Pete Askew
Admin
Following on from a few questions / comments about the Edge-80 optic (http://www.realphotographersforum.com/lenses/7231-lensbaby-edge-80-optic.html), I thought it might be useful to illustrate the system.
The lenses themselves (housing plus optic or complete unit in the case of older ones) are available in Nikon, Canon and Arri PL mounts and can be used on both stills and cine / video cameras (once you recognise the aesthetic it is surprising how many films and TV shows you spot it in!). As you all know, I use Nikon as my 35mm SLR / dSLR system and I have a Nikon to µ4/3 adapter to allow the fitting of Nikon mount lenses to our video system (http://www.realphotographersforum.com/digital-camera-video/4984-zeiss-compact-primes.html).
The newer optic swap system, as the name implies, allows you to use different optical elements with a housing. They lock into the housing using a simple bayonet fitting. Here are the two components mentioned in the original thread; a composer body on the left and the Edge-80 optic on the right.
As mentioned elsewhere, the optics in the swap system have key-ways allowing them to fitted and removed and are marked with coloured bands enabling you to identify which optic is fitted (in the example below it is the 50mm Double Optic Glass optic). To the right is the aperture stop, which is simply dropped into the front of the lens - held in place by magnets).
The tool to remove and replace the optics into the housings is incorporated into the lid of the storage tubes supplied (along with a lens cloth).
The are a wide range of optics and aperture stops (including some with non-circular shapes), including a pinhole and a zone plate. There are front mounting close-up lenses and a wide angle adapter and a screw-on shade that also allows filters to be added. The main series of optics are 50mm but the Sweet 35 is 35mm and the Edge 80 is 80mm (35mm format). These are described in detail on the Lensbaby website (Lensbaby Optic Swap System: Edge 80, Fisheye, Sweet 35, Double Glass and More). In addition to the optics there is now a set of extension tubes that cane be inserted between the optic and the housing. There are two sizes and they can be stacked. Below is an image of the longer of the two positioned between a Composer housing and the Edge 80 optic.
The lenses themselves (housing plus optic or complete unit in the case of older ones) are available in Nikon, Canon and Arri PL mounts and can be used on both stills and cine / video cameras (once you recognise the aesthetic it is surprising how many films and TV shows you spot it in!). As you all know, I use Nikon as my 35mm SLR / dSLR system and I have a Nikon to µ4/3 adapter to allow the fitting of Nikon mount lenses to our video system (http://www.realphotographersforum.com/digital-camera-video/4984-zeiss-compact-primes.html).
The newer optic swap system, as the name implies, allows you to use different optical elements with a housing. They lock into the housing using a simple bayonet fitting. Here are the two components mentioned in the original thread; a composer body on the left and the Edge-80 optic on the right.
As mentioned elsewhere, the optics in the swap system have key-ways allowing them to fitted and removed and are marked with coloured bands enabling you to identify which optic is fitted (in the example below it is the 50mm Double Optic Glass optic). To the right is the aperture stop, which is simply dropped into the front of the lens - held in place by magnets).
The tool to remove and replace the optics into the housings is incorporated into the lid of the storage tubes supplied (along with a lens cloth).
The are a wide range of optics and aperture stops (including some with non-circular shapes), including a pinhole and a zone plate. There are front mounting close-up lenses and a wide angle adapter and a screw-on shade that also allows filters to be added. The main series of optics are 50mm but the Sweet 35 is 35mm and the Edge 80 is 80mm (35mm format). These are described in detail on the Lensbaby website (Lensbaby Optic Swap System: Edge 80, Fisheye, Sweet 35, Double Glass and More). In addition to the optics there is now a set of extension tubes that cane be inserted between the optic and the housing. There are two sizes and they can be stacked. Below is an image of the longer of the two positioned between a Composer housing and the Edge 80 optic.
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