Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Macro APO
Announced November 29, 2021
PixelMeter The PixelMeter is our 1–100 aggregate of reviewer scores from trusted publications and creators. Weighted by source tier — not a raw average, and not PetaPixel’s own review.
Reviewer Consensus
Strong
The Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Macro APO is an exceptionally compact and sharp lens that achieves two times magnification for full-frame cameras. Although it delivers high-quality, distortion-free images, its f/5.6 maximum aperture limits background blur and low-light performance.
Weighted from 8 reviewer scores
Pros
- Compact and lightweight build quality
- Excellent sharpness and minimal optical aberrations
- Negligible distortion and vignetting
- Versatile 2x magnification range
- Smooth manual focus ring and practical working distance
Cons
- Fully manual operation without electronic contacts
- Limited f/5.6 maximum aperture
- Difficult manual focus precision and focus breathing
- Lacks weather sealing and even aperture spacing
- Susceptible to flaring and glare
- Launch price $449 (USD)
- Focal length & aperture 85mm f/5.6
- Mount & coverage Sony E, Nikon Z, Canon RF, L-Mount, Leica M Full-Frame
- Stabilization None
- Close focus 16.3 cm (2x)
- Filter thread 46mm
- Autofocus motor Manual focus only
- Weight & size 291g · 53 x 81 mm (2.09 x 3.19 in)
What the Reviewers Say
All 8 expert reviews, weighted into the PixelMeter score.
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- PetaPixel 8.5/10
The Venus Optics Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x is a tiny yet powerful lens.
- OpticalLimits 7/10
The Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Marco APO is a good lens.
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The Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ultra Macro APO is a great example of what can be done when designers use their imagination to break away from existing conventions of what lenses should look like.
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Its optics are great, nice and sharp, especially on a full-frame camera, well, unless you're shooting close to bright light. It gets you down to two times magnification, awesome, and it's relatively tiny.
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The 85mm 5.6 unfortunately follows the footsteps of the Laowa 10-18mm 4.5-5.6: a lens that sounds really great on paper (at least to me), but in the end has one flaw too many. As it is, it really needs a controlled environment with no stray or backlight to yield good results.
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For a distinctly small lens, I’m rather pleased with the overall performance of the new Laowa 85mm 2x Macro. The longer focal length is longer than I regularly use with several of my macro lenses and gives a good working distance, even at f/5.6.
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The only thing you kind of sacrifice with this lens is the ability to take portraits with a nice Blurred out backgrounds, but otherwise I think it's great, and I really, really enjoyed using this lens, and I feel like I would like to buy one myself.
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So all in all, this lens, it's quirky, it's fun to use, it's got a low footprint in your bag.
