Laowa 11mm f/4.5 FF RL Lens
Product Gallery
Product Overview
Laowa 11mm f/4.5 FF RL is an ultra-wide angle prime lens for full-frame cameras. Like the 9mm f/5.6 and 14mm f/4 unveiled around the same time, this lens prioritizes weight and size, making it one of the most portable rectilinear full-frame ultra-wide lenses.
The 11mm f/4.5 FF RL offers a dramatic 126 degrees of angle of view, significantly wider than that at 16mm, which many with wide-angle zooms have access to.
Like the aforementioned stablemates, this 11mm lens uses a 5-bladed aperture that produces gorgeous sun stars. Another advantage of this lens is that ability to take screw-on filters, which is uncommon at this focal length for full frame.
The Laowa 11mm f/4.5 FF RL is available for all major camera mounts, including the Leica M-mount (which has a $100 premium).
Ratings
What we found**
Pros
- Relatively wide aperture
- Relatively compact
- Very good optics
- No distortion
Cons
- Non-removable hood makes attaching a screw-in filter hard
What external reviewers found***
External score 70% (not directly comparable across industries)
Pros
- Very good optical performance
- Compact and compact
- Very compact and light (could easily be used on a gimbal)
- Record breaking focal length
Cons
- No fluorine coating
- Lateral CA and coma
- Distorsion / CA / Vignetting / Flare / Background Blur / Bokeh Balls / Color rendition
Price Comparison
Specifications
| Others | M-mount | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Construction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aperture Blades | 5 aperture blades | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colors | Black | Black or Silver | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Form Factor | Manual focus ultra-wide-angle prime lens | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Image Size | Full-frame | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lens Mount | Sony E-mount, Nikon Z-mount, Leica L-mount, Leica M-mount, Canon RF-mount | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Optical Formula | Elements | 14 elements | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Optical Formula | Groups | 10 groups | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dimensions | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Filter Diameter | 62 mm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Size | Diameter | 63.5 mm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Size | Length | 58 mm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 254 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Function | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Angle Of View | 126° | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aperture | F/4.5 ~ f/22 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Focal Length | 11 mm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Max Magnification | 1:10 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Min Focus Distance | 19 cm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Production | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Debut | 2020-08 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Made In | China | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Launch Comparison
Clear List
3rd-Party Review Videos
External Reviews
phillipreeve[1]
Reviewer score 75%The Laowa 11mm 4.5 shows some wavy distortion that is easily noticeable with straight lines running through the frame. Laowa does provide a correction profile but towards the corners it isn't doing a great job. The Laowa 9mm 5.6 offers a record breaking focal length and on top of that the optical performance pleasantly surprised us.
Find the original article here.
Pros
- Record breaking focal length
- Compact and compact
- Very good optical performance
Cons
- Lateral CA and coma
- No fluorine coating
sonyalpha[2]
Reviewer score 64%The Laowa 11mm F4.5 (699$/859 euros) is good ultra wide lens. Thanks to its relatively slow aperture it remains compact and light. It offers very good shaprness in the centre but sharpness progressively decrease as you go to the borders and is a bit disappointing in the corners even with aperture closed down. Distorsion is small but vignetting is very important. The lens is quite sensitive to flare. Standard (thin) 62mm filter can be used.
Find the original article here.
Pros
- Very low distorsion, images are tack sharp in the centre, but corners are always a bit soft Below cars images courtesy of Other samples images by me
- Very compact and light (could easily be used on a gimbal)
Cons
- Distorsion / CA / Vignetting / Flare / Background Blur / Bokeh Balls / Color rendition
User Reviews
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References
The MSRP provided on this page may not apply to all regions equally. For the current price, please refer to the Price Comparison section.
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These key takeaways ("pros" and "cons") and summaries are identified from third-party reviews. They may differ from the original texts.
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