On the Edge of the World

This image is the outcome of a technical test as much as it is a commentary on environment and perception. I wanted to see how the venerable 1973 Nikkor 16mm f/3.5 fisheye would behave on the full-frame sensor of a Nikon D700. The result is a picture pulled to its edges, both optically and metaphorically.

What this lens gives in distortion, it returns in expressive tension. The beach curves like the edge of a planet. The sky presses down as if it’s wrapping itself around the scene. A single line of debris cuts through the frame, pulling the eye toward a loosely gathered group of people, whose presence feels both incidental and central.

I could’ve corrected the distortion in post, but chose not to. The character of this lens is precisely in its exaggeration. The shallow DOF helps isolate the waste trail in the sand while still letting the human figures hold their own space in the frame.

Shooting at f/8 gave me the balance I needed — enough sharpness, decent vignetting control, and still that unmistakable softness around the corners that reminds you this lens comes from another era.

It’s not a pretty picture. It’s not supposed to be.