12 lenses of Christmas: Another world-first, as off-brand glass reigns supreme

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Ain't no party like a third-party party – the Laowas, 7Artisans and Voigtländers of the world ruled July

Teaser image for Laowa Zoom/Shift lens
(Image credit: Venus Optics)

For the 12 days of Christmas, we're revisiting the lenses we covered in each month of 2024. Today it's time to see what July brought…

Shift lenses are favorites with architectural photographers, enabling correction of perspective so that uprights stay upright instead of appearing to lean inwards towards the top. There are plenty on the market, often with a tilt facility to boot, enabling control over depth of field.

The Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 Zoom Shift CF for APS-C format cameras takes a different twist on things, omitting the tilt facility but adding a zoom facility. That’s ideal for shooting in built-up urban areas where you can’t ‘zoom with your feet’.

The Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 Zoom Shift CF for APS-C cameras delivers an effective zoom range of around 18-36mm, complete with a shift mechanism, ideal for architectural photography (Image credit: Venus Optics)

It was something of a month for the independents, with a variety of other announcements and launches. Ideally suited to frugal photographers who like shooting portraits, there was the launch of the 7Artisans AF 85mm f/1.8, with a price tag of just $299.

Then there was the Mitakon Speedmaster 80mm f/1.6 at $599, making it a very affordable option for medium format Fujifilm GFX cameras. That was followed up with the announcement of the AstrHori 120mm f/2.8 Macro, the company’s longest macro lens to date, while a pair of new Voigtländer Apo-Lanthar 50mm f/3.5 Type I/II were also launched in Leica M mount.

Two versions of the Voigtländer Apo-Lanthar 50mm f/3.5 were launched exclusively for Leica M mount, and both featuring a high-precision rangefinder interlocking mechanism (Image credit: Cosina)

Getting back to zoom rather than prime lenses, big news from Tamron was that it was launching the Tamron 28-300mm f/4-7.1 Di III VC VXD as a compact and lightweight superzoom lens for Sony full-frame E-mount cameras.

With a weight of 610g and measuring just 126mm (5 inches) in length, the Tamron 28-300mm f/4-7.1 Di III VC VXD is ideal for travel and walkabout photography (Image credit: Tamron)

July’s lens reviews started off with the Yongnuo YN11mm f/1.8S DA DSM WL, an interesting APS-C format prime for Sony E mount, complete with an optional remote controller.

While the Yongnuo is definitely a very budget-friendly lens, we also pushed the boat out with several up-market Zeiss lens reviews, including the Zeiss Batis 18mm f/2.8, Zeiss Loxia 21mm f/2.8 and Zeiss Loxia 35mm f/2 for Sony E-mount cameras, and the Zeiss Milvus 15mm f/2.8 and Zeiss Milvus 135mm f/2 for Canon and Nikon DSLRs.

(Image credit: Matthew Richards)

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See more from our 12 lenses of Christmas series, along with the best tilt-shift lenses and the best macro lenses.

Matthew Richards
Matthew Richards

Matthew Richards is a photographer and journalist who has spent years using and reviewing all manner of photo gear. He is Digital Camera World's principal lens reviewer – and has tested more primes and zooms than most people have had hot dinners! 

His expertise with equipment doesn’t end there, though. He is also an encyclopedia  when it comes to all manner of cameras, camera holsters and bags, flashguns, tripods and heads, printers, papers and inks, and just about anything imaging-related. 

In an earlier life he was a broadcast engineer at the BBC, as well as a former editor of PC Guide.