Review: The Lomography New Jupiter 3+ Art Lens

When Lomography recently released the latest lens to join their line-up, they used these words to describe it: “bold, beautiful, and brimming-with-bokeh”.

The Lomography New Jupiter 3+ now sits proudly among Lomography’s other much-loved Russian lenses, including the Petzval 85mm and 58mm lenses. Based on the iconic Jupiter lens from eras gone by, this new and resurrected version still stays true to its heritage, containing solid chrome-plated brass and Russian glass optics.

Although it’s been over half a century since the original Jupiter 3 lens was released, the Jupiter 3+ was actually manufactured by the expert technicians at the exact same Zenit factory in Russia as the original lens.

The latest version of the lens also remains true to its original through many of its features, including its ability to capture “crisp sharpness, smooth, natural colors and lush, dreamy bokeh”. However Lomography also promise that Jupiter 3+ transcends its original version in many ways, particularly with its modified 0.7m closest focusing distance, which is an improvement from 1m on the original lens.

The New Jupiter 3+ Art Lens is directly compatible with L39 and M mount rangefinder and mirrorless digital cameras, as well as many more using adapter mounts. Throw in added durability thanks to its chrome-plated solid brass construction, and you’ve got yourself a camera which is suitable for a wide range of conditions.

The lens also contains an f/1.5 maximum aperture, providing an extremely shallow depth of field and great performance in low-light situations. Lomography further explains: “Subjects will pop out from the frame while the defocused areas will be drenched in beautiful bokeh”.

The New Jupiter 3+ Art Lens contains a Field of view of 46 degrees, as well as a minimum image circle of 44mm.

So far, the lens has been met with much positivity, with many feeling very impressed by Lomography’s latest art lens addition.

Lomography have produced the lens in small batches, offering them on a limited ‘first-come, first-serve’ basis for $649 each. They are available on the Lomography website.