Lensbaby Sweet 80!

Wind Flowers SW80 Kathleen 8x12

I am so excited to share the announcement of a new Lensbaby, the Composer Pro II with Sweet 80 Optic! This new 80mm optic is the third in the Sweet series of tilting selective focus optics, joining the Sweet 35 and Sweet 50 optics with a sweet spot of sharp focus surrounded by beautiful blur. With apertures from f/2.8-16 and a minimum focus distance of 22 inches, the Sweet 80 will be available either with the Composer Pro 2 or as an interchangeable optic for any of the previous optic swap system lenses.

Selective focus is my favorite way to make photos, I love to create a small area in focus and blur the rest of the image, drawing the viewer’s attention to just one part of my subject. The first thing I noticed while shooting with this optic was the wonderful fall off to blur created by the compression of the longer focal length.  The blending of colors and shapes is beautiful!

Dahlia with Sw 80 Kathleen

Here are some photos I made this weekend with the Sweet 80, the 80mm focal length of the optic is awesome!  The weather was very foggy in my area, with lovely diffused light. My son caught a blue lobster last week (one-in-two-million odds!), so I photographed that as well as flowers. I used f/4.

Blue Lobster V SW80 Kathleen web

Blue Lobster SW80 Kathleen web

Cosmos SW80 Kathleen f4 web

When you want to get closer with the Sweet 80,  you pull out the front of the Optic. This close-focus feature allows you to focus from 22″ from the front of the lens to your subject.

Windflowers SW80 Kathleen f4 web

Fern with aster Sw80 web

Be sure to push that close focus element back in when you want to focus at a longer distance away. Here are some examples with and without using the closer focus feature, all at the minimum focus distance of the optic:

SW80 windflowewr no macro

SW80 macro pull out web
SW80 no macroSW 80 macro outAutumn leaves SW80 v web

SW 80 leaf macro pulled out

 

I also tried adding a +2 macro diopter to get even closer to my subjects:

Single windflower SW-) Kathleen f4 web

Vindflowers plus 2 SW80 web

Dahlia SW80 plus 2 webSW80 Dahlia plus 2 macro Kathleen web

And since I love to shoot wide open with my Lensbabies, I shot some at f/2.8 for max blur too!

SW80 w open Kathleen web

This new optic definitely has a place in my camera bag, and I’ll be reaching for it when I want more background compression than the other two Sweet optics can provide.  Being able to bring the background in closer will make this optic very useful for the way I like to shoot.
Thank you, Lensbaby, for continuing to produce new and innovative ways that allow me to show the world the way that I see it!

Happy Shooting!
-Kathleen Clemons

Kathleen Teaches: 

Lensbaby Magic

Fine Art Nature Photography

Fine Art Nature Photography II

Fine Art Nature Photography III

Capturing the Beauty of Flowers

“I just wanted to thank you for another wonderful class. I have to confess that each week when I read the new assignment, my first reaction was mild panic and a deep certainty that I would not be able to produce anything worthwhile that fit within the parameters you had set. But before I knew it, the ideas started to flow, and I quickly became obsessed (no, that isn’t too strong a word!) with exploring the possibilities. I can honestly say that the photos I produced in response to your assignments are among my favorites. Thanks for bringing out a creative side I didn’t know I had!”

Barbara Geiger
Understanding Color

“Thank you so very much for this course! It’s allowed me to take the blinders off and present my images for what I want them to be without being a slave to the “reality” of the camera. I would also add that in conjunction with your printing course, this has been the most useful course I’ve ever taken. Your notes are more than comprehensive and your comments and critiques are direct, clear, and always directed to the improvement of the art.”

Bill
After the click

” I want to thank you for this class and for your patience and availability to answer all of my questions. I have learned very much through this class. I have used LR in the past, but mostly for editing images. I now have a better grasp in the organization of my images, an even better understanding of editing images, and an understanding of the value of presets. I still have a lot to learn, but this has put me on the road to be able to improve my photography. Again, thank you! ”

Dale Yates
Lightroom Quickstart

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