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Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' Review

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The Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' lens is an impressive ultra-wide lens that is sharp, compact, and well-crafted. It offers minimal distortion, sharp images, and a unique selling point with its wide aperture. Overall, it is a well-crafted lens that comes highly recommended.

The Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' lens is a winner in nearly all aspects. It offers sharp, distortion-free images and impressive build quality, making it highly recommended for both full-frame and APS-C cameras.

Pros
  • Minimal distortion
  • Sharp images
  • Well-crafted build quality
  • Impressive image quality on both full-frame and APS-C cameras
Cons
  • Issues with vignetting
  • Some flaring in certain lighting conditions
  • No autofocus

The lens delivers razor-sharp images with minimal chromatic aberration, even in the corners. It performs impressively on both full-frame and APS-C cameras, offering sharpness and lack of color fringing.

The Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' lens is a highly impressive ultra-wide lens that is designed for full-frame or APS-C digital SLR or mirrorless cameras with an adapter. The lens comes at a reasonable price for a full-frame 12mm lens with a wide maximum aperture of f/2.8. It is a corrected rectilinear lens, which means it offers minimal distortion and is ideal for architecture, indoor photography, and unique perspectives for portraits. The build quality of the lens is solid, with a metal body and a well-crafted feel. The lens does not have autofocus, but the manual focus is extremely smooth and precise.In terms of image quality, the lens delivers razor-sharp images with minimal chromatic aberration, even in the corners. It performs impressively on both full-frame and APS-C cameras, offering sharpness and lack of color fringing. The lens also allows for close focusing, opening up the potential for creative and fun close-up images. However, it does show some issues with vignetting and flaring, which are minor drawbacks.The Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' lens is a winner in most aspects, with its sharp, distortion-free images, and impressive build quality. Its only minor drawbacks are vignetting and issues with flaring, but overall, it is a well-crafted and highly enjoyable lens to use.

The Venus Optics 'Laowa' 12mm f/2.8 'Zero-D' lens is a well-crafted and highly enjoyable lens to use.

Source

This article is based on the review by

Christopher Frost

Christopher Frost

Christopher Frost is a YouTube channel dedicated to providing in-depth reviews and analyses of photography equipment, particularly lenses. Christopher Frost, the creator and host of the channel, is known for his thorough and detailed evaluations of various lenses from different manufacturers, including Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fujifilm, and others.  To learn more, please visit the channel here.

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