Sony and Zak Skinner unveil accessible Through Their Lens photo series

Sony Europe and British Paralympian Zak Skinner have launched a 10-image Through Their Lens collection that uses Sony Alpha cameras to show how visual impairment shapes creative work. The project highlights accessibility tools that can help blind and partially sighted photographers shoot more independently.

Why it matters: - The collection puts accessibility in photography front and center, showing how camera features can reduce barriers for blind and partially sighted creators. - Zak Skinner’s work adds a first-hand view of how visual impairment can shape creative choices, not just athletic performance. - Sony is using the series to show how product design can support more independent image-making in real-world conditions.

What happened: - Sony Europe and British Paralympic athlete, photographer and videographer Zak Skinner unveiled a new Through Their Lens photography collection. - The 10-image series was released in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2026. - The project moves from athletics imagery to studio photography to explore Skinner’s perspective as both an athlete and creator.

The details: - Through Their Lens is now in its second year. - The initiative highlights the work of blind and partially sighted photographers and how technology can help reduce barriers. - Skinner was born completely blind and gained some sight at age two. - Skinner has ocular albinism, a genetic eye condition linked to vision abnormalities. - Skinner’s experience includes reduced visual acuity, nystagmus and photophobia. - Skinner has represented Great Britain at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games and the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships. - Skinner works as a photographer and videographer with a focus on sport. - The collection uses slower shutter speeds and creative lighting to interpret movement, light and Skinner’s visual experience. - One sequence shows Skinner positioned directly behind an athlete on the track to explore nystagmus. - Slow shutter speed creates motion blur while preserving parts of the scene in focus. - The images were subtly rotated so track lines appear at an angle, reflecting the disorientation Skinner can feel when involuntary eye movements intensify during exertion. - Skinner shot the collection with his own Alpha 7 V Full-Frame Hybrid Camera and an Alpha 7R V high-resolution camera. - Sony says the cameras were used across all 10 images to capture motion, lighting and studio composition. - Skinner relied on Enlarge Screen to make settings easier to read and adjust. - Skinner assigned Enlarge Screen to a custom button for one-press access. - Skinner used Screen Reader in quieter studio settings. - Customisable buttons, dials and tactile controls let Skinner navigate settings by touch. - A full creative overview is available at the full collection.

Between the lines: - The project frames accessibility as a creative advantage, not just an accommodation. - The track-to-studio arc broadens Skinner’s identity beyond elite sport and reinforces the idea that athletes can be multi-disciplinary creators. - Sony is also signaling that accessibility features are part of mainstream product value, not niche add-ons. - Robin Spinks, RNIB Head of Inclusive Design, said the collection can challenge assumptions about who can enjoy photography and pursue it professionally. - Spinks said features such as screen readers and enlarged menus can make a practical difference for people with sight loss.

What's next: - Sony says it will keep working with blind and partially sighted people and representative organisations, including the UK’s Royal National Institute of Blind People, on accessibility projects. - The company is positioning the Alpha line as part of that broader effort to make photography and videography more accessible. - The collection is meant to encourage more blind and partially sighted people to explore photography and share their own perspectives.

The bottom line: - Sony and Zak Skinner are using a sports-to-studio photography project to show that accessibility tools can expand creative freedom, not limit it.