Laowa has officially added a new lens to its tilt-shift lineup. The new Laowa 35mm f2.8 Zero D Tilt Shift 0.5x Macro is the widest and most versatile tilt-shift lens Venus Optics has made. Complementing the well-known 50mm and 100mm tilt-shift lenses in their catalog, this new lens provides a significantly wider field of view for architectural and cityscape photographers who require excellent perspective control.
A Wide Angle Tilt-Shift (With Macro) For Modern Mirrorless Cameras
The Laowa 35mm f2.8 Zero D Tilt Shift lens is meant for photographers who want to control every line in the frame. Using the shift feature, you can easily captures tall buildings, wide interiors, and clean horizontals and verticals. The 35mm focal length allows for shooting subjects that you cannot easily accomplish the 50mm and 100mm versions. Unlike the other two tilt-shift models, this one includes Zero D optics, which is a great addition. I experienced this feature in two other Laowa shift lenses, and it’s definitely worth the hype around it.
The lens offers plus or minus 10 degrees of tilt and up to 12 mm of shift on full frame cameras. Medium format systems like the Fujifilm GFX and Hasselblad XCD also get the same tilt movement, plus 8 mm of shift, which is still generous for such a large sensor. This allows photographers to fix converging verticals in tall structures, keep straight lines for interior design work, or create miniature effects in city scenes (if this is still a thing). For those who shoot panoramic architecture or stitched cityscapes, the shift mechanism is even more useful. Horizontal shifts help multiple images line up well, resulting in cleaner blending. Panoramas can be made with less distortion and more usable detail, something regular wide lenses often struggle with.
Laowa has ensured that a variety of mirrorless mount cameras are supported, releasing this lens for Sony E, Nikon Z, Canon RF, Leica L, Fujifilm GFX, and Hasselblad XCD mounts. It’s not every manufacturer that makes tilt-shift lenses and even fewer that makes them for mirrorless cameras, so it’s great to see Laowa doing this. The existing 50mm and 100mm f2.8 tilt-shift models already opened up opportunities for mirrorless photographers, but with this 35mm launch Laowa has made architectural, interior, real estate, cityscape and outdoor space photography more accessible and affordable at USD 1249.
Zero D Optics and Tilt Capabilities
The Zero D line, comes with a promise of almost distortion-free imaging. Expect verticals to remain vertical, which is crucial for photographing buildings or interiors. The APO design can reduce color fringing, around high-contrast edges. You get angle of view of 87.5 degrees from this lens which uses 14 lens elements in 12 groups with 15 aperture blades. Like with the other two in its category, Laowa keeps macro features in this lens. The 0.5x magnification and a minimum focusing distance of 22.8 cm offers new creative options. Tilting the lens at close range can allow photographers to adjust the plane of focus in tabletop scenes, food setups, product arrangements, or artistic still life compositions. Traditionally you didn’t see this capability in tilt-shift lenses so it’s nice to see Laowa give you more bang for your buck.
It’s Not Bulbous!
When I saw the press release email, I honestly expected this lens to have a protruding front element and no screw-on filter options. So glad that this isn’t the case. The lens has a 77 mm filter thread, which is rare for tilt shift lenses because most require bulky adapters or square filter systems. You can easily mount ND or polarizing filters easily, making long exposure shots a lot faster. For added safety, the detachable Arca Swiss support foot allows the lens to be mounted securely to your tripod.
I’m Looking Forward To This Lens
Laowa continues to maintain their reputation for creating interesting lenses that are both affordable and also open up more opportunities for working photographers. Tilt shift lenses might still be a a niche category, but the demand for them has certainly not faded. Architectural and real estate shooters want straighter lines and more control over perspectives. Cityscape photographers want more accuracy in stitched panoramas. And product photographers want focus planes they can mould like clay. The Laowa 35mm f2.8 Zero D Tilt Shift 0.5x Macro arrives as their widest tilt shift option. It certainly helps cement the position of Laowa as one of the most ambitious third party lens makers of this era. Hoping we can get one of these lenses for review soon.
Images Taken With This Lens
All images seen here were supplied for use by our Venus Optics reps
