Lensbaby Velvet 56mm f/1.6 Lens for Sony E (Black)

Reminiscent of classic 20th century lenses, the black Sony E 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 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.

• Portrait-length 56mm focal length is compatible with Sony E mount cameras with full-frame format sensors as well as APS-C format sensors, where it will provide an 84mm equivalent focal length.
• Fast f/1.6 maximum aperture offers extensive control over selective focus and shallow depth of field, and also benefits working in difficult lighting conditions.
• The unique singlet-doublet-singlet lens design renders imagery with a soft, smooth, and glowing image quality reminiscent of mid-20th century portrait lenses.
• Softness can be controlled by stopping-down the lens: when stopped-down to f/16, the image exhibits a smooth quality with greater central sharpness.
• A 1:2 maximum magnification ratio and 5″ minimum working distance enable working with close-up subjects.
• Manual focus design with a smooth, dampened focusing movement is complemented by engraved focus distance indicators.
• Manual exposure control requires stop-down metering and manual setting of the aperture.