Lensbaby Burnside 35 Review | 54 Data compared

The ePHOTOzine review of the Lensbaby Burnside 35mm f/2.8 highlights a unique, Petzval-inspired optic offering excellent central sharpness, robust all-metal construction, and a dual-aperture system for creative, swirly bokeh. Ideal for environmental portraits, the lens features a smooth manual focus ring, though it lacks electronic connectivity for EXIF data and requires specific subject-background distancing for maximum effect. Conversely, the lens suffers from pronounced field curvature and heavy vignetting outside the central area, restricting sharpness. It operates entirely in manual mode, making it difficult for fast-paced action, particularly without image stabilization.

The Lensbaby Burnside 35 is a unique 35mm f/2.8 manual focus prime lens designed to bring vintage Petzval optics and creative control to modern full-frame and APS-C camera systems. It stands out as the widest Petzval-style lens available, offering a moderate wide-angle field of view that captures expansive environmental scenes while creating a sharp center focus and a distinct, swirled background blur. Built with a solid, all-metal anodized aluminum barrel, the lens features a smooth, long 180-degree manual focus ring that allows for precise adjustments down to a close 6-inch focusing distance. A key innovation is its dual aperture design: a standard six-blade aperture ring (f/2.8 to f/16) paired with a secondary, curved eight-blade internal aperture controlled by a gold effect slider on the barrel. Adjusting this slider alters the quality of the background highlights and introduces a heavy, artistic vignette. The review highlights several prominent advantages and drawbacks of the optic. On the positive side, the lens delivers a versatile wide-angle view, solid build quality, compatibility across multiple camera mounts (such as Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony E, Fujifilm...

The Lensbaby Burnside 35 ($500) is an ambitious, all-metal 35mm f/2.8 lens that combines the swirly background bokeh of the company's Twist series with the vintage vignette and tilt-shift aesthetic of the Velvet line. Its standout feature is a unique secondary manual aperture slider with six blades that sits in front of the primary eight-blade aperture. This secondary slider allows photographers to increase edge vignetting, darken the image, and boost color saturation without changing the depth of field or altering the core swirly defocus effect. The lens performs best on mirrorless cameras equipped with focus peaking, particularly when the photographer is positioned close to the subject with a high amount of background separation. On the positive side, the lens delivers a distinct, charming "miniature" tilt-shift effect, features a sturdy build quality, and offers precise control through its highly tensioned focus ring. Furthermore, stepping down to f/4 makes it notably easier to capture a sharp subject compared to previous models. However, the lens comes with several drawbacks, including a relatively heavy weight of 13.2 ounces, a premium price tag, and significant...

The Lensbaby Burnside 35 is a $499.99 fully manual f/2.8 special effects lens that is highly praised for its creative and artistic capabilities on both full-frame and crop-sensor cameras. Its standout features include the iconic, Petzval-inspired "swirly bokeh" that can be adjusted via the aperture ring, and a unique built-in mechanical vignette slider that eliminates the need for post-processing darkening effects. The reviewer highlights several pros, including its exceptionally sharp center focus, smooth fluid controls for manual adjustments, a strong and visually striking metal build, and an impressive 6-inch close-focusing distance that makes it versatile enough for macro photography. However, the lens does come with some notable cons that users should consider. It lacks electronic connections, requiring manual control for both focus and aperture adjustments, which creates a steep learning curve and makes it unsuitable for fast-paced action photography. The physical frame also darkens significantly when the vignette slider is fully closed. Additionally, despite its premium price tag and hefty metal frame, the package does not include a protective carrying case, which the reviewer considers a necessary risk-prevention tool for...

The Lensbaby Burnside is a characterful 35mm f/2.8 manual-focus wide-angle lens designed to create a distinct, swirling background bokeh with sharp image centres. Its standout mechanical feature is a gold-tipped lever that operates a secondary iris near the lens base. Rather than controlling exposure, this secondary aperture controls peripheral mechanical vignetting, allowing photographers to compress out-of-focus highlights, harden the bokeh, and draw visual focus directly to the middle of the frame. Built with solid construction, it features a smooth focus ring and responsive iris clicks, proving exceptionally effective for near-subject photography, portraits, and capturing creative atmospheric shots.

The Lensbaby Burnside 35 is a 35mm f/2.8 creative lens designed to produce Petzval-inspired "swirly bokeh" with a unique secondary effect slider for controlling center brightness and vignetting. Suited for street and portrait photography, it allows for in-camera adjustments of up to four levels of dramatic vignette, enhancing subject focus. DPReview Conversely, the review notes that the secondary slider offers limited control over the actual swirl and bokeh, primarily affecting vignette intensity. Furthermore, as a manual-focus lens lacking electronic connections, it requires a slower, more deliberate shooting experience compared to modern autofocus lenses.

The Lensbaby Burnside 35 is a solidly constructed, all-metal 35mm manual lens designed for both full-frame and crop-sensor cameras. Priced at $499.95 USD, it differentiates itself from other creative lenses by offering a wider 35mm focal length and a unique dual-aperture system. The primary 6-bladed aperture controls exposure and depth of field, while a secondary 8-bladed internal aperture—operated by a brass-colored slider on the side—allows photographers to actively adjust the amount of edge detail, Petzval-style swirly bokeh, and dark vignetting. The primary pros highlighted in the review include its highly precise, robust build quality that echoes the premium Velvet series, alongside an incredibly short 6-inch minimum focusing distance that excels at environmental, close-up photography. The lens delivers sharp center focus even when shot wide open at f/2.8, and the cinematic color quality combined with the adjustable vignette adds a distinct, creative pop to images. On the downside, the cons focus heavily on the difficulties of fully manual operations; focusing through the viewfinder becomes highly problematic at smaller apertures because the lens darkens significantly, often forcing users to rely on Live...

The PCMag review highlights the Lensbaby Burnside 35 as a solidly built, 35mm f/2.8 Petzval-style lens designed for artistic, manual-focus photography. Its key features include an anodized aluminum design, wide-angle field of view, and a specialized dual aperture slider that allows for in-camera variable vignetting and customizable swirled bokeh effects. However, the review cites the $499.95 price tag as high for a specialty tool, noting the lens offers a very niche, completely manual experience that won't appeal to all photographers. The lens requires keeping subjects centered to avoid extreme edge distortion, making it a stylistic, rather than general-purpose, option.

The PPA review highlights the Lensbaby Burnside 35 as an all-metal 35mm f/2.8 lens that blends 19th-century Petzval optics with modern controls, providing high central sharpness, contrast, and distinct swirly bokeh. A key pro is the dual-aperture system, which allows for independent adjustment of vignetting and edge brightness, enhancing creative control over the scene. PPA | Professional The reviewer notes as cons that the lens requires specific, close-up shooting conditions against textured backgrounds to maximize the bokeh effect. Furthermore, compared to the tighter Lensbaby Twist 60, the Burnside 35 produces a more subtle, understated swirl, which may not satisfy users seeking dramatic, high-intensity distortions.