Category Archives: Manufacturers

Laowa, Nikon, Review, Sony E-mount

Review: Laowa AF 200mm 2.0 C-Dreamer – The Chinese Air Cutter

32 Comments

Introduction

laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer on Nikon Zf

Tele lenses with a huge entrance pupil are being called “Air Cutter” in China, which I think is quite a fitting description when looking at portrait pictures taken with them featuring that super thin depth of field. So far we have only seen 200mm 2.0 lenses from the Japanese manufacturers, but now Laowa decided to also offer a lens like this and even managed to make it the smallest and lightest lens in its class – making this Laowa AF 200mm 2.0 C-Dreamer the original Chinese Air Cutter. Let’s have a closer look!

Sample Images

laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0
laowa af c-dreamer aura 200mm 2.0 f/2.0 super tele fast 2025 sport reportage press review 42mp sony nikon z 61mp z6 z7 z8 z9 a1 a9 a9ii a1ii a7riv a7rv contrast sharpness bokeh vignetting a7v ac7 zf
Nikon Zf | Laowa 200mm 2.0 AF C-Dreamer | f/2.0

Continue reading Review: Laowa AF 200mm 2.0 C-Dreamer – The Chinese Air Cutter →

Accessory, Review, Viltrox

REVIEW: Viltrox Spark Z3 Flash

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Introduction

This is the full review of the flash.

Viltrox previously released the retro-styled manual flash Z1. Now they’ve followed up with a new flash that operates in both Manual and Auto (TTL) modes.

As I haven’t had enough time with the flash to make a full review, I’ve put together a preview with a handling section here. Later on, I’ll test the flash in the field and complete the review with my experience and sample images.

camera-icon2I tested these flashes on a Nikon Zf and a Nikon Zfc.
You can see this review as a YouTube video here!
Sample images in high resolution here.

Sample Images

Viltrox Spark Z3 flash | TTL | 60mm | f/16
Viltrox Spark Z3 flash | 35mm | f/2.8
Viltrox Spark Z3 flash | 35mm | f/16
Viltrox Spark Z3 flash | 35mm | f/1.8
Viltrox Spark Z3 flash | 60mm | f/16

Continue reading REVIEW: Viltrox Spark Z3 Flash →

Nikon, Nikon, Review

Review: Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G

3 Comments

Introduction

nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G via Monster LA-FE1 on Sony A7rII

The last f/1.8 prime Nikon released during the AF-S era was this Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G from 2015. This would have been a great 35mm equivalent for DX shooters, but it was simply too late to the party for that. Some reviewers claimed this 24mm 1.8G to be a better lens than the five years older Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.4G. But is that really the case? Let’s find out in this review.

Sample Images

nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Nikon Z6 | FTZ II | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/8.0
nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Nikon Z6 | FTZ II | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/1.8
nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Nikon Z6 | FTZ II | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/1.8
nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Sony A7III | Monster LA-FE1 | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/1.8
nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Sony A7III | Monster LA-FE1 | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/1.8
nikon af-s 24mm 1.8 g 1.8g n rf ed fx sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma z6 z7 z8 z9
Sony A7III | Monster LA-FE1 | Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G | f/16

Continue reading Review: Nikon AF-S 24mm 1.8G →

Review, Samyang, Sony E-mount

Review: Samyang Remaster Slim 21mm 3.5 | 28mm 3.5 | 32mm 2.8

9 Comments

Introduction

samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Samyang Remaster Sim 21mm 3.5 on Sony A7rII

Many lenses I review these days are simply “more of the same”: Another 35mm 2.0, 50mm 1.8 or 85mm 1.4 with minor differences compared to the competitors. This Samyang Remaster Slim kit is a different story though. It consists of a pancake sized AF module and three optical blocks (21mm 3.5, 28mm 3.5 and 32mm 2.8) that can be interchanged. The E-mount pancake lenses I reviewed so far all came with too many compromises and many didn’t even feature AF. Can this set of three be any good? Let’s find out in this review.

Sample Images

samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7III | Samyang Remaster Slim 21mm 3.5 AF | f/3.5
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 21mm 3.5 AF | f/8.0
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 21mm 3.5 AF | f/3.5
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 28mm 3.5 AF | f/4.5
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 28mm 3.5 AF | f/16
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 32mm 2.8 AF | f/8.0
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7III | Samyang Remaster Slim 32mm 2.8 AF | f/2.8
samyang remaster slim 28mm 21mm 3.5 32mm 2.8 sony 42mp 61mp a7rii a7riv a7riii a1 a9iii a7rv review resolution sharpness contrast bokeh vignetting coma sunstars z6 z7 z8 z9 lightweight pancake small tiny
Sony A7rII | Samyang Remaster Slim 32mm 2.8 AF | f/5.6

Continue reading Review: Samyang Remaster Slim 21mm 3.5 | 28mm 3.5 | 32mm 2.8 →

Review, Viltrox

REVIEW: Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro (APS-C)

8 Comments

Introduction

Viltrox has been on a roll lately, releasing new lenses at a rapid pace. One of their latest additions is the APS-C 56mm f/1.2 Pro, equivalent to an 85mm on full-frame—a classic and highly popular focal length for portrait photography. As the name suggests, this lens belongs to the Pro series, following the earlier 75mm f/1.2 and 27mm f/1.2 models. Both of those lenses delivered excellent performance on APS-C cameras, so I’m eager to see how this new release stacks up.

camera-icon2I tested the X mount version of this lens on a Fujifilm X-S10.
You can see this review as a YouTube video here!
Sample images in high resolution here.

Sample Images

Fujifilm X-S10 | Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro | f/1.2
Fujifilm X-S10 | Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro | f/1.2
Fujifilm X-S10 | Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro | f/1.2
Fujifilm X-S10 | Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro | f/1.2
Fujifilm X-S10 | Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro | f/1.2

Continue reading REVIEW: Viltrox 56mm f/1.2 Pro (APS-C) →