Reminiscent of classic 20th century lenses, the Canon EF mount Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Lens from Lensbaby produces a uniquely soft, glowing image quality that is well-suited to making expressive and ethereal portraits. The overall softness can be controlled by stopping down the lens while still retaining the smooth tonality of a soft focus lens. Compatible with full-frame image sensors, this slightly longer-than-normal focal length pairs with the fast f/1.6 maximum aperture to excel in difficult lighting and achieve a shallow depth of field with controllable sharpness. Additionally, for increased creative versatility, the lens also offers a 1:2 maximum magnification and a minimum working distance of 5" for macro shooting. Housed within a black metal barrel, this lens also features smooth, dampened manual focus control to further benefit creative flexibility. Consistent with Lensbaby's aim of purveying selective focus capabilities and a unique velvety image quality, the Velvet 56mm f/1.6 is a versatile tool that marries classical looks with contemporary control.
- EF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
- Aperture Range: f/1.6 to f/16
- Singlet-Doublet-Singlet Optical Design
- Soft Glowing Effect at Wide Apertures
Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Overview
Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Specs
| Focal Length | 56mm |
| Maximum Aperture | f/1.6 |
| Minimum Aperture | f/16 |
| Lens Mount | Canon EF |
| Lens Format Coverage | Full-Frame |
| Minimum Focus Distance | 5" / 12.7 cm |
| Macro Reproduction Ratio | 1:2 |
| Optical Design | 4 Elements in 3 Groups |
| Diaphragm Blades | 9 |
| Focus Type | Manual Focus |
| Image Stabilization | No |
| Filter Size | 62 mm (Front) |
| Dimensions (ø x L) | 2.8 x 3.34" / 7.11 x 8.48 cm |
| Weight | 14.46 oz / 410 g |
| Package Weight | 1.125 lb |
| Box Dimensions (LxWxH) | 5.75 x 4.15 x 3.95" |
Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Reviews
Save some money
This is for the special edition: first of all, there is no wooden box. I contacted Lensbaby. The copper ring looks very nice and if has what I consider a flimsy copper color cap and that's it! If that is worth for you the extra money (at the time of writing $150) go ahead otherwise just get the regular one, you ain't missing something really special
Nice lens.
High quality and fun to use.
Fun Junk
This lens is a lot of fun, but make no mistake, it's super-cheaply built. The focusing helicoid is sloppy, so the front of the lens wobbles side-to-side significantly, perhaps half a millimeter (which is A LOT, in case you're not sure how much that is). The focus action feels dry and feels like metal scraping on metal. The mount isn't built to tolerances, either, so it is sloppy and wobbles around even more when mounted on a camera. It's so bad that a lens cap doesn't even stay on the rear. If you're looking for something fun that makes interesting images, go for it. If you're particular about the quality of your lenses, and you care about the build and handling and feel, you'll cringe. By the way, I own multiple LensBaby lenses and this is pretty consistent among them. It is not just an issue with this copy.
Love the Lensbaby Velvet 56
Waited several years to get this special lens. More than meets my expectations for a dreamy artistic effect. Lens is well made.
Nice lens
The lens is awesome as promised! The only issue is the lens cap will not fit if you use any filter on the lens. The lens cap is machined to fit with the rim of the lens (without any clamping mechanism). It is not a clip-on cap.
Dreamy
A bit of a one-trick pony, but it's a nice trick-dreamy portraits and closeups.
I am very happy with this lens.
Very happy fort the results of my photography.
Lotta fun to use
Been getting some really fun shots with this lens.
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