Lensbaby Velvet 56mm F1.6 A-mount lens reviews
reviews found: 1
 QuietOC#45624 date: Dec-22-2020 | |
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sharpness: 3.5 color: 5 build: 4 distortion: 4 flare control: 3 overall: 3.9 | tested on:
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| ownership: | I own this lens |
| compared to: | Lensbaby Burnside 35 F2.8 Rokinon 45 F1.8 FE Tamron SP 45 F1.8 USD (VC & non VC) Minolta MD 45 F2 Sigma 45 F2.8 DG DN C Lensbaby Sol 45 F3.5 Rokinon 50 F1.2 Yongnuo 50 F1.4 Zeiss C/Y 50 F1.4 Planar Canon EF 50 F1.4 USM Sigma 50 F1.4 EX DG HSM Minolta MD 50 F1.4 & AF & Sony (D) Minolta MD 50 F1.7 & AF & RS Sony FE 50 F1.8 Canon EF 50 F1.8 STM Fotasy 50 F1.8 Konica AR 50 F1.8 Vivitar 50 F1.8 Sony DT 50 F1.8 SAM Sony E 50 F1.8 OSS Minolta MD 50 F2 Neewer/Meike/Vivitar 50 F2 Konica AR 52 F1.8 Minolta MC 55 F1.7 Sony FE 55 F1.8 Sonnar Minolta SR 55 F2 Konica AR 57 F1.4 Minolta MC 58 F1.4 Lensbaby Twist 60 F2.5 |
| price paid: | 209 USD (used) |
| positive: | Center resolution wide-open Blurry Full-stop aperture clicks 350 degree focus throw Sony focus and aperture directions (even in EF) |
| negative: | Price, size, weight Low contrast Curved field(s) Focus ring extends Busy foreground rendering 62mm filter thread f/16 minimum aperture |
| comment: | I decided to rebuy this lens but paid 50% less for a used EF version instead of native version. This one was misclassified by gear store as having a Canon FD mount which probably wasn't helping them to sell it. I was happy to receive the Canon EF version. This is not a general purpose normal prime and definitely not a normal macro lens. This is a lens for centered subjects and lots of blur. The most similar lenses I've had were the 25mm "F1.8" and 35mm "F1.6" mini C-mount primes. Those also had simple 4-element optical designs. Those cost less than $25 each, while this lens costs more than a brand-new Canon EF 50mm F1.4 USM. It has no electronics. Small print on the bottom of the box states: "assembled in the USA, made in china" The thin cardboard box has four credited photos on four sides ostensibly taken with the lens. The lens came with a felt-lined slip-on alloy front cap, a screw-on circular alloy hood with internal ribbing, and an old style plastic rear cap. The white lettering seems be painted on top of the black finish without any embossing. The focus action makes some scraping noises. Grease is visible through the rear of the lens with nothing but air between it and glass elements. There is no sealing to speak of. The focus throw is about 345 degrees. The front of the lens extends to focus but does not rotate. Oddly the focus grip extends at half this rate. Velvet or soft are sort of misnomers. Point light sources show a large defined halo when in focus which creates a glow over the image. This haloing makes it difficult to focus, but when focused accurately (using magnification) the lens still shows fine detail near the center at least. The focus plane is curved toward the camera. Focusing on the edge of the frame creates doubled images. The lens seems well-aligned, but the halos and field curvature may hide some misalignment. Images have mild simple barrel distortion. The lens has mild focus breathing for a unit focus prime. A digital filter can probably simulate the haloing effectively and allow more control of the effect. I might try a higher quality soft focus lens in the future. Those which allow varying the strength of the halo separate from the aperture control. |
; 61MP reviews found: 1
rating summary
- total reviews: 1
- sharpness: 3.50
- color: 5.00
- build: 4.00
- distortion: 4.00
- flare control: 3.00
- overall: 3.90
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