Venus Optics unveils Laowa 90mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO lens

Venus Optics has announced the new Laowa 90m f/2.8 2x Ultra-Macro APO lens, which is specially designed for full-frame mirrorless cameras.

It becomes the eighth Laowa 2:1 magnification macro lens and arrives seven months after the launch of the Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Macro APO.

It also comes three years after Venus Optics launched its award-winning 100mm f/2.8 2X Ultra Macro APO lens.

The new 90mm lens has inherited the 2:1 magnification to infinity ability and APO design, but is smaller in size than the 100mm.

The 100mm APO measures Φ72mm×125mm (in Canon EF and Nikon F mounts) and Φ72mm×155mm (in Canon R, Nikon Z & Sony FE), whilst the 90mm APO is Φ74mm×12omm (in Canon RF, Nikon Z, Sony E and L mounts).

It is said to provide mirrorless systems with ‘superb optical performance and delivers outstanding sharpness.’

Read our Best Macro Lenses for Mirrorless and DSLRs Buyer’s Guide

A picture shot with the new Laowa 90mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO lens. © John Hanson

2x magnification

This ultra-macro lens can reproduce 2:1 magnification of life-size images, showing extensive details of the object in high resolution.

It has a minimum focusing distance of 20.5cm (approx. 8.07 inches).

The lens magnification ranges from 0.1X to 2X, allowing photographers to capture objects of different sizes conveniently without changing the lens.

Venus Optics claims, ‘You can excel in a wide range of settings with this lens from macro to portrait photography.’

Apochromat APO design

The lens is engineered with three extra-low dispersion elements, which are designed to suppress longitudinal and lateral chromatic aberration across in-focus and out-of-focus areas.

Purple fringing and ghosting are controlled to the minimum throughout the aperture range.

The APO characteristic is favourable to macro photography because it can reduce the post-editing time substantially and improve image quality.

Designed for mirrorless cameras

The optical formula is designed based on the mirrorless system and Venus Optics says, ‘the shorter flange distance not only improves the image sharpness but also makes the lens more compact and portable.’

Thus the lens is said to be more balanced between the size of the lens and the mirrorless camera.

This lens weighs 619g with the dimensions of Ø74x120mm, making it one of the smallest options in the market compared to the equivalent lenses.

An image shot with the Laowa 90mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO lens. © Micael Widell

Sharpness & bokeh

The lens is said to deliver, ‘an excellent level of image quality, sharpness is highly impressive at different magnifications and is maintained from corner to corner. It is crucial for macro photography when things are captured in extreme detail and in a hit-or-miss situation.’

With 13 aperture blades, the lens can create pleasing and creamy bokeh in round shapes.