Optics: in-camera effects AI photoshoots

Optics collects fifteen shoots where the picture is shaped before light reaches the sensor. Mirror shards, crystal glass, a three-mirror kaleidoscope, a Vaseline-smeared filter and a lens held loose in the hand all bend the image on its way in. Each one follows a real photographic technique, with the same quirks, flares and soft edges you would get from the physical setup.

Some shoots work with time. Pinhole runs an eight-second exposure through a 0.3 mm hole, Torch Paint draws the portrait with a flashlight, and Zoom Burst twists the zoom ring mid-exposure. Others hide the face behind something: a rippled puddle, a scrim lit from behind or strings of lights at f/1.2.