The size of Lensball

To take this photo a smaller sized Lensball was used, with a diameter of 60mm. This was used as the smaller size meant the small stone next to it would be proportionally larger, and this was an important element in this photo.

Macro lens for Lensball photography

As the Lensball is small a macro lens is used to get close to the ball, so that the Lensball can fill a larger proportion of the frame. This type of lens will produce nice bokeh, even at comparatively smaller apertures. In this case the background is a long way off, so it blurs more readily. To get the image within the ball sharper an aperture of f9 is then used.

The upside down image

The image is in fact upside down, however due to the effect of refraction the image within the ball appears the right way up. In this case I chose to flip the image in post processing, because I want the focus of the image to be the landscape that's captured inside the Lensball.

A bumpy ride!

Those old Russian vans are not made for comfort, and they're not always reliable either. Luckily the one I was in didn't break down for a long period. As part of this trip we visited a place called Bayanzang, which means the flaming cliffs. This area of Mongolia is sometimes called the Mongolian grand canyon.

Visiting yourself

It couldn't be easier to to join a tour and visit some of the amazing sites in Mongolia. It's simply a case of arriving in Ulaanbaatar, and registering your interest in visiting the Gobi desert. You can take a major or minor Gobi desert tour. You'll just need to wait until a large enough group of other people want to join the same tour as yourself.