According to Photo Rumors, Venus Optics is going to announce a trio of f/0.95 prime lenses for mirrorless mounts, including EF-M and RF.
Venus Optics Laowa Argus 35mm f/0.95 mirrorless lens (full-frame):
- Focal length: 35mm
- Format: full frame
- Aperture: f/0.95 – f/16
- Viewing angle: 63.4 °
- Optical design: 14 lenses in 9 groups, including 1 aspherical, 1 ED, and 4 high refractive elements
- Aperture: 15 blades
- Minimum focusing distance: 50 cm
- Maximum magnification: 0.1x
- Filter thread diameter: 72 mm
- Size: 76.8 x 103mm
- Weight: 755g
- Mounts: Sony E, Nikon Z, Canon RF
- Price: RMB 6,000 (approx. $910)
Specifications for the Venus Optics Laowa Argus 33mm f/0.95 mirrorless lens (APS-C)
- Focal length: 33mm
- Format: APS-C
- Aperture range: f/0.95 – f/16
- Viewing angle: 46.2°
- Optical design: 14 elements in 9 groups, including 1 aspherical, 1 ED, and 3 high refractive elements
- Aperture: 9 blades
- Minimum focusing distance: 35 cm
- Maximum magnification: 0.125x
- Filter thread diameter: 62 mm
- Size: 71.5 x 83mm
- Weight: 590g
- Mounts: Sony E, Fujifilm X, Nikon Z, Canon EF-M
- Price: RMB 3,500 (approx. $530).
Specifications for the Venus Optics Laowa Argus 25mm f/0.95 mirrorless lens (MFT):
- Focal length: 25mm
- Format: Micro Four Thirds
- Aperture range: f / 0.95 … f / 16
- Viewing angle: 46.7 °
- Optical design: 14 elements in 8 groups including 1 aspherical, 1 ED and 3 high refractive index
- Aperture: 9 blades
- Minimum focusing distance: 25cm
- Maximum magnification: 0.17x
- Filter thread diameter: Ø62 mm
- Size: Ø71 x 86mm
- Weight: 570g
- Price – 3500 RMB (approx. $ 530)
The APS-C lens is for the EF-M mount.
There are use cases for them. General walking around use is not one, at least not for me - but it is for some people who enjoy MF.
I have a MF only fisheye and now a MF only 14mm lens which I use for stationary things, like night skies and fireworks shows. Also have a MF only tilt-shift, which all are but remain useful for their purpose.
(Some) Video guys like it too...no risk of the camera deciding to track another subject and pull a new focus for you.
I kinda want one of these for my M50 just to say I have a < f/1 lens. Probably not much use for it otherwise though.
-Brian
The image quality is gonna be so very soft, if it's anything like other budget-y 0.95 lenses, like the Mitakon RF 50/0.95
With my very POOR eyesight, I used to say exactly this very same thing.
But of late, with a couple of mirrorless camera systems I"ve been playing with...especially with regard to adapting vintage lenses, I've come to find that the modern mirrorless cameras with their focus assist capabilities in the viewfinders really make it pretty easy to manual focus, even for someone like myself that wears coke bottles for glasses.
It really isn't that bad. I mean, sure, if you are only shooting fast moving things...sports, race cars, etc.... you need a quick autofocus lens to get a higher hit rate.
But if you have any time at all to set up your shots, and be thoughtful on composition, then a manual lens is not that much more effort to use.
And, more and more, I"m finding myself, setting my cameras up, for the most likely shots I"d take.
For example walking out the door I use the sunny 16 rule and set my aperture/ISO/SS accordingly to the light and how I want my depth of field.
After that I set my lens to my "walking around" focus length, from xyz feet to infinity.....if on a manual lens and when I see something to shoot I just pull the camera up and compose and shoot.
ON my auto cameras I have them all set to back button focus, so, I'd just use that to focus once at those "walking around" distances for shooting off the hip.....and only need to generally use the focus button for an exact focus from time to time.
I've found myself more and more using old tried and true film photography days' techniques.
And quite often, if you can preset your camera to this...you can take pictures faster than someone having to set focus, etc....
So, don't forgo manual completely....if nothing else, since often these manual lenses are cheaper, and often have some really interesting perspectives that would NEVER be made by Canon or the likes, give one or two a try and give yourself a new challenge to play with.
For instance, I seriously doubt that Canon will ever put out a RF 15mm 1:1 wide angle macro lens like Laowa did....but this is a FUN lens to shoot and only a few hundred dollars.
Definitely worth the price.
More and more too, I"m not considering clinical sharpness of a lens to be the end all/be all of a lens's worth....you can get some incredible shots with (often inexpensive) vintage lenses with adapters that are manual focus only.....
Just some of my ramblings.....
cayenne
These are 0.95 F-stop lenses. At 35mm focal length, F0.95 is very thin even for my R5 and its manual assit features. I do have a Sigma 1.4 and I use that F-stop only with autofocus.
I do shoot manually but with a better DOF. There is a big difference between an apparent DOF at 35mm F0.95 compared to 15mm.F4.
Frankly, I see no reason at all to spend for such lens, if not to shoot at F0.95. On the other hand, spending that money, for non-moving subject in order to shoot on a tripod, won't get much attraction.
Fact, the macro 24mm F14, the zero distortion F2 and the macro F4 are unique lenses. Because of that, I still believe that we do not have all the facts. Laowa seems to impress me every time they come up with something. F0.95 manual lens, won't cut it though. I would wait for more info, and I am actually excited.
If another mount is needed Laowa will probably ad a fifth mount to this lens.
But what is the big lens in the center of this picture?
Looks very different to all the other lenses by Laowa.
https://photorumors.com/2021/01/11/venus-optics-laowa-argus-f-0-95-lenses-specifications/
I just had a look at their shop where it is not listed. I found it on the Laowa cine homepage: a 25-100 T2.9