Venus Optics

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Anhui ChangGeng Optics & Technology Company, Limited
legal form
founding 2013
Seat Hefei
management Dayong Li
Number of employees 131 (2019)
Branch Photography and film
Website www.venuslens.net

Laowa-15 mm f / 4-1: 1- Wide - macro lens

Venus Optics (Anhui ChangGeng Optics Technology Co., Ltd.) is a Chinese manufacturer of special interchangeable photographic lenses that is developing new concepts in the areas of (ultra) macro lenses and (super) wide angle lenses . The company's management and production site is in Hefei in Anhui Province . Sales and marketing are located in Hong Kong and the United States of America .

Foundation and idea

The company was launched in 2013. The founder, managing director and chief developer is Dayong Li, an optoelectronics engineer who graduated from Beijing Technical University .

Venus Optics develops and manufactures innovative, partly novel photographic lenses under the Laowa brand (in German: 'old frog').

Lenses

Low-distortion Laowa 9 mm super wide-angle lens f / 2.8 for APS-C and MFT in a particularly compact design (here: Fujifilm-X bayonet )
Laowa 15 mm wide angle 1: 1 macro lens f / 4 for full format with additional shift function (here: Nikon F bayonet ; shift function fully extended)
60 mm macro lens f / 2.8 for full format (here: Canon EF bayonet ) with a maximum image ratio of 2: 1. The picture shows the lens in the infinite position. The entire lens group is shifted for distance and close-up adjustment.
Laowa 25 mm magnifying lens f / 2.8 for full format with a particularly large working distance (here: Canon EF bayonet)
Laowa fisheye lens 4mm f / 2.8 for MFT

Innovations

In 2015, Venus Optics introduced its first product, the 60 mm f / 2.8 2x Ultra Macro, the world's first macro lens that offers a maximum image ratio of 2: 1 and can still be focused to infinity. In the same year, the 15 mm f / 4 Wide Angle Macro was introduced, a 1: 1 macro lens with an image angle of 110 ° that is unmatched in this area. It allows the imaging of small objects including their surroundings, which is almost impossible with macro lenses with conventional focal lengths due to the small depth of field . Due to the short focal length, a relatively large depth of field can be achieved with a small aperture, or objects that are not in the immediate focus area can still be easily recognized, which enables unusual recordings. The lens was also equipped with a shift function for landscape format. Another new lens concept is the tubular 24 mm f / 14 2x macro lens, with which macro shots are possible from a large distance, under tight spatial conditions around the object, and even shots in liquids.

In 2018, Venus Optics introduced a magnifying lens with a maximum image ratio of 5: 1. The selection of lenses in this niche area is very limited. The Laowa loupe lens offers a large working distance similar to the older Canon 65 mm MP-E f / 2.8, but is characterized by a much more compact design and about 45% weight saving.

Unique features of the Laowa (super) wide-angle lenses are - each weighted differently in the portfolio - very low distortion ("Zero-D" for 'zero distortion') even with very small focal lengths, high speed and a particularly compact design. In 2017, for example, the 15 mm f / 2.0 Zero-D, the world's most powerful super wide-angle lens for full-frame cameras, was introduced. At the beginning of 2020, Venus introduced a low-distortion, compact 12 mm cine lens with a close -up focus of 18 cm.

Table: Laowa lenses (as of July 2020)
Focal length [mm] Light intensity Sensor format Focal length 35 mm equivalent [mm] designation Launch Unique selling proposition (s) at the time of market launch
4th f / 2.8 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) 8th Fisheye MFT 2019 Smallest available focal length (210 ° angle of view ) in a compact fisheye lens for the MFT camera system . The very light construction makes it suitable for drone photography
7.5 f / 2 MFT 15th MFT 2017 The combination of high light intensity and rectilinear ( gnomonic ) imaging in the super wide-angle range for the MFT format is unique . The lens is also available in an ultralight version for drone photography.
7.5 t / 2.1 MFT Cine 15th MFT 2020 Cine lens . Angle of view 110 °.
9 f / 2.8 APS-C 13.5 Zero-D 2018 The combination of high light intensity and rectilinear (gnomonic) imaging in the super wide-angle range for the APS-C format is unique. Ultra compact design. Low focus limit (12 cm). The lens is also available in an MFT version.
9 t / 2.9 APS-C 13.5 Zero-D Cine 2020 Rectilinear (gnomonic) imaging cine lens . 113 ° angle of view.
9 f / 5.6 Full format 9 FF RL 2020 The world's first 9 mm lens with rectilinear (gnomonic) imaging for 35mm format. Close focus limit 12 cm.
10-18 f / 4.5-5.6 Full format 10-18 zoom 2018 Largest zoom factor in the super wide angle range for full format cameras. Compact design.
12 f / 2.8 Full format 12 Zero-D 2016 The combination of high light intensity and rectilinear (gnomonic) imaging in the super wide-angle range for full-frame cameras is unique
12 t / 2.9 Full format 12 Zero-D Cine 2020 Currently the most extreme wide-angle cine lens for full format and VistaVision with an image angle of 122 °. Low distortion. Available for Arri P, Canon EF and Sony E mounts. Compact design.
15th f / 2 Full format 15th Zero-D 2017 The brightest wide-angle lens in this focal length class for full-frame cameras. Low distortion. Low focus limit.
15th t / 2.1 Full format 15th Zero-D Cine 2020 Rectilinear (gnomonic) imaging cine lens . Angle of view 110 °. Close focus limit 15 cm.
15th f / 4 Full format 15th Wide angle macro 2015 The small focal length in the macro range , which allows the surroundings of the objects to be mapped, is unique . Integrated shift function for landscape format recordings. (For physical reasons, the short focal length is accompanied by a relatively short working distance .)
17th f / 1.8 MFT 34 Prime 2019 Unique features are the compact dimensions and the low weight (172 g) in connection with the relatively high light intensity. For this reason, this lens is also suitable for drone photography. Low focus limit (15 cm).
17th f / 4 Fujifilm-G ( medium format ) 13.5 Ultra-wide GFX Zero-D 2019 Smallest available focal length ( angle of view 113 °) for the Fujifilm G bayonet.
24 f / 14 Full format 24 2x macro probe 2018 New lens concept. Allows the photographer to be at a great distance from the object. Recordings in aqueous liquids are possible.
25th f / 2.8 Full format 25th 2.5-5x Ultra Macro 2018 The compact and lightweight construction for a magnifying lens with a relatively large working distance (40-45 mm) is unique .
60 f / 2.8 Full format 60 2x Ultra Macro 2015 First lens introduced by Venus Optics. The world's first macro lens with a maximum image ratio of 2: 1 that can also be focused indefinitely.
65 f / 2.8 APS-C 97.5 2x Ultra Macro APO 2020 Compact and lightweight APS-C version of the 100 mm 2x Ultra Macro APO f / 2.8. Maximum reproduction ratio 2: 1; can also be focused on infinity.
100 f / 2.8 Full format 100 2x Ultra Macro APO 2019 The second lens in the world after the Laowa 60 mm f / 2.8 Ultra Macro 2: 1 with a maximum image ratio of 2: 1 and simultaneous adjustment to infinity. Minimal chromatic aberration. First Venus Optics lens with an aperture motor for automatic aperture and EXIF transmission in Canon cameras. The variant with a Nikon connection has an aperture ring with aperture coupling
105 f / 2 Full format 105 Smooth Trans Focus (STF) 2016 Built-in apodization element for creative imaging photography. The lens creates a gentle bokeh when the object is in focus

Laowa lenses are available to match various lens bayonet connections and can be mounted on other systems (such as APS-C cameras) with lens adapters .

Disadvantages of manual lenses

The Laowa lenses available today are - with a few exceptions, cf. 100 mm f / 2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO - purely manually controlled, so they offer neither autofocus (AF) nor image stabilization (OIS), which is usually the case in both (super) wide-angle and (ultra) macro areas. only plays a subordinate role. Camera-controlled automatic focus bracketing , for example to take a series of photos for focus stacking , is not possible with manual lenses due to the lack of an AF motor.

Furthermore, there is no spring shutter function available, which, depending on the light conditions , can lead to a darkening of the viewfinder image with a small aperture setting in single-lens reflex cameras . Cameras with an electronic viewfinder can compensate for the loss of light within certain limits.

In digital camera systems, no metadata is transferred from purely manual lenses to the camera housing, so that these cannot be called up in the image files, such as data in the standardized Exchangeable Image File Format (EXIF). Therefore, it is not possible for the camera housing or the subsequent image processing to automatically compensate for positional and imaging errors in the images, such as in relation to distortion , vignetting , lateral color errors or the diffraction limitation depending on the f-number . As a result, these imaging errors may have to be corrected manually.

Venus Optics does not rule out the future development of further lenses with electronic functions.

Individual evidence

  1. Venus Optics - Our Story , accessed October 11, 2019.
  2. Lars Theiss: Wide-angle fixed focal lengths , seven super wide- angles for full format from Irix, Laowa, Samyang, Voigtländer and Zeiss , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  3. ^ A b John Riley: Laowa 105mm f / 2 T3.2 Smooth Trans Focus Lens Review , ephotozine, accessed October 14, 2019.
  4. Damien Demolder: Hands-on with the new Laowa lens collection , DPReview, Slide 21 (Laowa 100 mm f / 2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO), accessed on October 13, 2019.
  5. Jakub Han: The Brain Behind Laowa Lenses Interviewed - Dayong Li , Cinema 5D, accessed October 11, 2019.
  6. Bastian Kratzke: The Man behind the Lens: Dayong Li , Phillipreeve.net, accessed on October 11, 2019.
  7. Dylan Goldby: Interview with Lens Designer Dayong Li , Fujilove Magazine, accessed October 11, 2019.
  8. a b c Keith Cooper: Venus Optics interview , Northlight Images, accessed October 11, 2019.
  9. Mark Banas: From another planet: Venus LAOWA 15mm F4 Wide Angle Macro quick review , DPRreview, accessed October 14, 2019.
  10. a b c Lars Theiss: Laowa lenses available in Germany , accessed on October 13, 2019.
  11. The Laowa 24mm f / 14 2x Macro Lens is Super Weird… So Awesome. In: PetaPixel.com. September 23, 2016, accessed October 12, 2019 .
  12. Werner Pluta: Venus Optics: Chinese manufacturer introduces lenses with a giant tube. In: golem.de. August 3, 2018, accessed October 12, 2019 .
  13. Lars Theiss: Extreme "macro zoom": Laowa 2.8 / 25 mm 2.5-5x (updated) for full format , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  14. a b Valentin Gutekunst: Laowa 25 mm ultra macro lens , Macro-Treff, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  15. a b Laowa brings new wide-angle highlights , FOTOWwirtschaft, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  16. a b Christoph Jehle: Laowa 12 mm t / 2.9 Zero-D Cine - the first of a new series , fotointern.ch, January 14, 2020, accessed on January 18, 2020.
  17. ^ Company website
  18. Lars Theiss: Circular illustration: Laowa 2.8 / 4 mm Circular Fisheye for MFT - small and very light , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  19. Lars Theiss: Super wide angle for MFT: Laowa C-Dreamer 2 / 7.5 mm - also as a "flight model" , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 14, 2019.
  20. Klaus Schroiff: Laowa 9 mm f / 2.8 Zero-D - Review / Test Report , Optical Limits, accessed on October 13, 2019.
  21. Lars Theiss: Laowa record wide angle: 2.8 / 9 mm for APS-C , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 14, 2019.
  22. Mark Göpferich: Laowa 9mm f / 5.6: World's first 9mm without fisheye effect presented , Photografix-Magazin, July 1, 2020, accessed on July 19, 2020
  23. Photographie.de, Laowa lenses for Canon and Nikon , accessed on October 13, 2019.
  24. Fast ultra-wide angle Laowa 12 mm F / 2.8 Zero-D approaching , Photoscala, accessed on October 14, 2019.
  25. Laowa 17mm f / 1.8 for MFT ProfiFoto, October 28, 2019, accessed November 25, 2019.
  26. Lars Theiss: Super wide angle for Fuji G: Laowa 4/17 mm Zero-D , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 14, 2019.
  27. Photographie.de, Laowa 14/24 mm Probe , accessed on October 13, 2019.
  28. Lars Theiss: Laowa 2.8 / 100 mm 2: 1 Ultra Macro for double magnification , fotoMagazin, accessed on October 14, 2019.

Web links

Commons : Venus Laowa Lenses  - Collection of Images, Videos, and Audio Files