Conclusion

Some may look at the Lomography Neptune Convertible Art Lens System and believe it to be somewhat of a gimmick - that’s especially true if you concentrate on the “bokeh effects” that are part of it. 

However, if you look beyond that, what you’re getting for your money are three focal length lenses which take up considerably less room than normal lenses - that’s especially true if you’re using this with a full-frame camera. A 50mm f/2.8 lens would be much bigger than what we have here, they’re even smaller than Micro Four Thirds lenses. 

It’s not just a size advantage you gain either, the lenses are actually capable of producing some very nice shots. The 50mm f/2.8 is the sharpest, but the other two lenses are also good, yielding impressive results in a variety of situations. You need to be careful when shooting in bright conditions if you want to avoid flare - but fans of Lomography may see this kind of optical “fault” as charming, rather than problematic. 

Using the lenses is relatively straightforward, but they are of course not as easy as using autofocus lenses. Working with manual focus only takes time to get used to, and is a much slower process than you may prefer - if you’re shooting a lot of fast moving subjects, they’re probably not going to be for you, but if you’re generally shooting still subjects, and you’ve got the patience, then manual focus is less of a problem. 

It will be interesting to see how popular these lenses turn out to be. Having already gauged public interest via the Kickstarter page, it would seem that there is a decent level of demand for the system. Extra lenses may be produced for it - how that will work with the existing lens base remains to be seen, but it’s certainly an interesting proposition. 

Overall, the Neptune Convertible Art Lens System is a very good performer, a unique and interesting concept, and a good space saver - it’s quite a costly investment, but if you were to compare this system to the price of purchasing three prime optics, you may consider it good value for money. Certainly worth a look for fans of the Lomography brand, or for those looking for something a little “quirky”. 

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	4
Features	4
Ease-of-use	3.5
Image quality	4
Value for money	3.5