When Lensbaby came out with their Composer late last year it was something that I wanted to get my hands on. Well, it finally happened and I’ve now had the lens and optic kit for a couple weeks. So, of course, a review is in order. But first…

What is the Lensbaby Composer?

To say that the Lensbaby Composer isn’t like any other camera lens I’ve used before is a bit of an understatement. It’s the kind of product that can really put a photographer’s creativity into overdrive.

The composer is a ball and socket designed lens that allows a photographer to deliver smooth selective focus. Similar (to an extent) to a tilt shift lens but much less expensive. Photographers tilt the lens to the desired position and use the manual focus ring to ensure that the focal point is in the plane of focus.

A new feature to the composer is the Lensbaby Optic Swap System. The Optic Swap System allows a photographer to literally change the glass inside the lens casing allowing for even more creative options. The Lensbaby Composer comes with the Double Glass Optic and the Optic Kit comes with Single Glass Optic, Plastic Optic, and a Pinhole/Zone Plate Optic. The optics can be purchased as a kit or indivudually. With the whole kit it’s like having 5 lenses in one. Crazy.

My initial thoughts.

So I popped the Lensbaby Composer on my Canon DSLR with the Double Glass Optic installed and did what any other dad in the world would do. I chased after my kiddos (ages 3 and 1) around the house. Remember that you’re dealing with a manual lens here so no aid from the camera in focusing. Can be kinda tough and my first few images weren’t really any good. Truth be told, it was probably bad timing. Just after a nap and they had fruit for their afternoon snack (that means natural sugars were pumping through their tiny little bodies). That’s okay, I like a challenge and I like putting equipment through it’s paces.

As a father of little ones of course they’re used to the camera, but that’s not my focus on photography (not artistically anyway). They just happened to be around right after the lens was dropped off. I did manage to get a few that I did like, but this was later in the day after they were a little more calm.

It really wasn’t until I went out to some old oil field graveyards (remember that I live in West Texas) and worked on my fine art photography that I was able to really appreciate how this lens adds to my arsenal. The dreaminess of the Plastic Optic juxtaposed with the rusted decay of the oil tanks and gave me exactly what I was hoping for.

Then a few trips to some gardens for some pretty pictures of flowers (wife’s request) and I was pleasantly surprised with the results.

I’m still experimenting with the lens, but I can say that I do love the Lensbaby Composer.

It works for me for a number of reasons.

1. It makes you slow down and think. You really have to sort of envision what the composition is going to be. What is going to be in focus and how much blur do you want to use?
2. The Optic Swap Kit with the Composer means I have five lenses to work with. That’s five more options when I’m out in the field and thinking of how I want my final image to look.
3. It’s fun. Sometimes you just gotta go out and have some fun and this thing is fun. You can get some dramatic and dreamy photographs with this lens which plays really well with a variety of shooting styles.
4. It’s different. If you’re a photographer that struggles in being creative I highly suggest the Composer. You can go to Paris and take the same postcard image that every other tourist in the world has done, OR you can use a Lensbaby and bring home something different. I like different. It’s not boring.
5. There’s an element of surprise to the Lensbaby Composer that kinda reminds me of film. With digital photography we can see what we’re doing and if you have an extensive knowledge of your gear and your style you pretty much know what you’re gonna get. That’s not really the case with the Lensbaby Composer all of the time. With the Plastic Optic (my favorite right now) it’s like shooting with a toy camera again and I love it. When I open the images in my image editor at full screen I see so many little nuances and beautiful diffractions that just sort of make me giddy.

My concluding thoughts.

I’m enjoying experimenting with this lens kit and having fun again as a photographer. While this obviously won’t replace my traditional lenses, I feel strongly that the Lensbaby Composer is a lens I will turn to very often to make creative photographs. Along the way, I’ll share my results and thoughts with you because I feel that this lens takes a little extra getting used to, but well worth the effort.

You can find more information on the Lensbaby Composer as well as some fantastic examples of the photographs you can create by visiting the Lensbaby website. It’s worth looking further into.

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