ABSTRACT
As we have seen, a simple glass lens creates a higher quality image (in terms of sharpness) than a pinhole. When you look closely at Figure 2.14 (p. 42), image sharpness is poor and not maintained equally over the whole picture, even when
the subject is all at one distance. Simple single lenses often distort shapes, create odd colour
fringes or give a general ‘misty’ appearance. Such results give a very particular impression
that has sometimes been described as ‘atmospheric’ or ‘romantic’, in the sense that they are
more removed from reality than the classic sharp detailed photograph and can seem ‘other-
worldly’. This is not always what one wants from an image so usually you will want to use a
lens capable of producing high quality image clarity and detail. Some of the effects created by
the pinhole camera or single lens can be achieved by adding diffusers or filters to the camera
or by later manipulating results digitally (Chapter 14) or at the printing stage (Chapter 13).
