Lensbaby

I have recently been using the zone plate optic. This one is on a recent trip to the beach (entitled "Mystery of the Sea"). Taken with a lens baby composer pro on a Canon 40D and processed using Nik Silver Efex Pro 2.

I would really like to hear how others have been using this optic, and any tips/tricks they may have learned.

Thanks,
Steve

Interesting shot, dream like but in a different way than the plastic optic.

When I got my Lensbaby I also picked up the kit with the three optics ( plastic, single glass and pinhole/zone plate) I took a couple of random shots with each and quickly decided that the zone plate appeared to be the most challenging to use and, since I am a brand new Lensbaby owner, I decided to put it aside and concentrate on getting some dexterity with the other optics first so, I'm afraid I can't offer any helpful tips.
Like you, I'd be interested in hearing from others who have any tips or hints about how to get the best out of it.

Sorry no zone plate here but really like your shot. I think it is excellent use of the optic because you taook advantage of the blacks in this image. Great mood! Maybe Doug Sahlin's e-book Mastering the Lensbaby can help you. He discusses every optic in it.

Wanda

Thanks for the comments gardencat and Wanda!

So far I've discovered that a tripod is pretty useful when shooting with this optic (especially the pinhole, since it's effectively f/177!). The other thing is that with such a small effective aperture, any sensor dust becomes HIGHLY visible and so one has to spend some time cloning it out (which can be automated somewhat in lightroom). The dust spots are somewhat less noticeably when using the zone plate compared to the pinhole. And, I've found the zone plate to be about 4 stops faster than the pinhole in my experimentation.

-Steve

You're making me crave my zone plate.

Very nice image. Excellent use of the Zone Plate optic.

Doug Sahlin
Author of Mastering the Lensbaby: A step-by-step guide to mastering the Lensbaby and becoming a more creative photographer.The book is available at the Amazon Kindle store. to find out more about the book or to download a sample chapter, click here: [amzn.to]