Wide prime goes on sale for Micro Four Thirds mount for use on Olympus and Panasonic mirrorless camera
The Laowa 9mm f/2.8 Zero-D has just been launched in MFT mount – allowing it to be used on Panasonic and Olympus Micro Four Thirds mirrorless cameras. This was one of a number of new lenses from the Chinese manufacturer Venus Optics that was announced at Photokina last year. The lens is already available in Fujifilm X, Sony E, DJI DL and Canon EOS-M fits.
Shown for the first time at the NAB broadcast trade show in Las Vegas, the compact lens has an effective 18mm focal length when used on an MFT body. The rectilinear wide-angle promises a near-zero distortion across the frame.
The manual-focus lens is made up of 15 elements in 10 groups – there are three extra-low dispersion elements and two aspherical elements in the construction.
Lens construction diagram of Laowa 9mm f/2.8 Zero-D
Specifications
Full-frame compatible: No Mounts:Canon EOS M, Fujifilm X, Sony E, MFT, DJI Effective focal length: 18mm (MFT) Image stabiliser: No Minimum focus distance: 12cm Angle of view: 100 degrees (MFT) Focusing: Manual Maximum aperture: f/2.8 Minimum aperture: f/22 Aperture blades: 7 Filter thread: 49mm Supplied accessories: Front and rear caps, lens hood Dimensions (dia x length): 60 x 53mm Weight: 210g
Sample images
Price and availability
The MFT mount Laowa 9mm f/2.8 Zero-D is on sale now for $499 / £485.
Originally used on Olympus and Panasonic mirrorless cameras, the Micro Four Thirds mount is also used on Blackmagic Design Pocket Cinema cameras, and will also be used on the forthcoming Sharp 8K camera.
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Chris George has worked on Digital Camera World since its launch in 2017. He has been writing about photography, mobile phones, video making and technology for over 30 years – and has edited numerous magazines including PhotoPlus, N-Photo, Digital Camera, Video Camera, and Professional Photography.
His first serious camera was the iconic Olympus OM10, with which he won the title of Young Photographer of the Year - long before the advent of autofocus and memory cards. Today he uses a Nikon D800, a Fujifilm X-T1, a Sony A7, and his iPhone 15 Pro Max.
He has written about technology for countless publications and websites including The Sunday Times Magazine, The Daily Telegraph, Dorling Kindersley, What Cellphone, T3 and Techradar.
