Lomography announces 'Experimental Lens Kit' for Micro Four Thirds

"Forget the Zeiss Otus 55mm F1.4, Sony Alpha 7R and RX10, Nikon 58mm F1.4 or the tiny Panasonic GM1"

You have begun to sound like Ken Rockwell, when he is agitated about something - important or not.

Hating what you don't like and having no polite reservation to express it in what should be a respectably objective site, is not cool.

Please maintain the class that has made dpreview respectable thus far.

Sorry and thanks!

These are cool. But we already have a semi-corrected lens for micro 4/3, the Olympus 15 mm lens cap. I'm tempted to try one. An old Leica Elmar or Summitar also works well at full aperture, but there you are stuck with 100 mm equivalent focal length.

It strikes me that the built in shutter would be useful for a film based homebrew camera.

I thought the Olympus Lens Cap Lens would be a fun toy, until I realized I got better images from my phone. Now it sits on the shelf. I won't buy this, but I like seeing lenses like this hit the market. It would make for a fun photo weekend or two.

Since each lens has a shutter, is it possible to know the latest serial numbers so to get the latest batch to avoid the chance of possible oil/dust issues, or better, can we start to complain so that Lomography will release soon a revised Exper610mental lens kit and the original gets discounted? :-)
Joking aside, I think these kind of glasses, like the Lensbaby Composer with double glass (as well as other product of the same brand), the old Spiratone Portragon 100mm, the adpted Pentax 110 lenses, or the lenscap glasses (?) and a thousand other non conventional optics, are pure fun.
Not for everyone, undoubtedly, and not for every occasion, but a timeslip in the past for those, old as me, who remember the excitement when the Polaroid or Kodak instant print came out of nothing, or the all those hours spent in the darkroom where everything was really dark, with that damned tiny yellow/green or red light and the manual dodges and burns done with metal wires, paper or bare hands. :-)

I'd maybe buy the fisheye separately, if available, since I'll probably neve get to shoot with a fisheye otherwise... It'd be interesting to fool around with. I know if I get the whole pack they'll just collect dust tho.

"hey certainly won't be for everyone; we suspect only a minority of photographers will see them as anything more than frivolous novelties,"

I have to disagree. I got a box full of 'frivolous novelties' in the form of vintage glass. I actually consider some of them as tools for very specific looks that would be a hassle to duplicate in post. (Some folks love it when I tell them a little bit about a particular lens I'm going to shoot them with).

Once in a while I need to escape from the purgatory of pixel perfect product photo shoots and just have some fun, man. (Frankly, as soon as I started shooting for cash, the fun was shelved).

One thing to consider is that using a lens for an effect (vs. post) puts more reliance on the photographer, and can revive ones aspirations to go out and take nice photos. $79 is about right for 3 pieces of glass, (I average $25 per unique vintage on eBay). I say go for it.

I'll hold off until I see a DXOMark evaluation. :)

I have done a quick first look on those lenses. I have to say I like them.
http://www.essl.de/wp/2013/10/21/lomography-experimental-lens-kit/

cheers,
dirk

I'm disappointed. This article has been posted six hours ago and no one complained about the "equivalent aperture" yet.

Most likely these lenses are so poorly grinded that they should be called "aspherical" :-)

This is the MFT year, or is beginning to be an important year for the MFT on bodies and lens. Well done Lomo. for a "plastic" lens will not be so cheap as we might think, for a little more we can get a well made and better materials single lens for MFT, I'm remember now the cheap Sigma's, but it's a valid option in the name of creativity.

It is interesting how Lomography is trying to reinvent itself for the digital age whe staying true to its roots.
First the Petzval lens which I thought was quite cool, now this.
I must say that like the writer of the article, I wonder about the long term interst of this kit. I would rather do dual exposure or add coloured filters with photoshop for example (if at all).

Still. We have to commend Lomo for bringing some truly alternative products to the market.
I am curious for their future releases? Petzval lenses for other mounts perhaps? A very cheap plastic technical camera? Etc.

As an aside, a fee months ago I bought the lomo horizon "perfekt", a repackaged classic russian panoramic camera; and also the 6x12 Belair with the 90mm russian belairgon lens. And shooting with these cameras has been a lot of fun so far with great results!

Impressive, very impressive! Immediatelly buying an E-M1 body only, and this multi lens set !!!

Interesting, fun, and inexpensive. What's not to like?

Sounds like a lot of fun for the money.

You can prob. get knock offs on ebay for $5... theyre all made in the same chinese factory.

If you can't put them on an iPhone they're useless.

"we suspect only a minority of photographers will see them as anything more than frivolous novelties, used once or twice then consigned to the closet or recycled on fleaBay. Even so, they can be fun to play with occasionally, if only to help refresh your way of looking at the world if your photography is getting stale."

That's a bit harsh, even uncalled for! People who buy them will use them, with the low price and 10% discount offer for 3 lenses that take filters and T mode you can hardly go wrong.
Lomography and "alternative" lenses have a strong following across the world and no I do not see many used lomography type lenses on fleabay.

Maybe these lenses aren't right for the typical dpreview demographic but hey photography doesn't revolve around dpreview...

absolute waste of money...