Get a snapshot portrait of the cinematic photographer & digital artist, how sheโll be your go-to Optics source, and what some of her fave effects are.
Weโre excited to introduce Renรฉe Robyn to the Boris FX community as our new Optics product manager!
Renรฉe hails from Canada and grew up in rural Alberta. She has over fifteen years of experience as a professional photographer, shooting for tech giants Adobe, Wacom, and Intel, as well as entertainment icons like Nita Strauss, Housecore Horror, and The Alberta Ballet. You can follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
How did you get into photography?
I got into photography two ways. The first was way back in 1997 I got signed into a modelling agency, and entirely unrelated to modelling, I also discovered Photoshop in the same year. This opened my eyes to a whole world of creating that I didnโt know was possible. Eleven years into mucking about in Photoshop and modelling, I was really bored and started taking photographs more seriously on my own. A few months after that, I was hit and run over in a motorcycle accident. I had to learn how to walk again, and while I was doing that, I took the time to teach myself photography and photo manipulation. It was never planned to be a career. It was a running joke about how bad my photographs were, but now, 15+ years later, Iโve had a very wild and crazy one.
What type of photo editing/photo manipulation tasks do you look to a plugin like Optics to help with on a daily basis?
I want a plugin to make my life easier. I want to see my work in a way that perhaps I had overlooked, to give my often tired eyes a fresh perspective on the pixels Iโve been staring at for too many hours. I also want repeatability, a stable app that works on my system without bogging it down too much, and reliable support from the product manufacturer. So far, my experience with Optics has been exactly that, which is why Iโve been using it since the beginning.
Which Optics effects do you use most โ and why?
To be honest, I use the Mist filters constantly. Theyโre not as flashy as some of the other effects, but when it comes to making ethereal composites, they have a very delicate touch that looks oh-so-perfect when the file goes to print. Also, canโt go wrong with Luna. How wonderful is it to be able to make the moon whatever phase you want for your digital art??
Lastly, Iโve been having fun with the FreeLens filters. I love free-lensing in real life, but I rarely get the chance to do it as Iโm often shooting in inclement weatherโnot ideal circumstances for having the lens off the front of your camera. So itโs nice to play with it in post, where Iโm not adding sedimentary layers of dust to my sensor. Yes, I am still shooting with a DSLR. I havenโt made the mirrorless hop yet.
Speaking of OpticsโฆCongrats on your new role as Opticsโ product manager. What does your role entail? What are you most looking forward to?
Thank you! I mean, right now it includes installing as much information as my brain batter will accept. It feels like drinking from a firehose, haha. The plan is to push Optics into a more public space in the creative world, get more people to know about it, and make interesting work with these amazing tools. Iโve also got a foot in the development department, so hopefully, we can make some adaptations of the program to make it a little easier for new users to find their way to this tool.
Iโm also here to help make the users' experience with the plugin as good as it can be. Itโs a lot of listening to what people have to say and pushing that down the pipeline to make the changes or suggest new features. Ultimately making a better product and allowing creatives the space to do what they do best as efficiently as possible.
Where do you draw creative inspiration from?
Itโs a weird mix of dreams and meeting people. The best ideas Iโve ever come up with are 9/10 times come from when Iโm asleep, but the most satisfying ones come from the energy of other people. Sometimes I think of a concept and then go looking for someone to fill that role, but most of the time, I get ideas once Iโm sitting across the table from a person. Having a conversation and watching their mannerisms, seeing what makes their face light up.
I try to look at people and places not for what they are but for what they can be. I watch them and have a Rolodex of concepts just flipping through my mind, seeing what will match their energy and look the best.
I also grew up on a likely unhealthy mess of video games and fantasy novels, so Iโm inherently programmed to a certain genreโฆ
Whatโs your favorite project or image that youโve ever worked on โ and why?
Itโs a shame that itโs far too spicy to share on this blog! I spent a few years plotting the physics of an image of a witch's sabbath, and it turned into the largest composite Iโve ever made to date. Itโs 16,000 pixels wide, and my computer put up the white flag of defeat more than once in the retouching process. It took over a month to photograph everyone for it and another month to edit the image together. It was the most complicated lighting setup Iโd ever done, with so many people involved.
Next, which I can share here, is some equine work I did. Iโd been plotting how to build a studio for photographing horses for years, and I slowly figured out all the elements. From location to casting a talented rider and finding a stunning horse with the perfect temperament, Iโm really thrilled with how this image came out, and I am looking forward to editing the behind-the-scenes video of the shoot for my rather neglected YouTube channel. It took me about 10 years to put all the pieces together, and I think it was well worth the wait.
How do you unwind outside of work?
I used to have a lot of hobbies but believe it or not, a different car crash a couple of years ago kind of took a lot of those from me. Yeah, I know, I should stay away from moving vehicles โ ha!
Now, I like to burn stress off with bouldering (rock climbing) and going to the gym.
Otherwise, I like to paint miniatures because it allows me to create practical things. I get to practise tangible color theory. Iโm also learning how to sew at a glacial rate.
Lastly, I practise languages almost every night. Iโm learning Dutch, German, Spanish, and French, plus the Russian and Arabic alphabet. Itโs more than enough to keep me permanently confused, but every day I can understand a little more of the world around me, and it pleases me greatly. Arguably, I could spend more time learning how to be less of a grammatical disaster in my own mother tongue, but thatโs what Grammarly is for.
Whatโs your go-to snack/treat when you need a quick boost during the day?
This might be the lamest answer ever, but to be honest, my favourite way to get a quick boost is to have a short nap! Especially if Iโm stuck on a project or need to figure something out, Iโve found that going somewhere dark to close my eyes for anywhere from 5-20 minutes will get me going better than anything else. However, I do like to start back at whatever Iโve been working on with a fresh hot chai latte in my hands to go along with that messy nap hair.
Whoโs your favorite photographer or photography style? Favorite film/TV series?
Oof. Tough question. The longest inspiration would have to be Zemotion. I found her work way back in the DeviantArt days, and it just blew my mind. Iโve never made work like hers, but it inspires me regardless. I just think itโs so cool that artists like her exist on the same timeline I find myself in.
Film/TV series? Also hard to answer. The Fifth Element changed me on a very fundamental level as a youngling. The Cell had a similar effect. For more recent examples, the latest versions of Dune made me wish I wasnโt so terrible at making sci-fi work. Truly beautiful and thought-provoking choices were made in both of those films.
There are so many TV series, but I have to admit Iโve re-watched What We Do in the Shadows (movie and show) more times than is probably healthy. As someone who grew up reading and loving everything about Anne Rice, the concept that they reduced these badass, sexy, deviant vampires to idiots was a refreshing take on a beloved theme. I'm a big fan of the writing in that show, and whoever designs Nadjaโs dresses. I wish I had the budget to hire them!
Lastly, The Expanse. I really enjoyed everything about that series, and the space visuals were a treat. After it was over, I definitely went through the post-series slump. Applauses all around to the whole cast and crew.
For how much I love sci fi, I rarely make it myself. I think because I enjoy having places where I can just purely enjoy someone else's vision, without having a part of my brain constantly breaking down how they did what they did.
If you could collaborate with any artist, living or dead, who would it be and why?
Oh man, so many. Over the years, Iโve had the very fortunate luck to meet or create with astoundingly wonderful minds. I sometimes wonder if working with them is as important as feeling the joy of watching them succeed.
When the tide rises, we all rise together.
But if I really, really had to pick someone, it would be Ash Thorp. I found his work years ago, and have even had the chance to lose jobs to him, haha. Iโve heard heโs really nice too, which is always the most important thing to me.
Our minutes are limited on this planet, so why spend it with anyone other than those who elevate kindness?
With pretty much everything that guy puts out, I feel like Iโm getting a chance to see the universe split into two โ and we get a peek into a very fascinating mind.
What career and/or life advice would you give your younger self?
Do your mobility training! Seriously โ our careers have us sitting on our butts for far too many hours every day, and keeping that meat suit that hauls your experience around healthy is justโฆ so important.
I like to tell people, โIf you care enough to dye your hair, get your nails done, shower every day, and brush your teeth, then make sure you spend 15 minutes a day doing intentional movement and maybe a little meditating. Self-care is sexy. Also, itโs never too late for therapy.โ Ha!
As someone whoโs lost the ability to move this thing (more than once), I think I have enough experience to speak with some authority on this. You donโt have to love yourself, but life is inherently hard. It will be much harder if you donโt do those little things even 3 times a week to make yourself feel just slightly better.
