Lensbaby and UV

[jds314159]

This is more an idea post not a lens test

Lensbaby makes several lenses for their Optic Swap System. Lensbaby photography isknown for soft focus and using the ability to tilt the lens in any direction to place the center of focus anywhere in the image.

I was shooting Lensbaby before I had a camera capable of UV work. The Lensbaby Single Glass Optic (SGO) seemed a natural UV choice.

 

Pro: One uncoated, 50mm, lens element. The lens is 37mm front threaded. The Optic Swap System base is available for most camera mounts. The Composer and Composer Pro bases allow repeatable tilt and focus. With a filter adapter and an Andrea U filter I was able to hand hold full sun UV photos at f5.6 and ISO 800.

 

Cons: The lens is not sharp! By design only the image center has any claim to sharpness. It is best to shoot at smaller aperture for more center sharpness. Using one of the Composer mounts requires a special Lensbaby lens filter adapter to lens focus and use of a larger than 37mm filter. Changing the aperture is done using a magnetic tool and metal washers. These small items are easy to drop and misplace.

 

I have shot UV flowers maybe 3 times with this lens with what I consider a nice artistic look.

 

 

[Andrea B.]

Artistry in UV is always a good thing. We would love to see one of your examples from the Lensbaby.

[OlDoinyo]

You might consider running a pinhole transmission test on this lens, just for the heck of it.