What is Tunnel Effect?

[redsel]

I am new in photography and recently bought an EFS 55-250mm 4-5.6f lens. Just today I came across "Tunnel Effect". I don't understand what this means so I did a quick search on google but I didn't understand any (images and websites... it only shows something like a spiraling tunnel that twists... and I don't understand how this applies to photography). The search doesn't even gave a good description of what this actually means.

While this post: Week 4/52 In the bed... says that it is a tunnel effect, I think it more of a zoom effect.

Another post: Bokeh Tunnel Effect says it is a tunnel effect, but I don't think he zoomed like the last one.


Can somebody explain this to me? And just suggesting... I think someone should add a tutorial about this one.

[OsmosisStudios]

It's not a term im familiar with: it seems to have varying meanings depending on who you're talking to.

[ravncat]

There are lot's of different uses for tunnel effect in photography, but the most common use is in 3d rendering, think of the effect in stargate - or any screensaver that has you going through concentric rings.

Cinematography - tunnel effect - most commonly known as the "vertigo effect' or Dolly zoom.

Zoom in while moving back, or Zoom out while moving in. - This gives you a wacky compression or decompression of the background while keeping the focused object the same.
-
In photography, it became known as a tunnel effect over the vertigo effect. It was to do as above photographically. this would distort the world around the subject plane with blur. Eventually, people started doing this while zooming with a flash - to give a tunnel effect of light. There are a few approaches for doing this.

without flash, (It's easier to forget about moving back and forth and instead just use a flash to isolate the primary subject)


It's also been used in the kind of photography inkista likes- which involves either transforms or crazy wide fisheye lenses or fisheye panorama's. I don't have any of those, so I'll link to a google image search

Another less common "tunnel effect" is something that is found by shooting through concentric objects that are like a tunnel, for example, rings hanging on a playground, and you shoot through them. (I don't have an easily available image so google is our friend again)
http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/6917/pers.jpg

[redsel]

@ravncat: does this mean tunnel effect is a composition technique? (That's how I understood it from your explanation with all 3 photos.)

[ravncat]

Probably,

The Fisheye / panorama wrapping one would require software though, so it's not something you'd do compositionally

[redsel]

thanks for the answers guys. Although I still don't understand it fully, I now have a generally vague idea of what the term means. I hope others contribute as well.