This series focuses on those who take the making of pictures a step or two further, creating their own photographic tools.

Mathieu Stern, Paris, France

Iceland glaciers take 10,000 years to purify the particles inside the ice. Fascinated by the power of nature, photographer Mathieu Stern set out to make a camera lens from the pure ice of an Icelandic glacier. For years, Stern has created various lenses and camera equipment from all kinds of materials. For this lens, he worked for six months making prototypes in an effort to find the right shape and focal distance before setting out for Iceland.

On the famed Diamond beach, icebergs of all shapes and sizes rest on black sand. Having 3D printed a lens body to secure the ice in place, Stern used a Japanese ice ball maker to shape a small piece of clear ice into an optical half sphere. While his prototypes proved useful at home, he hadn’t accounted for the extreme temperature difference that made the ice difficult to shape. What had taken only five minutes to melt at home, now took 45, resulting in five hours on the beach to make one working lens. Stern’s previous four attempts broke the lens mold, but the final iteration produced a series of soft, ethereal footage of Dimond beach.

View more of Stern’s work on his website.

Have you made or modified your own photographic equipment? Let us know at info@donttakepictures.com