{"id":24669,"date":"2020-08-28T07:00:46","date_gmt":"2020-08-28T06:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/?p=24669"},"modified":"2026-03-24T13:08:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T12:08:37","slug":"review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Laowa 11mm 4.5 FF-RL"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Introduction<\/h1>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24888\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24888\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24888\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sony_A7rII.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sony_A7rII.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sony_A7rII-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sony_A7rII-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24888\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laowa 11mm 4.5 on Sony A7rII<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Laowa introduced 3 ultra wide angle lenses at roughly the same time in Summer 2020. This 11mm 4.5 FF-RL is in the one in the middle in terms of focal length and maximum aperture, but is it the goldilock&#8217;s lens in this set or should you rather stick to the record breaking 9mm lens or the low distortion 14mm lens? Let&#8217;s have a closer look!<\/p>\n<h1>Sample Images<\/h1>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24927\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24927\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24927\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_2.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_2-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24927\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25436\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25436\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25436\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_15.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_15.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_15-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_15-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25436\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25419\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25419\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25419\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_14.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_14.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_14-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_14-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25419\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25226\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25226\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25226\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_9.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_9.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_9-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_9-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25226\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25235\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25235\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25235\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_11.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_11.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_11-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_11-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25235\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><em>Most of the sample images in this review can be found in full resolution <a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/s\/aHsmQ8NSY6\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<h1>Disclosure<\/h1>\n<p>The Laowa 11mm 4.5 FF-RL was kindly provided free of charge by Venus Optics \/ Laowa for reviewing purpose for a few weeks.<\/p>\n<h1>Specifications \/ Version History<\/h1>\n<p>Apart from the Irix 11mm 4.0 I think this is the first 11mm prime lens and so far it comes for Sony E-mount, Leica-M mount and Nikon Z. I have a look at the E-mount version here which has the following specifications:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li>Diameter: 63.5 mm<\/li>\n<li>Field of view: 126\u00b0 (diagonally)<\/li>\n<li>Length: 58 mm<\/li>\n<li>Weight: 254g<\/li>\n<li>Filter Diameter: 62 mm<\/li>\n<li>Number of Aperture Blades: 5 (straight)<\/li>\n<li>Elements\/Groups: 14\/10<\/li>\n<li>Close Focusing Distance: 0.19 m<\/li>\n<li>Maximum Magnification: 1:10<\/li>\n<li>Mount: Sony-E<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>You can order this lens directly from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.venuslens.net\/product\/laowa-11mm-f-4-5-ff-rl\/ref\/57\/\">manufacturer&#8217;s homepage<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/342Hylf\">B&amp;H<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/33NIf1o\">amazon.de<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3FGh3Q8\">amazon.com<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/ebay.us\/ZIJy8E\">ebay.com<\/a> for <strong>$799<\/strong> (M-mount) and <strong>$699<\/strong> (E\/Z\/L-mount) (advertisement\/affiliate links)<\/em><\/p>\n<h1>Handling \/ Build Quality<\/h1>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24887\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24887\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24887\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_2.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_2-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24887\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laowa 11mm 4.5<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The lens looks and feels like it is an all metal construction, all the markings are engravend and filled with paint and the new laser engraved Laowa logo on the non removable hood looks pretty cool, too.<br \/>\nThe focus ring has perfect resistance and travels 120\u00b0 from the minimum focus distance (0.19 m) to infinity. The focus ring also features a focus tab.<br \/>\nThe aperture ring has full-stop click stops and travels ~80\u00b0 from f\/4.5 to f\/22.<br \/>\nI was a bit surprised that the click stops are not equidistant. This won&#8217;t bother the most of you, but it kinda spoils the whole picture.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24886\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24886\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24886\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Laowa_11mm_4.5-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24886\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Focus tab on Laowa 11mm 4.5<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The lens does not feature electronic contacts to communicate with your camera but if features a 62mm filter thread, making it the widest lens with a normal filter thread.<br \/>\nUnfortunately the non removable hood spoils the game a bit, as it makes attaching a screw-in filter (especially a polarizer) very hard and the usage of a generic filter system impossible (Laowa will offer a 100mm magnetic filter holder for this lens as was already the case for the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">9mm 5.6<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-10-18mm-4-5-5-6-fe-c-dreamer\/\">10-18mm 4.5-5.6<\/a>).<\/p>\n<h1>Vignetting<\/h1>\n<h3><strong>light falloff<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Because of the non removable hood we cannot get decent values on light fall off with our usual method. As we have seen in the past with these small wide lenses there also isn&#8217;t much improvement on stopping down.<br \/>\nWide open you get roughly 3.0 EV light falloff in the corners of the A7rII sensor.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>color cast<\/strong><\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25220\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25220\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25220\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_color_cast.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_color_cast.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_color_cast-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_color_cast-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25220\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Like with other small ultra wide angle lenses there is a slight color cast in the corners. It is similar to what we have seen with the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>You can check out my article <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/how-to-correcting-color-cast-in-lightroom\/\">How to: Correcting Color Cast in Lightroom<\/a> where I explain different methods to fix this.<\/p>\n<h1>Sharpness<\/h1>\n<h3>infinity (42mp Sony A7rII)<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-24925 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"1941\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2-124x300.jpg 124w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2-528x1280.jpg 528w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2-768x1863.jpg 768w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Sharpness_laowa_11mm_4.5_R2-633x1536.jpg 633w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Similar to the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a> there is a slight midzone dip at wider apertures visible. The corners look good from wide open, best across frame performance is reached around f\/8.0.<br \/>\nThe corners seem to show a bit more astigmatism and\/or coma compared to the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">9mm 5.6<\/a>, we will have a closer look in the coma section.<\/p>\n<p>The lens compares favourably to the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-10mm-5-6-e-hyper-wide-heliar\/\">Voigtlander 10mm 5.6 E<\/a>, another obvious competitor is the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-12mm-5-6-aspherical-ultra-wide-heliar\/\">Voigtlander 12mm 5.6 E III<\/a>, which I did not test personally and we only have 24mp sharpness charts from.<br \/>\nLooking at the review of the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-12mm-5-6-aspherical-ultra-wide-heliar\/\">12mm 5.6 III<\/a> this 11mm 4.5 looks like it performs similarly while being slightly wider and faster.<\/p>\n<h3>close (0.19m, 1:10)<\/h3>\n<p><div class=\"osc-res-tab tabbable   osc-tabs-left\"><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"nav osc-res-nav nav-tabs osc-tabs-left-ul\" id=\"oscitas-restabs-1-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-72301\"><li class=\"active\"><a href=\"#ert_pane1-0\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/4.5<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane1-1\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/5.6<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane1-2\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/8.0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"tab-content\" id=\"oscitas-restabcontent-1-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-72301\"><li class=\"tab-pane active\" id=\"ert_pane1-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25486 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_4.5.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_4.5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_4.5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_4.5-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane1-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25487 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_5.6.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_5.6.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_5.6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_5.6-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane1-2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25488 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_8.0.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_8.0.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_8.0-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/laowa_11mm_4.5_sharpness_close_8.0-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | 100% crops from center<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>A minimum focus distance of 0.19 m is good for an 11mm lens and an improvement over the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-10mm-5-6-e-hyper-wide-heliar\/\">Voigtlander 10mm 5.6<\/a> with 0.3 m and <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-12mm-5-6-aspherical-ultra-wide-heliar\/\">12mm 5.6 III<\/a> with 0.3 m as well.<br \/>\nThe performance in the center and also in the midframe is good, but the border and corner regions suffer due to astigmatism and field curvature.<br \/>\nThe <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a> focuses even closer and also has a flatter field at closer distances, but at the cost of increased distortion.<\/p>\n<h1>Flare resistance<\/h1>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25474\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25474\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25474\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_1.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_1-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25474\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As always evaluating flare is a complex matter since you can get any lens to look bad if you push it hard enough and a slight change of scenario can affect results a lot.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25476\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25476\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-25476 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_3.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_3-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_3-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25476\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The sample above is the worst I could create. With the sun close to the corner you can create a line of ghosts and rainbow artifacts.<\/p>\n<p>Many lenses look worst with the sun just outside the frame close to the corner and this one is no exception:<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25477\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25477\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25477\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_4.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_4-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_4-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25477\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A very slight change of framing will make this go away though. Very often you can shoot straight into the sun and only encounter little issues, if any at all:<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25475\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25475\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25475\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/ZY_50_0.95_M_flare_2-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25475\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The lens performs slightly better than the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a> here and slightly worse than the Voigtlander 10mm and 12mm ultra wide angle lenses.<\/p>\n<h1>Coma<\/h1>\n<p><div class=\"osc-res-tab tabbable   osc-tabs-left\"><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"nav osc-res-nav nav-tabs osc-tabs-left-ul\" id=\"oscitas-restabs-2-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-50337\"><li class=\"active\"><a href=\"#ert_pane2-0\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/4.5<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane2-1\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/5.6<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane2-2\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/8.0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"tab-content\" id=\"oscitas-restabcontent-2-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-50337\"><li class=\"tab-pane active\" id=\"ert_pane2-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25448 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_4.5.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_4.5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_4.5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_4.5-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane2-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25449 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_5.6.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_5.6.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_5.6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_5.6-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane2-2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25450 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_8.0.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_8.0.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_8.0-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Coma_8.0-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>100% crops from extreme corner, focused on corner<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>There is a bit of coma visible in the corners at maximum aperture, but it mostly goes away on stopping down to f\/5.6.<br \/>\nThe parameters do not make this Laowa 11mm 4.5 an obvious choice for astro photography, there are <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/best-astro-photography-lenses-for-the-sony-a7-series\/\">better options<\/a> available for this task.<\/p>\n<h1>Distortion<\/h1>\n<p><div class=\"osc-res-tab tabbable   osc-tabs-left\"><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"nav osc-res-nav nav-tabs osc-tabs-left-ul\" id=\"oscitas-restabs-3-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-98886\"><li class=\"active\"><a href=\"#ert_pane3-0\" data-toggle=\"tab\">uncorrected<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane3-1\" data-toggle=\"tab\">Laowa 11mm 4.5 profile<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane3-2\" data-toggle=\"tab\">Adobe 15mm 2.0 profile<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"tab-content\" id=\"oscitas-restabcontent-3-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-98886\"><li class=\"tab-pane active\" id=\"ert_pane3-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-25228\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane3-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25229 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_11mmprofile.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_11mmprofile.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_11mmprofile-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_11mmprofile-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane3-2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25230 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_15mmprofile.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_15mmprofile.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_15mmprofile-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_distortion_15mmprofile-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<em><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p>The Laowa 11mm 4.5 shows some wavy distortion that is easily noticeable with straight lines running through the frame.<br \/>\nLaowa does provide a correction profile but towards the corners it isn&#8217;t doing a great job. I tried some other profiles and &#8211; while not perfect &#8211; the one for the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/rolling-review-laowa-15mm-2-0-zero-d\/\">Laowa 15mm 2.0<\/a> does seem to do a pretty good job.<\/p>\n<h1>Sunstars<\/h1>\n<p><div class=\"osc-res-tab tabbable   osc-tabs-left\"><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"nav osc-res-nav nav-tabs osc-tabs-left-ul\" id=\"oscitas-restabs-4-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-54678\"><li class=\"active\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-0\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/4.5<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-1\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/5.6<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-2\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/8.0<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-3\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/11<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-4\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/16<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane4-5\" data-toggle=\"tab\">f\/22<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"tab-content\" id=\"oscitas-restabcontent-4-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-54678\"><li class=\"tab-pane active\" id=\"ert_pane4-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25451 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_4.5.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_4.5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_4.5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_4.5-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane4-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25452 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_5.6.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_5.6.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_5.6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_5.6-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane4-2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25453 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_8.0.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_8.0.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_8.0-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_8.0-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane4-3\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25454 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_11.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_11.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_11-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_11-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane4-4\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25455 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_16.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_16.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_16-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_16-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane4-5\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25456 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_22.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_22.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_22-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_Sunstars_22-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>50% crops from center, A7rII<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>No sunstars at f\/4.5 but well defined 10-stroke sunstars between f\/8.0 and f\/22 as we have also seen on the other recent Laowa ultra wide angle lenses.<br \/>\nIf you want to learn more about sunstars have a look at <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/best-lenses-for-sunstars\/\">this article<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h1>Chromatic Aberrations<\/h1>\n<h3><strong>lateral<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><div class=\"osc-res-tab tabbable   osc-tabs-left\"><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"nav osc-res-nav nav-tabs osc-tabs-left-ul\" id=\"oscitas-restabs-5-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-90155\"><li class=\"active\"><a href=\"#ert_pane5-0\" data-toggle=\"tab\">uncorrected<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#ert_pane5-1\" data-toggle=\"tab\">corrected<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><div style=\"clear:both;width: 100%;\"><ul class=\"tab-content\" id=\"oscitas-restabcontent-5-review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl-90155\"><li class=\"tab-pane active\" id=\"ert_pane5-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25222 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_Uncorrected.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_Uncorrected.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_Uncorrected-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_Uncorrected-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><li class=\"tab-pane \" id=\"ert_pane5-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-25221 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_corrected.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_corrected.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_corrected-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/laowa_11mm_4.5_lateral_CA_corrected-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<em>100% crops from border, Sony A7rII<br \/>\n<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Not too uncommon for ultra wide angle lenses the Laowa 11mm 4.5 shows a noticeable amount of lateral CA. These are still easily corrected either in camera (for Jpegs) or in a raw developer like Lightroom by one click.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>longitudinal<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>As this is a very wide and rather slow lens longitudinal CA (loCA) are nothing to worry about.<\/p>\n<h1>Alternatives<\/h1>\n<p>If you are still undecided what you are looking for our <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/user-guide-ultra-wideangle-lenses-sony-alpha-7-series\/\">Guide to Ultra Wide Angle Lenses for the A7 Series<\/a> is a good address to learn more about ultra wide angle lenses.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6 FF-RL:<\/a><\/strong><br \/>\nThe 9mm is even wider which can make finding good compositions a little harder. Optically, comparing the copies I had, I tend to rate the 9mm slightly higher, but the 62mm screw-in filter thread and the slightly better flare resistance may make this 11mm more desirable to some.<br \/>\nbuy from <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.venuslens.net\/product\/laowa-9mm-f-5-6-ff-rl\/ref\/57\/\">manufacturer&#8217;s homepage<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/3jnhRPw\">B&amp;H<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.com\/sch\/i.html?_from=R40&amp;_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC1.A0.H0.Xlaowa+9mm+5.6.TRS1&amp;_nkw=laowa+9mm+5.6&amp;_sacat=0&amp;mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&amp;siteid=0&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\">ebay.com<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.de\/sch\/i.html?_from=R40&amp;_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xlaowa+9mm+5.6.TRS0&amp;_nkw=laowa+9mm+5.6&amp;_sacat=0&amp;mkrid=707-53477-19255-0&amp;siteid=77&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\">ebay.de<\/a> for <strong>$799<\/strong> (advertisement\/affiliate links)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-10mm-5-6-e-hyper-wide-heliar\/\">Voigtlander 10mm 5.6 E Hyper Wide Heliar:<\/a><\/strong><br \/>\nMy ultra (or hyper?) wide angle lens of choice for the past years until it has been replaced by the Laowa 9mm 5.6.<br \/>\nIt is slightly better in terms of flare resistance, but resolution (especially in the corners and at wider apertures), performance near minimum focus distance, lateral CA and coma it is noticeably worse.<br \/>\nbuy from <em><a href=\"https:\/\/shop.cameraquest.com\/voigtlander_emount\">CameraQuest<\/a> |&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.de\/sch\/i.html?_ex_kw=&amp;_mPrRngCbx=1&amp;_nkw=Voigtl%25E4nder+10mm&amp;_sacat=625&amp;_sop=12&amp;_udhi=&amp;_udlo=&amp;_fosrp=1&amp;mkrid=707-53477-19255-0&amp;siteid=77&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ebay.de<\/a> |&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2yf81eV\">amazon.de<\/a> |&nbsp;<\/em><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.com\/sch\/i.html?LH_CAds=&amp;_ex_kw=&amp;_fpos=&amp;_fspt=1&amp;_mPrRngCbx=1&amp;_nkw=voigtlander+10mm+5.6&amp;_sacat=625&amp;_sadis=&amp;_sop=12&amp;_udhi=&amp;_udlo=&amp;_fosrp=1&amp;mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&amp;siteid=0&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ebay.com<\/a> |&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2sdNPWm\">amazon.com<\/a>&nbsp;| <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/2JNXUDm\">B&amp;H<\/a> for <strong>1099$<\/strong> (advertisement\/affiliate links)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-10-18mm-4-5-5-6-fe-c-dreamer\/\"><strong>Laowa 10-18mm 4.5-5.6 C-Dreamer FE:<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nIf you value flexibility and compact size over image quality and you don&#8217;t know yet what focal length is the right one for you this may be worth a look.<br \/>\n<em>buy from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.venuslens.net\/product\/laowa-10-18mm-f-4-5-5-6-fe-zoom\/ref\/57\/\">manfucaturer&#8217;s homepage<\/a> |&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2TVSirw\">amazon.com<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/2qxh1W7\">B&amp;H<\/a> (advertisement\/affiliate links) for <strong>$849<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-canon-ts-e-17mm-4-0l\/\"><strong>Canon TS-E 17mm 4.0L:<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nTo get the same angle of view as the TS-E 17mm (when taking a shift panorama) you need a 10.2mm lens, so you are pretty close with this 11mm lens. This 11mm has some handling advantages (less bulky, takes 62mm screw in filters) and flare resistance is a bit better, but you will obviously also end up with less pixels for the same framing. With today&#8217;s high resolution sensors this might be a trade off you are willing to take though.<br \/>\n<em>buy from <\/em><em><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2RpMdp3\">amazon.com<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2DBJNME\">amazon.de<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/2BUU0By\">B&amp;H<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.com\/sch\/i.html?LH_CAds=&amp;_ex_kw=&amp;_fpos=&amp;_fspt=1&amp;_mPrRngCbx=1&amp;_nkw=canon+ts+17+4.0&amp;_sacat=625&amp;_sadis=&amp;_sop=12&amp;_udhi=&amp;_udlo=&amp;_fosrp=1&amp;mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&amp;siteid=0&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\">ebay.com<\/a> |&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebay.de\/sch\/i.html?_ex_kw=&amp;_mPrRngCbx=1&amp;_nkw=canon+ts-e+17mm+4.0+l&amp;_sacat=625&amp;_sop=12&amp;_udhi=&amp;_udlo=&amp;_fosrp=1&amp;mkrid=707-53477-19255-0&amp;siteid=77&amp;mkcid=1&amp;campid=5337820268&amp;toolid=10001&amp;customid=&amp;mkevt=1\">ebay.de<\/a> for <strong>$2150 <\/strong>new or <strong>$1500 <\/strong>used (advertisement\/affiliate links)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Samyang 10mm 3.5 XP:<\/strong><br \/>\nI don&#8217;t enjoy using a big DSLR lens on a mirrorless camera when there is a smaller alternative, therefore I didn&#8217;t try this lens and cannot tell you much about it.<\/p>\n<h1>Conclusion<\/h1>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>good<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #339966;\">sharpness and contrast from f\/5.6 even in the extreme corners<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #339966;\">minimum focus distance<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #339966;\">sunstars<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #339966;\">handling\/build quality<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #339966;\">size\/weight<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td><strong>average<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>CA correction<\/li>\n<li>coma correction<\/li>\n<li>distortion<\/li>\n<li>flare resistance<\/li>\n<li>price<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<td><strong>not good<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">no electronic contacts<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">vignetting<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #ff9900;\">slight green color cast in the corners<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a> offers a record breaking focal length and on top of that the optical performance pleasantly surprised us.<br \/>\nBased on this the 11mm 4.5 has a bit of a hard time, as it may not look as sexy as the 9mm at first sight.<br \/>\nBut actually, we have a record here, too: this 11mm is the widest lens with a normal filter thread. This is a clear benefit over the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-10mm-5-6-e-hyper-wide-heliar\/\">Voigtlander 10mm 5.6<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-voigtlander-12mm-5-6-aspherical-ultra-wide-heliar\/\">12mm 5.6<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-9mm-5-6-ff-rl\/\">Laowa 9mm 5.6<\/a> as it makes using a polarizer (which I used for many of the sample images) easy and convenient, but unfortunately the non removable lens hood makes using a generic <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/filters-digital-photography\/\">filter system<\/a> impossible.<\/p>\n<p>The overall optical performance is similar to the Laowa 9mm 5.6 and the Voigtlander 12mm 5.6 at shared apertures and slightly better than Voigtlander 10mm 5.6, compared to the Voigtlander lenses you are not getting electronic contacts and exif readout here though.<\/p>\n<p>All in all a very solid ultra wide angle lens and an interesting alternative to Voigtlander&#8217;s 10mm and 12mm offerings.<\/p>\n<p><em>You can order this lens directly from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.venuslens.net\/product\/laowa-11mm-f-4-5-ff-rl\/ref\/57\/\">manufacturer&#8217;s homepage<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/bhpho.to\/342Hylf\">B&amp;H<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/33NIf1o\">amazon.de<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3FGh3Q8\">amazon.com<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/ebay.us\/ZIJy8E\">ebay.com<\/a> for <strong>$799<\/strong> (M-mount) and <strong>$699<\/strong> (E\/Z\/L-mount) (advertisement\/affiliate links)<\/em><\/p>\n<h1>Further Sample Images<\/h1>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24929\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24929\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24929\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_4.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_4.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_4-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_4-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24929\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25417\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25417\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25417\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_12.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_12.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_12-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_12-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25417\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25418\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25418\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25418\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_13.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_13.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_13-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_13-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25418\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24928\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24928\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24928\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_3.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_3.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_3-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_3-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24928\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25227\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25227\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25227\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_10.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_10.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_10-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_10-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25227\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/5.6<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24926\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24926\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24926\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_1.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_1.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_1-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_1-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24926\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24930\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24930\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24930\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_5.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_5-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24930\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/4.5<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25437\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25437\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25437\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_16.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_16.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_16-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_16-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25437\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25438\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25438\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25438\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_17.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_17.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_17-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_17-768x513.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25438\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7rII | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/8.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24932\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24932\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24932\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_7.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_7.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_7-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_7-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24932\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24931\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24931\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24931\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_6.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_6.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_6-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24931\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24933\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24933\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24933\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_8.jpg\" alt=\"laowa 11mm 4.5 zero-d distortion zero ultra wide w-dreamer uwa hyper wide heliar 10mm distortion zero-d\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_8.jpg 800w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_8-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Laowa_11mm_4.5_E_sample_8-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24933\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sony A7III | Laowa 11mm 4.5 | f\/5.6<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><em>Most of the sample images in this review can be found in full resolution <a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/s\/aHsmQ8NSY6\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h1>Further Reading<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/fe-lenses-sony-comprehensive-independent-guide\/\">Sony FE lenses: Our comprehensive and independent guide<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/user-guide-to-portrait-lenses-sony-a7-series\/\">Guide to the best 85-135mm Portrait Lenses for Sony a7 series<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/35mm-comparison-voigtlander-zeiss-leica\/\">35mm comparison Leica, Zeiss, Voigtlander<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-sony-fe-24mm-1-4-gm\/\">Review: Sony FE 24mm 1.4 GM<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Support Us<\/h2>\n<p>Did you find this article useful or just liked reading it? Treat us to a coffee!<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=3K9EJRRQVXT4J\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-40345 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/donate2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"103\" height=\"29\"><\/a><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/en_SE\/i\/scr\/pixel.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" border=\"0\"> <span style=\"color: #999999;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/en_SE\/i\/scr\/pixel.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" border=\"0\"><em>via Paypal<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>This site contains advertisement\/affiliate links. If you make a purchase using any of the links marked as advertisement\/affiliate links, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. This helps support the creation of future content.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Introduction Laowa introduced 3 ultra wide angle lenses at roughly the same time in Summer 2020. This 11mm 4.5 FF-RL is in the one in the middle in terms of focal length and maximum aperture, but is it the goldilock&#8217;s lens in this set or should you rather stick to the record breaking 9mm lens &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/review-laowa-11mm-4-5-ff-rl\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Review: Laowa 11mm 4.5 FF-RL<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4708,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[212,7,18,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-laowa","category-lenses","category-review","category-sony-e-mount"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Review: Laowa 11mm 4.5 FF-RL - phillipreeve.net<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Laowa 11mm 4.5 is a small ultra wide angle lens. 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