#v1 and v2 are able to bend

[poppyrays]

Bullseye - V1 vs V2

Kick them while they’re down so they can never stand up again

[shimmerloid-ai]

Preliminary Considerations - Which Vocal Synthesizer Software is Right for You - Paid Synthesizers

Hello everyone, Shimmer/Ripple/whatever you want to call me here. Sorry for not posting for a while, I've had a lot of stuff going on in my life (I turned 20 last week!), and have been busy with using vocal synthesizers than to make a blog post about them. I hope this article was worth the wait.

Last time, I comapred various free vocal synthesizers, and this time, I will be showing off the most popular paid ones. Quick disclaimer; I do not own all of these softwares, and will not buy the ones I have just to test them out as they are not cheap. I got feedback and advice from my friends who do own these synthesizers, along with Reddit posts and other forums. The piano roll images for the softwares I do not own are from various websites and vsynth users who I will be crediting in the captions. VOCALOID4

(Song: Devil's Manner by Konnichiwa Tanita-san; UST by Moru, Tuning by me)

When people think of the VOCALOID user interface, this edition of the software is probably what first comes to mind. It is very popular for a good reason; it’s got a simple UI and release of some of the best VOCALOID voicebanks; including Hatsune Miku V4x, Megurine Luka V4x, Kagamine Rin and Kagamine Len V4x, Fukase, Otomachi Una Sweet and Spicy, Megpoid Gumi V4, and Yuzuki Yukari V4. V4 also introduced the “GROWL” and “CROSS-SYNTHESIS” parameters! Despite being the sister software to UTAU, it is a lot easier to install voicebanks and plugins into VOCALOID4, and you do not need to worry about phonemizers or resamplers.

Pros:

Can use every V2, V3, and V4 VOCALOID voicebank

Growl and Cross-Synthesis (also known as XSY; allows you to combine any two V4 voicebanks of the same character; such as Fukase’s Normal Japanese voicebank with his Soft Japanese voicebank or Gumi’s V4 Sweet voicebank with her V4 Adult voicebank) parameters

Can use job plugins to simplify the overall tuning process like in UTAU, Open Utau, and SynthesizerV Studio Pro

Pitch Rendering function allows users to see the pitch of notes

Really beginner-friendly (this vocal synthesizer was the one that taught me how to tune)!

Cons:

Is no longer available for purchase on the official YAMAHA website; you can only obtain it through Mercari (that was how I was able to get it), eBay, or through piracy

No piano roll tuning; users are restricted to the parameter box

Can not use V1 or V5 and higher voicebanks

The breathiness parameter gives a metallic effect instead of the desired whisper-like outcome

VOCALOID5

(Song: ID Smile by Toa; UST by K3RA; Cover by Shara Delvia)

The next edition of VOCALOID that was meant to change the playing field for vocal synth users. With an entirely new UI and never-seen-before features, VOCALOID5 was designed to simplify and enhance the overall vocal production and tuning process.

Pros: 

Dark mode at last!

Unlike the previous editions where you had to purchase a voicebank to use VOCALOID, VOCALOID5 comes with four free voicebanks

Preset phrases that beginners can play with to learn how different vocal properties can result in different sounds

Preset “attack” and “release” pitch bend effects

Easy pitchbend and vibrato adjustment using the “style” and “emotion” tools

Automatic breaths

Can be used as a VST plugin in almost any DAW or as a standalone editor

Over a hundred style and voice colour presets (Rich, Husky, Hard; Melodic, Diced Up, Bent; Lead Vocal, Chopped, Pitched)

Tons of audio and mixing effects

Fixed breathiness parameter 

Cons

Appears to be no longer up for purchase through normal means, YAMAHA has  pulled it from the VOCALOID website to promote their newest engine, VOCALOID6

Does not support V2 or V1 VOCALOIDS

Does not support job plug-ins

Does not have the Cross-Synthesis parameter

Not worth the price

No piano roll tuning

VOCALOID6

(Song: Unknown Mother Goose by wowaka; VSQx and Tuning by me)

This is the most recent edition of VOCALOID that is up for purchase from the official website. With this installation of the VOCALOID software, the highly anticipated AI VOCALOID voicebanks have come into existence so that we can enjoy GUMI AI, ZOLA PROJECT AI, and Otomachi Una AI at last! It also comes with many other fresh features that were not present in VOCALOID5.

Pros: 

Multilingual(Japanese, English, and Chinese) AI voicebanks!

A total of ten VOCALOID AI voicebanks

VOCALO CHANGER: works similarly to plugging an RVC model on top of an audio file, but legal

The doubling feature allows instant harmony creation

Fixed breathiness parameter 

It can be used as a VST plug-in in most DAWs. or as a standalone editor

Included with the CUBASE AI DAW

Can be purchased at a cheaper price by upgrading from previous VOCALOID editions

Every feature that was present in VOCALOID5 is included in VOCALOID6!

Cons:

The AI voicebanks are of poorer quality compared to SynthesizerV; they are not easy to tune in the slightest, and you can only edit three parameters (pitch, pitch bend sensitivity, dynamics) unlike the normal VOCALOID voicebanks; not including the style presets

For the desired results in VOCALO CHANGER, the audio recordings must be clean without any flaws, otherwise the audio will sound distorted

Does not support V2 or V1 VOCALOIDs

Does not support job plug-ins

Piapro Studio V4x

(Song: Enjou Alice by Maiki-P; UST by KIRI; Tuning by Me)

Following its departure from YAMAHA, Crypton Future Media created a new vocal synthesizer to promote its new V4x Cryptonloid voicebanks. With its VSTi compatibility and E.V.E.C. feature, this software gave a new feel to tuning VOCALOIDs all while maintaining the features from the vocal synthesizers that were developed by YAMAHA.

Pros:

Bundles with Cryptonloids include Piapro Studio V4x and Studio One 6 for free; an incredible DAW

VOCALOID4 with a different, cleaner UI

Compatible with V2 (some of them), V3, and V4 voicebanks

Enhanced Cross-Synthesis parameter; now you can cross-synthesize two completely different VOCALOIDs (such as Hatsune Miku V4x Original with Megurine Luka V4x Hard)

E.V.E.C. with a press of a button; in VOCALOID4 you have to edit phonemes manually

Improved breathiness parameter

Ability to change the wallpaper of the piano roll and icons of voicebanks!

Can be used as a VSTi plug-in in most DAWs

Cons:

Does not support job plugins

Not all VOCALOID2 voicebanks are supported; such as Utatane Piko

Does not support NT voicebanks

Playback is not always on time with piano roll; you have to scroll as the vocals play unlike other softwares (this could be a glitch for me however)

No piano roll tuning

Can not run it through Studio One 6 (despite being included with the bundles), it can only function in Studio 5

Piapro Studio NT

(Song: vivid by Utsu-P x Yuyoyuppe; UST by pifuyuu; Cover by AfiqTV)

Yes, Piapro Studio NT (an acronym for “new type”) is completely different from Piapro Studio V4x. This successor to the latter vocal synthesizer is entirely separate from YAMAHA, and was created for Crypton’s NT voicebanks. It no longer requires the use of a DAW, and was carefully designed with resynthesis technology for efficient vocal creation through the research that was conducted by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST).

Note: As of August 2024; Crypton has shifted their intention to release the other NT singers to getting back with YAMAHA to develop Miku V6 AI. We will be getting a Piapro Super Pack in a week (it is currently available for preorder). The package contains remastered versions of Miku V4x Original, Rin V4x Power, Len V4x Power, and Luka V4x Natural; along with V4 versions of KAITO and MEIKO. The former V3 voicebanks will come with growl features, and although there will be no appends, you can cross-synthesize any of the new Cryptonloids to produce unique sounds. In addition, Miku NT will be receiving a massive new update in the future.

Pros:

Piano roll tuning at last!

New accent feature and E.V.E.C

Comes with Vocal Drive Plugin for growl and scream effects

Cons: 

Not compatible with VOCALOID voicebanks; Miku NT is the only usable voicebank to date

Harder to tune in

Missing parameters such as pitchbend sensitivity 

Plugins are not compatible

SynthesizerV Pro

(Song: Underworld by niki (reverse); SVP and Tuning by PixPrucer)

This is the complete version of SynthesizerV Basic. It has suppressed VOCALOID in every way possible; from having insanely good AI voicebanks, to a multitude of features, this is probably the best paid vocal synthesizer available for purchase as of now. Honestly, I could only find a few downsides to this software because it’s that good, and one of them is more of a personal preference than a major issue. YAMAHA seriously needs to take notes from Dreamtonics.

Pros: 

The synthesizer and voicebanks are much cheaper than any of the VOCALOID engines

Comes with Mai; an amazing female vocalist

Piano roll tuning

Auto-pitch tuning makes the pitchbending process much easier 

Paid voicebanks come with THREE activation codes so they can be used on multiple devices

Allows scripts (basically plug-ins but for SynthesizerV)!

Cross-Lingual Synthesis; allows Japanese voicebanks to sing in English, English voicebanks to sing in Japanese, etc

Really complex phoneme customization

Vocal modes for full A.I. voicebanks

The audio to midi tool we’ve always wanted for VOCALOID; it turns wav. files into an amazing SVP (I know V3 has the Vocalshifter plugin… but it’s kind of trash in my opinion as it only works with Japanese lyrics and goes crazy with trying to copy the vocalist’s tone rather than just the pitchbends)

Frequent updates!

Cons: 

As the voicebanks are ultra realistic, it’s not the best for those who enjoy more robotic voices, as seen in UTAU and VOCALOID

Crashes every now and then

Still no glottal effects 

ACE Studio

(Image Source: https://support.acestudio.ai/article/62-3-2-the-main-ace-studio-screen)

ACE Studio is a newer AI vocal synthesizer. Like DeepVocal, it features characters that originated from other softwares such as Namine Ritsu, Luo Tianyi, Kurobousuku, Yuezheng Longya, and many others. It also has a heavy emphasis on Chinese vocals. Most importantly, Ace Studio had a mobile version called Pocket Singer!

Pros:

Piano roll tuning

Can cross-synthesize voicebanks to your liking to make your own vocal synth (Pocket Singer has a simple yet cute OC maker)

Simpler pitch editing

Cons:

Subscription based model on both platforms

Some of the voicebanks sound too similar to each other

Pitch editing on a phone is not fun

The phone number sign-in thing is a pain… why don’t these guys have my regional  phone code as an option?!

One of the developers was exposed as a pedophile and proshipper; and some of the voicebanks used A.I. artwork; I personally don’t feel comfortable using a software made by people like this… ew

I’m just going to say it; SynthesizerV Pro is probably your best pick here, in terms of both price and versatility. You get so much out of this editor at a good cost, and it’s super easy to use! However, if you prefer robotic voices and can get your hands on it, then go with VOCALOID4 as it's pretty beginner friendly. If V4 is not an option, then you may have to deal with V6. 

Now, even though the latter software is not as easy to use as the former, a new lightweight singing editor designed for V6 and V5 called TuneLab has been recently released! It allows for piano roll tuning, along with better cross-synthesis usage. I will cover this software in a later post as I am still trying to learn the ropes of it.

Finally, as I have stated in my other post, take my statements with a grain of salt. Pick whatever synthesizer you want based on your interest; whether it is a fun feature or a specific singer you like. 

Hope this helps! In my upcoming post, I will recommend some VOCALOID voicebanks that are easy to use for beginners.

[cherubchoirs]

Hi there, cake :D

You don’t understand how long i wanted to ask you this, but how on earth did you get so good at drawing robots??? Like the way you draw v1 and v2 and sometimes other machines are just so ✨✨✨✨ Like i rly wanna try and get good at drawing machines but y’know,,, they’re hard :( So i was just wondering if you had tips or suggestions on how to get good at robots :]

Also, I would ask a million billion questions about your interpretations of the Ultrakill cast or the Fallen au, but everyone else stole the cool questions already ;u;

I just really enjoy your interpretation of both Gabriel and v1 ,,

-🌟

waauauuughghghgh thank you so much!!!! i will say upfront that i'm self-taught, so i might not have the best tips or the right technique, but i can tell you what works for me personally!! honestly i didn't really draw robots/machines like this before getting into ultrakill, with a lot of my art before this centered on human characters. but really, when you look at how v1/v2 are structured, they're not that different from humanoid anatomy, especially once you remove their wingpacks. so honestly? when i rough in v1/v2, i just rough in a regular human shape for the most part because that comes much more naturally to me as an artist. additionally, i don't try to make myself use sharp angles and hard lines - some artists are INCREDIBLE at making them look super machine-like and industrial with particular attention to their proper mechanics which i absolutely love aesthetically and greatly admire, but i'm no good at it! so i use much more organic lines and skirt the rules of how a robot would be able to move and bend. like if you look at a lot of my pieces closely, you can see that i'll bend their hands in a way that doesn't square with hard metal, or i have their arms positioned in a way their construction wouldn't seem to allow. so i think of them and draw them actually much more like an evangelion with flexible bodies and organic shapes.

and since visuals would help a lot here, i do have a couple older asks detailing how i draw the head and body for v1/v2 - i've changed my style a bit since then, but the steps are exactly the same as i draw them now! heads are here and bodies are here!

[crimsonxe]

welp someone put up a vid of the Puerto Rico RWBY panel, so I know what I’ll be watching for the next 50+ mins xD

Spoilers below the cut for at least 9x06:

2mins in and Barb did the joke about Blake and Yang being “just friends” in a mocking tone (cause fk the ignorants and homophobes, my words not hers) xD Also Arryn once again not being able to sit in her chair cause “bisexual” xD

Slowburn, figuring themselves out cause they’re teenagers, including who and what they like etc; y’know the exact things BB’ers have been saying about BB for years cause we knew.

Going to paraphrase the next bit cause really don’t want to transcribe the whole thing but:

“I know there’s a lot of people upset about Bla/cksun, but I feel like what happened is just what happens with teenagers...“ “...I feel Sun definitely really liked Blake, but I think Blake was going through such a thing at the time. Because of seeing her parents again and being so anxious and upset and disappointed in herself. So she wasn’t exactly focused on “love somebody” instead “let me love myself”, -Arryn about that side of things.

- Granted this is the VA speaking not the writers, but I do love that both Barb and Arryn lowkey gave a little ground for Yang following hetero norms, when looking at the boys but really focusing on Blake in the lead-up to their first talk.

- Lindsay when asked about songs in regards to the show going into “Mad World” cause of 9x08. They have to be having so much fun cause they’ve been wanting breakdown-Ruby for years.

- Lindsay mentioning it’s only to get better (in regards to rewarding to them seeing Ruby’s journey)

- Barb mentioning about the next two episodes being her “best episodes of all time” and that if you’ve been enjoying v9 then “just wait” excitedly; so adding to that hype train xD

- I think Arryn was essentially saying she enjoyed getting to basically get to play a longing Blake xD

- When asked what they’d each do if they had control over 1 episode and could whatever they want with it:

     -ofc Kara is going with Weiss and Jaune together forever (she’s never giving up on White Knight) xD

     - Barb wants either a beach episode or a Yang working out scene to show her muscles (not said but her body language gives that impression xD)

     - Arryn wants that ^ but Blake in a corner watching thinking/saying “this is good” xD Also joking about filming it with a “this is for later” xD

     - Lindsay would do a party arc cause of how depressing v9 has gotten xD

- Kara struggles with Schnee-snow-shoe-shipping xD

- Barb mentioning voicing Jensen and spitting cause of the voice including “it was a very wet session” and Arryn did a “that’s what she said” joke xD

- Arryn ofc continuing with the RWBY x Fortnite

- Fav OP’s: Kara & Arryn = v1 (cause it’s the start and has a nostalgia to it);  Barb = v9; Lindsay v9 (and pointing out how it harkens back to the v2 OP “there’s a point where it bends, there’s a point where it breaks”)

- Lindsay getting all deserved praise for their work in 9x07 and 9x08; while Lindsay gave deserved praise to Miles.

- Brought up when responding to a question about the food fight in v2: Kara has now eaten swordfish; Barb can’t get over that Yang fisted 2 turkeys. And Barb ends up loading up food fight to see what food Blake used during it xD

-Confirmed that the scene Barb didn’t think she did “right” was indeed the BB scene.

All notes now done, since just finished the vid.

[language-dragon]

Norwegian bouldering vocabulary 🧗‍♀️

Pictured above: Shauna Coxsey, Britain’s best climber, winner of the Bouldering World Cup in 2016 and 2017, and qualified for the 2020 Olympics

Å buldre, buldring - to boulder, bouldering

Buldring er å klatre på lave vegger uten å bruke tausikring - bouldering is climbing on low walls without using a rope for security

Klatresenter (n) - a climbing gym

Vil du være med oss og buldre på klatresenteret? - Do you want to come bouldering with us at the climbing gym?

Problem (n), bulder (n) - a problem, a boulder

Et problem i buldring tilsvarer en rute i tauklatring - a problem in bouldering is the analogy of a route in rope climbing

Tak (n), (håndtak, fottak) - a hold, a grip (hand hold, foot hold)

Et buldreproblem består av en rekke hånd- og fottak - a bouldering problem consists of hand holds and foot holds

Volum (n) - a volume

Et volum er en utstikker fra veggen som er større enn vanlige tak. De ligner ofte på store trekanter eller bokser - a volume is a large protrusion from the wall that is bigger than normal holds. They often look like big triangles or boxes

Vanskelighetsgrad (m), grad (m) - difficulty, grade

Norske grader er basert på det franske graderingssystemet. V0 tilsvarer grad 4, V1 tilsvarer 5, V2 5+, osv. - Norwegian grades are based of the French grading system. V0 is equivalent to grade 4, V1 is equivalent to 5, v2 5+, etc.

Conversion chart for V grades to French and British grades

Typer tak - Types of holds:

De fleste takene heter det samme som på engelsk - most holds are called the same as in English

Jug (m), bøtte (m) - jug, bucket

En bøtte er et stort, godt tak som alle liker - The jug is a nice big hold that everybody loves

Crimp (m) - crimp

Crimpen er en smal kant som krever mye styrke og trening for å mestre - the crimp is a narrow edge that requires a lot of strength and practice to master

Sloper (m)

Slopers er store, avrundede tak uten noen særlig kant å holde i; man må ofte legge hele håndflaten på dem for å få tak - slopers are large, rounded holds without much of an edge to hold onto; one often has to put one’s entire palm onto the hold to be able to get a grip    

Pinch (m) - pinch

Pinches er tak som man må knipe hardt på for holde seg oppe. De krever mye styrke og brukes ofte på utfordrende problemer - Pinches are holds that one have to pinch hard to stay onto. They demand a great deal of strength and are often used on challenging problems

List (m) - ledge (notice that the word is list, not liste, but the plural is the same)

Lister er en spesiell type avlange crimps som man beveger seg langsetter - ledges are a special type of elongated crimps that one move along

Overheng (n) - overhang

Vegger som er formet som innsiden av en hule heter overheng - walls that are shaped like the inside of a cave are called overhangs 

Flytt, å flytte (seg) - a move, to move

Det vanskeligste flyttet på et bulder kalles often for cruxet. Avhengig av ens egne styrker og svakheter kan cruxet være forskjellig for ulike personer - the hardest move on a boulder is often called the crux. Depending on one’s strengths and weaknesses, the crux can vary for different people

Å matche - to match, to swap the hand or foot that is on a hold

Store bøttetak har ofte plass til å matche hendene uten å måtte slippe taket med noen av dem - bucket holds are often big enough to match hands without having to let go with either one

Begynnelse (m), start (m) - start, the first holds of a problem

En gyldig start på et buldreproblem forutsetter at man ha begge beina av bakken før man flytter henda til neste tak - a valid start to a bouldering problem involves lifting both your legs off the ground before moving either hand to the next hold

Topp (m), slutt (m) - top, the end of a problem

Klarte du toppen? Kjempebra! Jeg klarer ikke å flytte venstre hånden til det siste taket! - Did you top out? Well done! I cannot move my left hand to the finish!

Å rekke, å nå - to reach

Jeg rekker ikke neste tak, ropte hun. Jeg er akkurat for kort! - I can’t reach the next hold, she cried. I’m just a little bit too short!

Kræsjpad (m), tjukkas (m; literally: fat-ass) - mattress, crash pad

Det brukes ikke tau i buldring, men tjukkasene på bakken minimerer risikoen for å skade seg ved et fall - there are no ropes in bouldering, but the crash pads on the ground ensure a minimal risk of injury if one should fall

Kalk (m), flytende kalk, kalkball (m), kalkpose (m) - Chalk, liquid chalk, chalk ball, chalk bag

Under korona-pandemien begynte mange klatresentre å anbefale å bruke flytende kalk, siden det er alkoholbasert og desinfiserende - during the Corona pandemic, many climbing gyms started recommending using liquid chalk as it is alcohol-based and disinfecting

Klatrere og buldrere knyter en kalkpose rundt livet når de klatrer slik at de har kalk tilgjengelig hvis fingrene deres blir svette og glatte - climbers and boulderers attach a chalk bag to a belt when climbing, so that they have chalk available if their fingers become sweaty and slippery

(Sports)teip (also -tape) (m) - finger tape, climbing tape

Mange klatrere bruker teip for å unngå skade eller beskytte huden på fingrene sine - many climbers use tape to avoid injury or to protect the skin on their fingers

Klatresko - climbing shoes

Det fins mange forskjellige typer klatresko: noen er veldig gode på pittesmå, smale fottak mens andre er spesialtilpasset slabs - there are many different types of climbing shoes; some are particularly good at tiny, narrow footholds, whereas others have been specially fitted for slabs

Pump (m), å være pumped - to be pumped; the tight, swollen, feeling that occurs in the forearm from lactic acid

Akkurat i det hun kom til det siste taket satte pumpen inn og hun klarte ikke å holde seg fast lenger - just as she reached the final hold, she could feel the pump in her forearm and she could not hold on any longer

Strake armer (m)- straight arms

Det er god teknikk å klatre med så strake armer som mulig, for da sparer man mye krefter - good climbing technique includes climbing with as straight arms as possible, because it saves energy 

Tyngdepunkt (n) - centre of gravity

Ved å bøye beina og huke seg ned, senker man tyngdepunktet sitt og oppnår bedre balanse - by bending your legs and crouching down, you lower your centre of gravity and gain better balance

Vannblemme (m) - blister

Jeg må gi meg, jeg fikk en stor vannblemme av det taket der - I have to call it quits, that hold just gave me a big blister

Hudflik - a ‘flapper’, a loose piece of skin, usually a result of a broken blister

Han teipet fast den løse hudfliken og gikk tilbake til veggen - he taped up the flapper and went back to the wall

Plaster (n) - a band-aid

Et plaster kommer ikke til å holde like godt som teip - band-aids will fall off more quickly than tape

Underarm - lower arm, forearm

Fingrene våre har bare sener og ingen muskler; alle musklene som styrere fingrene ligger i underarmen - our fingers have no muscles, only tendons; all the muscles that control the fingers are situated in the forearm

Finger (m, irregular plural: fingre) - finger

Klatrere og massører har sterke fingre - climbers and masseuses have strong fingers

Fingerstyrke (m) - finger strength

Man kan trene fingerstyrke ved å bruke et hangboard - one can train finger strength by using a hangboard

Skulder (m, irregular plural: skuldre) - shoulder

Klatrere har sterke muskler i ryggen og i skuldrene - climbers have strong muscles in their backs and their shoulders

Bar overkropp (m), baris (m) - shirtless, to walk around without wearing a shirt

Mange menn tror at det å klatre i baris gjør dem til en bedre klatrer - many men believe that climbing shirtless makes them a better climber

Dyno (m) - a dyno, short for ‘dynamic move’, typically a jump or other swift movement

Jeg syns dynos er vanskelige fordi man ofte må hoppe veldig langt - I think dynos are difficult because one often has to jump very far

Statisk - statically, the opposite of dynamic moves, usually involving more sustained strength and balance than a powerful dyno

Damer klatrer ofte med statisk stil fordi de er kortere, men mykere, enn de fleste menn - women often climb using a static style because they are shorter, but more flexible, than most men

Kom igjen, heia - come on, allez; general cry of encouragement. ‘Allez’ is French for ‘let’s go’ or ‘come on’, and is widely used for cheering someone on in the climbing community

Kom igjen, du klarer det! Ikke gi deg! Heia, heia! - Come on, you can do it! Don’t give up! Allez!

[zealoptics]

Through the Lens

with Joseph Roybal

Learn more about Joseph and see more of his work at https://www.josephroybal.com

As a full-time working professional landscape and travel photographer, as well as Zeal Optics Ambassador, I am always outdoors in the field working under harsh and extreme lighting and conditions. Having a pair of shades to protect my eyes is super important. This takes me back to my roots with Zeal: I have always loved the company for what it stands for, blended with this the sickest and some of the absolute best optics on the market. I am also a Colorado native, so I appreciate the small-town vibe and supporting local businesses. When Zeal asked me to take on this project, I was sold. The roots of the project and interest on both ends, Zeal and my own, were to be purely organic and rooted in mutual interest to showcase each landscape through the lens of Zeal Optics.

The concept for the Through the Lens project came about after a discussion with Director of Marketing and good friend, Mike Lewis, over at Zea; Optics a little over a year ago accompanied by Jackie Bradley, Creative Manager, and Nick Goldman, Video Master. Overall, the premise and scope were pretty simple and straight forward: take the Zeal customer on a visual journey allowing them to see the landscape through the lens. An idea was born and a rad project about to unfold. This project has been one of those ‘daily look-forward-to’ kind of things. Something super fun and allowing me to really delve into my creative side in the content delivered. Now that we’ve wrapped this project up nearly 18 months and several countries later, I’m for sure missing the adventure.

We discussed the general concept during our first meeting: individuals who wear Zeal sunglasses are also typically wearing them in a landscape or nature setting. We had one big question: How can we allow people to get an accurate representation of what the scene looks like through each lens? Mike had a great idea: what if we got Zeal lens pucks (the shape of the lens before being ground down) and tried to take photos through them? I thought this would be awesome! It would truly allow for the opportunity to naturally and organically represent any landscape exactly how the lens will render the scene, thereby giving a true and accurate representation. Genius. This idea didn’t come without its challenges, though.

One of the first challenges we discussed was, would this actually lend itself to a solid final product? Would simply placing the sunglass lens in front of my camera lens even work? Would colors get off and become untrue, or would I actually be able to swap the lenses out quickly enough for the scene to stay the same? I felt pretty confident it would work, so we moved onto the second phase of the project: how to mount these to my camera lenses? This part would prove to be the most challenging component of any that we encountered during the project. I ended up going through several iterations of super questionable R & D to try and get this one to stick before landing on the final design a few months later, but once we got it, it worked great.

My initial thought was, “how am I going to properly polarize each lens to the scene and place each one in front of my lens quickly enough to not miss the same lighting conditions, not have my thumb in the way or miss a unicorn if it showed?” So I devised an incredibly rudimentary filter “holder” out of foam board from a local art store. I made a list: foam board, compass, Xacto knife, and a hot glue gun: done. After a quick trip, I was home and working on measuring the circles that I’d cut our, spacing them apart and preparing this holy grail to the Through the Lens project. Spoiler Alert: it was a bust. I did end up getting a location or two out of it, but as we know, foam board isn’t the most rigid of materials and tends to bend and break pretty easily.

To make this first run at the filter holder, I spun each lens to achieve the same polarizing effect on each of ZEAL’s lens colors, noting with tape which part would need to be “up” and glued them into place. I then attached a secondary foam board cutout to the backside, gluing it into place. Born was the Through the Lens V1 lens holder. It was pretty sick and seemed as though it would work great until it got thrashed during a trip to Iceland when a massive wind gust nearly blew it into the ocean. I held onto the beloved lens holder so tightly, crushing it, and rendering it useless.

Vestrahorn, Iceland seen with Zeal’s Rose lens

Back to the drawing board.

Upon my return home from Iceland, I reached out to another of my sponsors, who produce incredibly high-quality photographic lens filters, Breakthrough Photography, sending up a Hail Mary. My thought was this: what if we inserted the Zeal lens pucks into a filter ring that screws onto the front of the camera lens? I called up my buddy, Corey, and ran this idea passed him, which he thought would be a snap. If we can find a proper diameter or filter ring as this is pretty one-off and case-specific project. After a quick trip to the Breakthrough shop in Denver, we were able to size up the Zeal lens pucks and found a match. V2 of this filter holder project was about to be born.

We stripped the standard glass out of the filter mounts and began inserting the Zeal lenses into them, realizing this would, in fact, work. I was so stoked, knowing this would make my life in the field more efficient and accurate. We set in place Zeal Dark Grey, Rose, Copper, Horizon Blue, and Auto Sun into each filter ring, securing them in place. Done. I was ready to try V2 on my next journey into the field: a multi-day backpacking trip into California’s Eastern Sierras, which was also perfectly timed for alpine wildflowers.

California’s Eastern Sierras viewed with Zeal’s Dark Grey lens.

Over the next few months of using this setup, I achieved a highly accurate and true representation of each landscape setting photographing Through the Lens. Zeal and I welcome you to the Technology page on zealoptics.com, where you can learn more about Zeal’s mission towards sustainability and commitment to the environment, and view each lens color available in the natural environment. We hope this allows you to join me on my travels virtually, and see the world Through Zeal Lenses.

One of Utah’s many gorgeous landscapes seen through Zeal’s Horizon Blue lens.

[nonbinary-octopus]

V2 is the same as V1 but with chamfers, which really do make them nicer to handle.

But also, V2 surprised me by being able to bend a little bit further than V1. V1 stopped just short of 90 degrees, while V2 can actually make a 90 degree angle.

Also, the upright one bent as I was picking it up off the build plate. I still had to free the sideways one.

And tomorrow... V3.

hinge test one nearly done printing...

[wmzjacklyn9192-blog]

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