliant way you picked
up the little tricks that come handy when doing a good photo shoot
in prescription glasses. Vantage points, expression of the eyes and
lips - multitasking indeed, but you mastered it in no time. Thanks
also for your excellent choice of frames. I knew that there was no
need for a gentle push after seeing you pick some bold frames at
the catwalk in Germany. You did particulary well in the big glasses
from the 1970's and 1980's but also in different styles from the past.
It's a wonderful experience when a model can wear anything and
still look good. Some of the glasses might be regarded "over the top"
but this was always compensated by your natural way of posing.
Your deliberate choice against the use of lipstick was remarkable
but highly effective. Big compliment also for your assured way of
posing. There was no way of telling that this was your first photo
shoot ever. Equally important, you were a joy to work with. It was
amazing to witness and capture the way your posing changed when
mounting the bycicle. Somehow you added a new dimension to what
was already a good photo shoot. Cameraderie at its best. The simple
fact that only a small minority of the captures during the final part is
left out here testifies to that. Mile fáilthe into the world of photo
shoots and thank you so much for a wonderful experience. You are a
natural talent and I hope that the camera has not seen the last of you. 

Lucy 209

























Introspexion and a visual echo - key words behind the
final portraits of Lucy posing in modern Zenni myodisc
glasses, fourteen diopters above her own prescription.

Lucy 208

























During my photo shoots I usually start with glasses around
the model's own prescription. The "big guns" emerge in the
latter half of the photo shoot when the model is really used
to the mixture of instruction and improvisation. The key is
what may be called a "visual echo". Carla, Lettie (first weblog)
and Marieke all surprised me with their unique way of looking
straight into the camera through lenses that only produced a
massive blur. When I asked them how they did it, the answers
were slightly different but pointing into the same direction. They
said that their handhold was the memory of what they saw just
before putting on the myodiscs. It made sense when memories
of holidays with my beloved partner Nel came back. On several
occasions, she put off her minus eleven glasses on a beach and
walked confidently into the sea, swam for a quarter of an hour
and returned to me with no apparent effort. I was flabbergasted
and asked her, how on earth did you do it? She explained to me
that just before taking off her glasses, she studied the colours of
the objects behind me and she also remembered the colours of
our bathsheets. Some of this "visual echo" effect can be seen in
these final portraits of Lucy as well.

Lucy 207

























The key word for good posing in glasses way beyond one's
own prescription is "introspexion" - a mixture of an ability to
handle abstractions and a previous experience on stage where
the blinding lights force the performer to do the gig without
really seeing his or her audience. Lucy has both abilities in
glorious plenty - a bright student who was a fine singer in a
band during her school days.   

vrijdag 4 november 2011

Lucy 206

























"Here I am head in hand, turn my face to the wall" are the
opening phrases of the first introspective song written by
the late John Lennon. These phrases ran through my head
when taking these encore portraits of Lucy. "Head in hand"
did not apply to her - far from that - but she did turn her
face to the wall in an effort to produce portraits without an
overdose of glare in the myodisc lenses.  

Lucy 205

























These modern glasses by Zenni are among the best of
"Kreislenti" myodiscs in my collection and they were
among the highlights in several photo shoots. Lighting
conditions were far from ideal so Lucy and I had to do
a lot of navigation to avoid excessive reflection in the
lenses.... Hide and seek! 

Lucy 204

























Time went fast during the photo shoot with Lucy. Lighting
conditions forced us to change locations several times and
also I noticed that I was slower than usual after an accident
at work. At this point we were really running out of time but 
Lucy kindly agreed to do some encore posing in one of the
myodisc glasses from the table.

Lucy 203

























Glasses: Zenni 3310 (myodiscs)
[L: -19.25 / R: -19.75]

Lucy 202

























Shortly after the Silhouette glasses arrived, Bianca came
along for her photo shoot and she agreed to give them a try.
Her portraits in these Silhouette glasses were truly amazing.
With this in mind, I intended to suggest them to Lucy but she
beat me to it. They were among the first pairs that she picked
from the table. Her posing here can only be described in terms
which I learned from a real estate agent in Co. Clare, Ireland
(in a totally different context, but still): "Not for the faint hearted".

Lucy 201

























Martin from Köln supplied these Silhouette glasses from
the 1970's. In my subjective memory these were happier
times in which money was not the dominating factor it is
nowadays. Somehow the glasses with the big frames gave
the streets a sunny aspect and I missed that when retro
eyewear took over in the late 1980's. But there are signs
of improvement. The big frames are back and there is more
variety than say, one or two years ago. I hope that the big
frames will contribute to make the world a happier place
again, if only to look at :). Lucy definitely made a contribution
of her own. In my eyes, everything in this portrait is perfect.
Feel free to disagree with this elderly nostalgic....

Lucy 200

























When Lucy was asked if she wanted to use lipstick for
her photo shoot, she simply said, "There's no need" and
she was absolutely right!

Lucy 199

























Glasses: Silhouette 436, made in the 1970's
[L: -6.00; c-0.50 v / R: -5.75; c-0.75 v]

Lucy 198

























One of my favourites in this wonderful photo shoot. I have
seen many beautiful portraits over the past two years, but
this portrait of Lucy would make one's heart melt....

Lucy 197

























The narrow, high frame has a subtle effect. It's hard to describe
but I think that it has to do with the impression of raised eyebrows.

Lucy 196

























Martin from Köln, Germany sent me these glasses. Not
really an eyecatching pair when seen as a stand alone object
but they worked great in my photo shoot with Esther. I was
happy when Lucy decided to give them a try.

Lucy 195

























Glasses: nameless, late 1980's
[L: -7.00 / R: -7.50]

Lucy 194

























Another lovely portrait of Lucy in drop temple glasses

Lucy 193

























Lucy showing the 1980's drop temple glasses from Bavaria
from their most striking vantage point.

Lucy 192

























Most of the drop temple glasses in my collection have mellow,
rounded frames but this pair has a striking, angular frame.
The glasses were sent to me by "Planet Myopia" Stephan from
Bavaria, one of my favourite photographers.

Lucy 191

























This "en profil" capture of Lucy shows the advantage of
drop temple glasses over their traditional sisters. It's all
about seeing and being seen at the same time. Well, isn't
it what good eyewear is all about?
Lens thickness is nearly one centimeter (at a modest -5.50)
so we had to do some navigation, otherwise the effect would
be lost behind a wall of glass.... 

Lucy 190

























Lucy slowly turning her head back towards the camera,
showing the beauty of 1980's drop temple glasses. Note
the shoe box and the glasses on the table in the background.
If you don't see them clearly, consult your optician :)

Lucy 189

























From time to time I receive requests for pictures taken
three quartes from behind. Here Lucy is posing from that
unusual vantage point, allowing the viewer a peep through
the left lens of the drop temple glasses.

Lucy 188

























The left lens in this nameless pair of drop temple glasses
from the 1980's has exactly the right Rx for Lucy but the
left lens is far too weak. Posing with monovision again.... 

Lucy 187

























Throughout her photo shoot, Lucy kept posing great in glasses 
from the 1980's so it was only natural that she would try a pair
of drop temple glasses from the era as well.   

Lucy 186

























Glasses: nameless, 1980's (drop temple)
[L: -5.50 / R: -2.00; c-0.50 o]

Lucy 185

























Great, confident posing by Lucy in Silhouette glasses made
in 1985. A word of thanks to the Silhouette company for
sending me the year of manufacturing of these and many
other Silhouette glasses. Much appreciated!

Lucy 184

























The difference of four diopters in the Silhouette glasses can
be seen clearly in this portrait. For Lucy, the Rx of these
glasses must have been a bit awkward to handle as her own
prescription is halfway between both lenses. But she managed
a lovely smile, knowing that she could remove the glasses
within half a minute. 

Lucy 183

























The right lens in these Silhouette glasses is four diopters
stronger than the left lens. I have the same Rx difference
between both eyes (L +2 / R -2) and buying new glasses
is always a time consuming affair for the optician of my
choice. My appoach has always been to order the right lens
in a Rx that gives me over 100% visus but the left lens has
to be slightly below the optimal Rx. This compensates the
major difference in size between both images. I feel more
balance. Opticians always fulfill my request to leave the shop
in a trial frame and check if the balance is to my satisfaction.
I wonder how the first owner of these Silhouette coped with
her problem. Judging by the wear and tear of the frame she
did not wear contact lenses. My guess is that the difference
in size of objects seen through her glasses was less than in my
glasses, so she was in a better position.

Lucy 182

























Glasses: Silhouette 1200, made in 1985
[L: -3.25; c-2.50 o / R: -7.00; c-1.00 o]

Lucy 181

























Another lovely portrait of Lucy posing in mainstream OWP
glasses from the 1980's. The lenses are remarkably thin so
the first owner of the glasses must have spent a small fortune.

Lucy 180

























...

Lucy 179

























These fine OWP glasses from the 1980's have been in my
collection for more than a decade but Lucy is the first model
who posed in them. A case of not seeing the wood through
the trees....

Lucy 178

























Glasses: OWP, 1980's
[L: -7.00 / R: -5.50]

Lucy 177

























Wonderful posing by Lucy in 1990's glasses by Carlo
Sebastiano. The right lens is a bit too strong but the left
lens is just a quarter of a diopter below the model's own
prescription. The glasses were previously used in my
photo shoots with Clarine and Caroline (first weblog).

Lucy 176

























Slightly over-exposed but nice - Lucy posing in designer
glasses by Carlo Sebastiano. The marbly structure of the
frame puts these glasses in the early or mid 1990's.

Lucy 175

























Glasses: Carlo Sebastiano, early / mid 1990's
[L: -6.25; c-1.00 v / R: -5.25]

Lucy 174

























Another pleasing portrait of Lucy in "Donna" Rodenstock
glasses from the 1980's. The lenses are made of plastic and
quite thick by modern standards, but lens thickness was far
less of an issue in the 1980's than it is nowadays. Everyone
was in the same boat, so to speak. High index lenses only
became widespread during the 1990's.

Lucy 173

























Farishta was the only model who posed in these "Donna"
glasses before Lucy did her photo shoot. The other frame,
fitted with bifocal lenses, can be seen in my first photo shoot
with Marleen (first weblog, Marleen 007).

Lucy 172

























Another quiet but beautiful portrait of Lucy posing in 1980's
"Donna" glasses by Rodenstock. Just like the OWP glasses
in the previous series, this Donna pair has a difference of two
diopters between the lenses. The left lens is exactly in Lucy's
own prescription but the right lens is two diopters too strong.
Monovision again, but the difference with the preceding series
is that there is no squinting.  

Lucy 171

























My collection hosts two examples of this "Donna" frame by
Rodenstock. Less striking than many of their sisters from
the 1980's, these "Donna" glasses escaped the attention of
most of my models during the selection process. A pity!
Here Lucy shows that glasses don't need to be spectacular
as a stand alone object. After all, it's the blend with the face
that counts. Rodenstock was second to none in designing and
manufacturing glasses that worked fine for their clients. There
is real harmony in this beautiful portrait. Great choice, Lucy!

Lucy 170

























Glasses: Rodenstock (Donna), 1980's
[L: -5.50 / R: -7.50]

Lucy 169

























Lovely, confident posing by Lucy in OWP glasses from
the early 1990's.

Lucy 168

























When I started my first weblog, it was simply meant as a
digital catalogue of the glasses in my collection. However,
during the search for models it turned out that some of them
had an almost identical prescription. It's nice to see how the
same pair of glasses works for different models - blondes
and brunettes, young and mature. These OWP glasses are
no exception.