You’ve inspired me to try a few. I haven’t done any since slide days. I think I’ll try it as a multi exposure (2) with one shot in focus, +1 and one shot, out of focus, +2 similar to film and see what I get. Cheers!
Something to consider here. Back in the 80’s Michael Orton perfected what was an in-camera optical technique, and was very very good at it. Now, the Orton effect has become a post production effect, thus becoming cheapened. It takes some guts to do it in camera, and Orton used his technique as part of the visualisation process. His pictures still look good, while the modern counterpart looks dated.
The history of this is very cool. I thought it was just greasy finger prints on the lens that gave this haze. It's coming back now because people think blooming speculars is cinematic.
i had never heard of the term “orton effect” but you’re totally right, common and overused. i have been thinking of buying a tiffen black pro-mist filter to use on 35mm film, but i would want to avoid this somewhat cheesy look. do you have any thoughts on how similar or different that may look to this effect?
I have the 1/4 pro mist filter but I've never really used it for landscapes as it tends to be too strong in direct sunlight for my taste. It's nice for softening skin in video/portraits and for adding bloom around night lights. For my uses, the 1/4 feels a tad strong if there are any direct sources of light in the shot (I like more subtle effects), so if I could do it again I'd try the 1/8 option. Definitely look at different test footage of the different strengths before you buy. Grainydays has a "Tips for Shooting Film at Night" video where he tries out the different strengths on Cinestill.
The "cheesy" look is just bad photography and editing. No different than someone overdoing saturation, clarity, etc. This example is overdone and looks bad. A well done "orton effect" is incredibly subtle.
If you’re a film photographer and wish to duplicate the Orton effect Cokin manufactures many filters that would work. I’ve used them on ultra-sharp Zeiss lenses to soften the skin of middle aged women who wish to appear younger.
