Lensbaby

no matter what I do the sweet spot is never as sharp as with a regular lens..... I've adjusted the dioptic.... used glasses when focusing ...... If it's not really possible to get the sweet spot as sharp as with a regular auto focus lens... I'd love to know so I can end this frustration... when I manually adjust a normal lens I get a sharp image.....

Which LB are you using? What aperture? The sharpest images will result from using a smaller aperture, sharper glass ie. LB 2.0 , the LB 3G or the double glass optic. Also the LB lenses with more control such as the Composer, and the 3G give you the ability to fine tune your focus.

Hope that helps!

Emm

[marthabusse.com]

composer ... double glass... will try smaller aperature..tried the 4 or a 5.... but will try smaller aperature... thanks

Swartz,
To make sure there is not another factor involved. Have you shot without bending the lens? With the optic pointing straight and something around f8 or f11? Hopefully that will make a difference if you haven't tried it. Maybe you could post an image or two so we could see. You also have to remember you are using a lens with a double optic set up vs. a lens with up to 11 pieces of glass in a couple of groups to really increase sharpness. Lensbabies are unique in their look.
David

David Akoubian
www.bearwoodsphotography.com

"Time is a wonderful healer, but a really bad beautician" - Unknown

Post some samples, could be your camera, could be you are getting camera shake by hand holding at slow shutter speeds, could be anything ......

I've gotten sharp sweetspots even with my LBO wide open and certainly the 2.0 is sharp .......it's very frustrating if you can't get your images to look the way you desire ....

It's also possible you received a bad optic, so test your LB on another camera body or have a friend test it out for a second opinion .....

You have to remember Original Equipment Lenses are corrected with multi-elements and coated for flare, while Bendy optics are simple lenses exhibiting aberration ......we're manipulating the organic qualities of light gathering to make aRt with these simple optics so you can't compare the two .

The charm of Bending is all about impressionism, not corrected perspectives, but still you should have a sharp sweetspot no matter the optic.

Sharp is also a relative term, as using the new zone plate/pinhole, plastic, or even the Original soft LB will never be what one would consider tack sharp by OEM standards.

Sorry this blah blah blah doesn't help you much :(

My guess is that, like most lenses, there are limits to how closed to make the aperture before sacrificing IQ. Assuming diffraction works the same way in LB as in a normal lens, then f/22 will be decidedly less sharp than f/8 with correct focus.

Best,

John

Flickr: http:www.flickr.com/aidanmorgan

I had some focusing problems in the beginning too,but with some practice,its not that bad anymore.
You have to be very prcise when focusing.

TRYING IS THE FIRST STEP TOWARDS FAILURE.

Homer Simpson