WHACK IT!

Does your scene need a romantic dream-like look?

Or maybe you’re trying to show a character’s dwindling consciousness.

Or maybe you are making a crazy metal music video that needs to look distorted.

Then you just need to WHACK IT! This is a technique known as Lens Whacking. Lens whacking is when you detach the lens from the camera body, hold it close to the sensor, and roll.

This allows light to leak in, giving your shot a heavily stylized look. It’s perfect for spicing up your footage with a unique effect that can be achieved on a production of any scale. As long as you can take the lens of the camera, you can do it. The further away from the camera you pull the lens, the more light will leak in, and the more focus may drift. This allows for more control of the look than you might think. If you pull the lens away and back at different speeds (Or Whack it), you can easily change the look and feel of an image from very serene to very distorted. A trick I often use is to use the light leaks to motivate in-camera transitions. Just pull the lens off to dip to a solid light leak, transition from light leak to a new shot.Here are a couple of best practices when lens whacking: If possible, try to set the lens to infinity focus. Also, the more open the f stop, the more you will see the effect, though once you pull the lens away, you are going to start getting light leaks no matter what. Experiment with the distance you are holding the lens to dial in the look. 

Lens whacking is a fun, low-cost way to get creative with a look. Play around with the technique, and you’ll discover new exciting ways to use it.

Get to whacking!

Andrew Melzer (Producer/Editor) is an award-winning writer and director of numerous independent films including the sci-fi comedy web series Greg PRIME. As a writer and producer, he created and wrote The Magic Hour pilot for Nickelodeon. He has created countless pieces for a variety of brands such as United Airlines, Ace Hardware, Cards Against Humanity and more. He’s also produced music videos for Victory Records.