![\"Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-2\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Venus Optics is a new player\u00a0in the field of high performance manual lenses. Their new Laowa Smooth Trans Focus 105mm F 2.0(T3.2)\u00a0<\/strong>has a special apodization element which should give this lens extraordinary bokeh.\u00a0That’s the theory, in this review I will put it to the test.<\/p>\n Most images in this review are linked to the full resolution, just click on them. There is also a Laowa STF 105mm F 2.0 flickr album<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Venus Optics loaned us the lens free of charge for a few weeks.<\/p>\n The Laowa 2\/105 STF currently (July 2016)\u00a0sells for $699<\/strong>\u00a0at ebay.com <\/a>(affiliate link).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n The Laowa\u00a0Smooth Trans Focus 105mm F2.0 (T3.2) currently comes in EF, Nikon F and Sony FE mount.<\/p>\n The Laowa STF 105mm F2.0 has a special apodization element. This works like a ND filter so you get the depth of field of a f\/2 lens but only the light transmission of a f\/3.2 lens.\u00a0Why would one want to put such an element into the lens? Well it makes the bokeh much smoother.<\/p>\n Venus Optics isn’t the first company to employ\u00a0this technique. Minolta introduced the STF 135mm F2.8(T4.5) in 1999 which is today sold by Sony. I compared the Sony and the Laowa in this article<\/a>.<\/p>\n The STF 2\/105\u00a0is made from metal and feels very solid. Markings are engraved. There is no play in the focusing or the aperture rings.<\/p>\n I didn’t take it apart nor do I own a rentals company so I can’t tell you how reliable it actually is.<\/p>\n The Laowa is a substantial lens \u00a0and I prefer to have my L-bracket<\/a>\u00a0attached to the a7 for better handling. \u00a0With L-bracket attached handling is good but because of the weight I would think twice about taking it for a longer walk.<\/p>\n The focusing ring is has a\u00a0pleasant\u00a0resistance\u00a0<\/strong>and it travels about 270 degrees from 0.9m to infinity which is quite long and makes precise focusing very easy but also slows focusing down a bit. Compared to the most pleasant to use lenses I would have wished for a tad less resistance and a littler more direct transmission but it is still pleasant to use.<\/p>\n The Laowa actually has two aperture rings<\/strong>. The F-ring has click stops at full apertures and goes from f\/2 to f\/22. Unusually the distance between the stops get shorter. It is quite long between f\/2 and f\/2.8, about normal between f\/5.6 and f\/8 and very short between f\/16 and f\/22. The T-stop<\/strong> is clickless<\/strong> and goes from f\/3.2 to f\/8. Both rings affect depth of field and exposure and their effect on bokeh is very similar so as a videographer you will probably use the clickless one and as a photographer the one with clickstops makes more sense.<\/p>\n The Laowa STF 2\/105 does not change it’s length when it is focused but it is not an internally focusing lens either, the whole optical block travels inside of the lens.<\/p>\n The original lens hood is\u00a0made from plastics and feels solid enough but not as premium as the lens itself. Sadly though it isn’t very effective at suppressing flare<\/strong> and I often had to shade the front element with my other hand.<\/p>\n The 67mm filter thread is made from metal.<\/p>\n The front of the lens does not rotate.<\/p>\n At f\/2 vignetting is moderate at 1.5\u00a0stops, at f\/2.8 it is reduced to 0.9\u00a0and around 0.6 stops from f\/4. This is an average performance<\/strong> for a semi fast lens of this focal lens.<\/p>\n You will also notice that there is a significant\u00a0color shift from f\/2 to f\/2.8, WB is the same for all the images.<\/p>\n And now we come to the biggest weakness of the Laowa STF 2\/105<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Ghosting happens only under the most extrem conditions and then it isn’t too strong:<\/p>\n Veiling flare <\/strong>though is a real issue <\/strong>and has cost me quite a few images<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Both images were taken with the lens hood attached but for the second image I shielded the front lens with my hand as well.<\/span><\/p>\n The lens shows\u00a0almost zero distortion.<\/p>\n Lateral CA is very low but not perfectly corrected.<\/p>\n The Laowa STF 2\/105\u00a0shows exceptional correction of LoCA<\/strong>. Here I compared it with the Zeiss 2\/100 Makro Planar:<\/p>\n The Laowa’s background bokeh is very\u00a0smooth<\/strong>. Here is a comparison with the Zeiss Makro Planar 2\/100 which is known for it’s very good\u00a0bokeh. You will note that the Laowa shows the cat-eye-effect to some degree but it isn’t as bad as with the Zeiss MP.<\/p>\n Is it as special as the Bokeh of the Sony STF 2.8\/135? No it isn’t. The Sony\u00a0draws highlights without any definition and there is no cat-eye effect:<\/p>\n The bad news is that the Laowa doesn’t handle the transition zone<\/strong> nearly as well as the background<\/strong>, it is actually quite rough there<\/strong> with a very visible outlining effect.<\/p>\n The foreground bokeh is very smooth again, maybe a little less so than the background bokeh but still very good. \u00a0I don’t want to waste more space on it, just check out the many samples I have.<\/p>\n So in most scenarios like portraiture bokeh is really good but\u00a0there are other scenarios where the bokeh can be quite ruff actually. In general I was very pleased with the Laowa’s bokeh<\/strong>.<\/p>\n I would guess that\u00a0they started with a lens with rather busy bokeh and turned that into a lens with nice (background-)bokeh by adding the apodization element. Minolta’s STF 2.8\/135\u00a0<\/a>does have smoother bokeh\u00a0in any scenario with zero vignetting which results in a look the Laowa can’t emulate.<\/p>\n 13 aperture blades result in 26-pointed sunstars.<\/p>\n If you avoid veiling flare contrast is very high.<\/p>\n You can find the full resolution test images in the\u00a0Laowa STF 2\/105 flickr se<\/a>t.<\/p>\n f\/2:\u00a0<\/strong>Ver good sharpness in the center, good in the midframe area and corners.<\/p>\n f\/2.8:\u00a0<\/strong>Excellent in the center, good to very good in the rest of the frame.<\/p>\n f\/4:\u00a0<\/strong>Excellent in the center, very good across the frame.<\/p>\n f\/5.6:\u00a0<\/strong>A slight improvement in the corners.<\/p>\n f\/8:\u00a0<\/strong>Ever so slightly softer<\/p>\n For me the most important stops<\/strong> are:<\/p>\n The reproduction ratio is 0.16 which is about average for a 100mm lens.<\/p>\n Sony STF 135mm F 2.8(T4.5)<\/strong>: The Sony has truly extraordinary bokeh but it is more expensive, slower and not built as nice plus the focusing isn’t very pleasant. Check out my in-depth comparison<\/a>.<\/p>\n Samyang 2\/135<\/a>: \u00a0<\/strong>The Samyang shares the Laowa’s excellent correction of axial CA \u00a0and very high sharpness but it is a bit bigger and not built as nicely. It is a little cheaper and has a 1.5 stops higher transmission.<\/p>\n Zeiss Makro Planar 2\/100:<\/strong> The Zeiss is a little more expensive if you buy used and a lot more expensive if\u00a0you buy new. The Zeiss is a little sharper than the Laowa (it is in fact the sharpest lens I have ever used), can focus down to a reproduction ratio of 1:2 and while it\u2019s flare resistance isn\u2019t perfect it is much better than that of the Laowa. Of course you don\u2019t lose the 1.5 stops of light with the Zeiss. Advantages of the Laowa are a much better correction of axial CA, a little smoother\u00a0background bokeh and a better focusing experience.<\/p>\n Minolta MC 2.5\/100<\/a><\/strong>: Certainly not as sharp but it is an affordable lens with great build quality and superb bokeh.<\/p>\n Pros<\/strong> o Vignetting Cons<\/strong> Overall I am quite impressed<\/strong> by what Venus Optics has achieved with the Laowa STF 2\/105. The lens is very\u00a0sharp \u00a0from f\/2<\/strong> and more surprisingly it corrects axial CA really well<\/strong> which is an issue with which many other expensive lenses struggle, the Zeiss Makro Planar 2\/100 for example. I am quite surprised that this aspect isn\u2019t advertised more, they could have called it an APO<\/strong> lens and it would have deserved that label.<\/p>\n The bokeh<\/strong> is very<\/strong> good<\/strong>, better than that of most of the competition but not as excellent as I would have expected<\/strong> from a lens which\u2019s main selling point is the bokeh, especially the nervous<\/strong> transition<\/strong> zone<\/strong> bugs me. So if you look for a lens with good bokeh for portraits don\u2019t hesitate to buy the Laowa, but don\u2019t expect it to be radically different from what you have known before.<\/p>\n Build<\/strong> qualit<\/strong>y is very<\/strong> good<\/strong> and sets the Laowa apart from Samyang lenses, nothing to complain about here apart from that the lens is a little<\/strong> heavy<\/strong> and far from small. Handling misses the excellent mark by a little because the focusing ring has a little too long focus throw and the aperture ring works a little different but I am nitpicking here and all in all handling is very good<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The Laowa is very<\/strong> susceptible<\/strong> to veiling flare<\/strong> and I lost a couple of images to this issue which is always annoying. The lens hood isn\u2019t very effective<\/strong>\u00a0and it often makes sense to shield the front of the lens with your hand but this doesn\u2019t help in every situation.<\/p>\n All things considered I think the price is very fair<\/strong>. You get a lens which aims at the premium segment and delivers well on this aim in most aspects but you don\u2019t pay as much as the competition from Zeiss or Leica would charge for a lens with similar qualities. Of course one has to consider that Venus Optics is a young company which hasn\u2019t had the time to prove the longevity of it\u2019s products but so far I don\u2019t see any issues.<\/p>\n So all in all I was a little underwhelmed by the Laowa\u2019s main selling point, the bokeh. This was mostly because I had a very high expectations. I was very positively surprised by the Laowa STF 105mm f\/2\u2019s excellent correction of axial CA which have bothered me with every other portrait lens I have used so far. The trade-off you have to make for these desirable characteristics is that the Laowa flares very easily and that you lose 1.5 stops of light compared to a conventional lens. You don\u2019t need to worry about any of the other aspects like sharpness, build quality etc., here Venus Optics delivers.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Laowa STF 105mm f\/2\u00a0\u00a0currently (July 2016)\u00a0sells for $699<\/strong>\u00a0at ebay.com <\/a>(affiliate link).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n If this review was helpful to you, please consider using one of my affiliate links. I will earn a small commission on your purchase and it won\u2019t cost you anything. Thanks!<\/em><\/p>\n All images are processed in Lightroom from Raw. Many more full resolution samples in my Laowa STF 105mm F2.0\u00a0flickr album<\/a>.<\/p>\n This site contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase using any of the links marked as 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":" Venus Optics is a new player\u00a0in the field of high performance manual lenses. Their new Laowa Smooth Trans Focus 105mm F 2.0(T3.2)\u00a0has a special apodization element which should give this lens extraordinary bokeh.\u00a0That’s the theory, in this review I will put it to the test. Sample images Most images in this review are linked to … Continue reading Review: Laowa STF 105mm F2.0 (T3.2)<\/span> Sample images<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC06024\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06024.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC06730\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06730.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"DSC06424\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06424-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nDisclosure<\/h1>\n
Specifications<\/h1>\n
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Versions<\/h1>\n
What’s special about this lens?<\/h1>\n
![\"STF-explanation\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/STF-explanation.jpg\")
<\/p>\nBuild<\/strong> Quality<\/strong><\/h1>\n
Size, Weight and Handling<\/strong>
\n<\/a><\/h1>\n![\"Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-4\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-4.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-3\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-3.jpg\")
![\"Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-5\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Laowa_STF_105mmf2_Sony_a7-5.jpg\")
<\/p>\nLens Hood<\/h1>\n
Filters<\/h1>\n
Image Quality<\/h1>\n
Vignetting<\/h3>\n
![\"Vignetting\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Vignetting.jpg\")
<\/p>\nFlare Resistance<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC06037\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06037.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05748.jpg\"\/)
![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05749.jpg\"\/)
<\/div><\/a><\/p>\nDistortion<\/h3>\n
![\"DSC06098\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06098.jpg\")
<\/p>\nChromatic Aberrations<\/h3>\n
![\"LaCA\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/LaCA.jpg\")
![\"CA\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/CA.jpg\")
Bokeh<\/h3>\n
![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06324-1.jpg\"\/)
![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06326.jpg\"\/)
<\/div><\/a><\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06331.jpg\"\/)
<\/div><\/a><\/p>\n![\"MP_Transition\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/MP_Transition.jpg\")
\u00a0Sunstars<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC06550\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06550.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nContrast<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC05648\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05648.jpg\")
<\/a>\u00a0Sharpness<\/h1>\n
![\"Laowa_STF_105mmf2_infinity\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Laowa_STF_105mmf2_infinity.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
Close Focus Performance<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC06269\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06269.jpg\")
<\/a>The Laowa STF 105mm F 2.0\u00a0is still quite sharp\u00a0at it’s shortest focusing distance of 0.9m even when set to f\/2.<\/p>\nAlternatives<\/strong><\/h1>\n
Conclusion<\/strong><\/h1>\n
\n+ Excellent correction of axial CA<\/span>
\n+ Very sharp from f\/2<\/span>
\n+ Very good background-bokeh<\/span>
\n+ Good Build quality and handling<\/span>
\n+ Almost zero distortion
\n+ Price
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\no Size and Weight<\/p>\n
\n– Very susceptible to flare<\/span>
\n– The apodization element reduces the light transmission by 1.5 stops
\n– Nervous transition bokeh<\/span><\/p>\nLaowa STF 105mm F 2.0\u00a0Sample Images<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC05923\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05923.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05650\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05650.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05591\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05591.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05933\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05933.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC06015\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06015.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC06150\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06150-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC06246\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC06246.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05974\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05974.jpg\")
<\/a><\/h1>\n![\"DSC05972\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DSC05972.jpg\")
<\/a><\/h1>\nFurther Reading<\/h1>\n
\n