Does anyone use a Lensbaby? I just bought a composer, and for someone who grew up in the age of autofocus I am finding it a challenge. I posted one photoblog of shots from my first use, and will have another few on my camera from yesterday in South Beach. I'd love to hear people's thoughts on this lens.

http://www.photoblog.com/Vinsmousseux/2009/06/07/

Thanks!

Hi and congratulations on your purchase. Lensbabies are great fun and quite challenging to use. I've posted some examples here and here.

Several of us here (Jarvo, Slowpete) use them.

This is what I've learnt:
1. It's easy to go overboard and use the widest aperture. I've found that to be overkill in most of the shots I liked. Somewhere in the f/4 range is good with close-ups.
2. You're using a cropped-sensor camera with quite a small viewfinder. I found an angle viewer and then the live view function to be really useful.
3. I used mine for flower and sculpture portraits. I found that on my Canon body (a 5D mk II), it's worth stopping down exposure by half or a full stop.
4. Anything over f/11 and you're going to need a stabiliser (tripod) of some kind. In fact, my most successful shots with a lensbaby all required a tripod. LBs aren't easy to handle.
5. Keep your ISO at the lowest possible value because noise and the effects of the lensbaby just don't mix.
6. Later, you'll find that a tilt-shift lens (the cheapest one is about four times more expensive than an LB, alas) offers far more creative control and precision.

Hope it helps.