The Speculative Camera is an ongoing research project that investigates how contemporary sensing systems – from cameras and radars to satellites, survey software and automated decision pipelines – shape what can be seen, known and acted upon. Bringing theoretical research into dialogue with visual production, the project unfolds across several interconnected outputs: an initial statement-of-intent published as an academic article, a 25-minute 3D animated film currently in production (working title A Tree in Greenwich), and a forthcoming edited volume that convenes image and media scholars around questions of image-thinking, synchrony and decision-making. Across these strands, the project approaches the camera not as a static device but as an assemblage-like instrument that organises signals, timings and thresholds in domains such as climate modelling, maritime surveillance, border regimes and automated logistics. The Speculative Camera is currently led by Yanai Toister, Asko Lehmuskallio and Ariel Caine (co-PIs), with Martyna Marciniak responsible for 3D modelling and Ronnie Karfiol serving as research assistant.

Leader article:

Ariel Caine, Asko Lehmuskallio and Yanai Toister. “The Speculative Camera”. Philosophy of Photography 16, no. 1 (2025): 25-41.

Animated film: 

A Tree in Greenwich is a 25-minute 3D animated film produced in 4K, using Unreal Engine for spatial construction and simulation alongside Blender and Houdini for procedural modelling and visual effects. The film’s sound design is conceived as an ambisonic environment that extends the work’s attention to sensing beyond the visual register, rendering delays, reflections and occlusions both audible and palpable. The film will be mastered as a DCP for cinema exhibition and as high-resolution ProRes files for installation and study contexts, with English and Finnish subtitles and an optional descriptive audio track.

Edited volume:

Edited volume, co-edited by Yanai Toister and Asko Lehmuskallio, gathering contributions from scholars and practitioners working at the intersection of visual studies, media theory and technological infrastructures, further elaborating the conceptual framework of The Speculative Camera.

Project support: 

TUNI, UCL, Shenkar