Using a manual again – Lensbaby Velvet 56

I have talked about the Velvet 56 from Lensbaby before and for macro, it is one of my favourite lenses. You can achieve a lot with it, but at the same time, you also have to learn things as well. There are tricks to using it.

When I first used a macro lens way back in 2014, I think it was, I had no idea what I was doing and thought I could use it the same as any other lens I had. What a mistake that was.

I put the photos up here on my blog and received so much amazing information from so many people who read the blog. I learned so much from that post. So when I got my own macro lens I had a much idea of what I was doing.

In 2016, I think it was, I first got my hands on the Velvet 56 from Lensbaby, literally. They sent one to me to do some posts and such with it and in the end they let me have it. I have been using it ever since.

I’m sure I have told you most of this already, but I thought for today’s post we might look at some of the good, and bad, things about using it.

Manual Focus

Without a doubt, one of the hardest things I had to get used to was the lens doesn’t have autofocus.

It has been many years since I used a lens with manual focus and it took some getting used to. It doesn’t help that my eyesight isn’t as good as it once was.

I have found the best way to do it is to work out roughly where I want my focus, or the distance I want and then move myself in and out until it is in focus. I don’t worry about me staying still while I play around with the focus ring. Best if I’m the ring, so to speak.

The focusing ring on the Velvet 56 winds around a lot too, so I often just wind it out for the closest capture and then, as I said, I move in and out to get the sharpest image I can.

Apertures around the ring

One thing that did surprise me was you could use apertures in much the same way as you can on an ordinary ring. Though f2.8 will generally give you very soft images, while f16 is rather sharp. I’m going to be showing you examples.

Let’s take a look at three images taken at f2.8, f5.6 and f16.

As you would expect with any images taken with different apertures there are different amounts of the subject in focus. That sort of thing always happens with any lens when you are using different apertures.

This is something when you are learning to take photos that you should do. Pick a subject and then take a series of photos, the same photo each time but change the aperture for each one. When you get them on your computer you can take a look and see what differences each one makes.

If you are going to be using the Lensbaby Velvet 56 you should start with an aperture of f5.6. It is a good one to use and you should capture what you want. As you get used to the lens then you can play around with the apertures and see which one you like best. For me, I think it is f4.

Here are some more examples.

Using different apertures on the Velvet 56

While you get the same effects with the different apertures as you would expect one thing that did surprise me was the available light in the camera changed. I know I’m not explaining that very well, so let me try again.

When you are using f2.8 it is quite bright through the lens and you can see fine, however, when you start to close the aperture it gets darker and darker. By the time you get to f16, it is almost impossible to see what you are photographing. It gets very dark through the viewfinder.

I am not sure if it happens when you are only doing macro, or if you are using the lens for other things as well.

I did try doing a couple of non-macro images.

One was taken at f2.8 and the other at f16. You can really see the difference there.

EXIF data

One thing I have found is that your camera won’t recognise the lens and therefore neither will your computer. You can’t look up and find out what aperture you used. If that is information you need then you should record it as you are taking the photos.

It is just like the old days when we were using film. Had to write all that stuff down in a notebook. Does anyone else here remember that?

Using the lens for other things

It would be remiss of me to not mention that you can use the lens for other types of photography as well. While I really only use it for macro, there are others that use it for portraits. I have taken it into the city and done some street photography with it, but only once or twice.

Street photography is not really my thing, but it was a good way to play around with the lens. I did find one trip into the city I did with it when I first got it. Here are some photos from that.

I think you can see why it is an interesting lens for street photography.

If you go to the Lensbaby website (click here) then you will see many examples of it being used for portraits.

There are many ways to use the Lensbaby Velvet 56 and I think it has to be one of my favourite lenses for macro. That and my dedicated macro lens. You can also use it with extension tubes and I have a close-up filter that I often use with it as well.

I think it is time to finish this post. I hope you have enjoyed it. If you have questions let me know, otherwise, I will see you in the comments or on Sunday. Take care everyone.

To find out more checkout the Lensbaby website, click here.