Lensbaby expands its arsenal of special-effects lenses with one that's almost as odd as the effects it produces. The Trio 28 consists of a single mount with three 28mm lenses that you rotate into place: a Sweet, a Velvet and a Twist.
Like their full-size counterparts, the Trio 28's Twist lens surrounds the central area with swirly bokeh; the Velvet looks soft and glowy; and Sweet renders increasing blur from the center out. On Micro Four Thirds cameras, the Trio 28 lenses have about the equivalent angle of view of a 56mm lens, while APS-C Sony E mount and Fujifilm X mount versions deliver 42mm.
Like all Lensbabys, they're manual-focus only, and in this case they also have a fixed f3.5 aperture. It only adds about 4.1 ounces/116 g to the weight of the camera, so it won't weigh you down at all. There's a 46mm thread across the front for filters, and you might want to spring for a neutral density filter for shooting in bright light.
The lens is slated to ship in the US on October 26 for $280, essentially three lenses for the price of one. I don't have other pricing or availability yet, but that directly converts to about £216 and AU$365.
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