The Lensbaby grows up, finally. With the release of their new Sweet 35 Optic and the updated (and renamed) Composer Pro, what was used as an “occasional alternative lens” may now be a more “mainstream alternative.” With the tilting capabilities available in all lensbabies, it has typically been used as a cheap tilt/shift lens substitute. And now with more precise controls paired with a sharper optic option, it should be capable of producing sharper images with larger sweet spots while allowing for easier fine–tuning.
The Sweet 35 Optic is unique being the first in their optic swap system to have its own aperture diaphragm, thus allowing you to change the aperture without the clumsy swappable aperture rings/plates the older optics used to utilize. If you’re wondering what the Sweet 35 is capable of, here’s a sample from this user review, shot with a Nikon D3s full–frame camera:
The sweet spot and surrounding blur is definitely better now, right? Getting a new Lensbaby Composer Pro paired with the Sweet 35 comes out to 400 USD. Not cheap, but definitely more affordable than getting a true tilt/shift lens. Is it worth the money? Maybe we’ll soon find out.