B&H has the Venus Optics Laowa 12mm T2.9 Zero-D Cine Lens on sale for $1,199 USD which is a saving of $300 USD. It is available in Canon EF, Sony E, Leica L, canon Rf or PL mounts.
The Venus Optics Laowa 12mm T2.9 Zero-D Cine Lens is on sale for $1,199 USD which is a saving of $300 USD. It is available in Canon EF, Sony E, Leica L, canon Rf or PL mounts.
I reviewed this lens on the site quite a while ago and you can see that here.
Laowa has a reputation for making unique and unusual lenses, and the 12mm t/2.9 Zero-D Cine Lens follows in those footsteps. I like how Laowa has continued to walk their own path and not just make the same lenses everyone else is making.
Key features
- Full Frame / Vista Vision coverage
- Close to zero distortion
- 122 degrees FoV
- Super Compact
- Step-up to 114mm for matte box installation
Rehoused Stills Lens
The 12mm t/2.9 Zero-D Cine is based on the same optics used in Laowa’s regular 12mm f/3 Zero-D lens. Essentially, like a lot of affordable cine lenses, it is a re-housed stills lens.
It is very common these days for companies to turn stills lenses into cine lenses by rehousing them. They do this primarily to keep costs down so you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg to buy one.
Despite being a re-housing of a stills lens, the cine version is only $500 USD more than the standard lens.
The lens features standard 0.8 mod gears on both aperture and focusing rings, as well as an extended 270° smooth focus throw
A 114mm step-ring is included in the package to expand the front diameter to fit with industry sized matte box.
What you clearly need to remember is there isn’t a really easy way of attaching any type of filter to the front of this lens, so you will need to use a matte box if you are using it on a camera that doesn’t have built-in ND.
While the build quality could be a little better, I’m not going to complain given its low price.
Yes, it is a re-housed stills lens, but that really shouldn’t deter you from purchasing.
The 12mm t/2.9 Zero-D Cine offers outstanding bang for your buck, and if you are in the market for a proper cine ultra wide angle lens, it is certainly worth taking a long hard look at.
