Press release: Laowa 7.5mm f/:2 MFT is the widest f/2 rectilinear lens

We already reported about this lens last week. But now the English press text has been released with a new set of images of the lens (see bottom of this post):

PRESS RELEASE

May 1sr 2017.

UK Optics are pleased to announce the new Laowa manual focus lens for Panasonic/Olympus CSC cameras. The 7.5mm f/:2 UWA Lens for MFT.

With its acute 110° angle of view and ultra-fast f/2 aperture allows photographers to create extraordinary quality astro- photography shots with fabulous detail. It also gives photographers a fast wide-angle option for landscape photography and low-light shooting.

The Laowa 7.5mm f/:2 MFT is the widest f/2 rectilinear lens ever designed for Micro Four Thirds Cameras.

Wide angle and Fisheye lenses of a 7.5mm focal length are extremely difficult to construct, with such lenses barrel or pin cushioning distortion ie.; where vertical and horizontal lines tend to bow out away from the centre of the image, the correction becomes more challenging as the focal length decreases, therefore lenses that achieve this effect are called Rectilinear.

Despite the extreme specifications, Laowa have successfully minimized the weight and physical size of the lens to a mere 0.37 pounds (170g) and 55mm long.

The extreme 110° angle of view, ultrafast f/:2 aperture and featherweight, makes this lens an ideal option to pair up with drones for aerial photography. It also gives photographers a fast and wide-angle option for low-light shooting as well as landscape photography.

The build quality of the Laowa lens is exceptional. The lens body is made of lightweight aluminium and the lens mount is manufactured from Hard Chromium metal providing superb abrasion resistance and mount accuracy.

The lens is a Prime Manual Focus lens. The aperture ring operates in full clicks (f-stops). The detachable (metal petal shaped) lens hood is so small that you can in most cases leave it mounted to the lens.

The lens has a (46mm) filter thread and comes complete with the metal petal shaped detachable hood. The 7.5mm lens is available in a choice of either Black or Silver finish.

The MSRP price is £499.00 and availability will be end of May 2017.

Also due out July/August will be a light weight version at 150g specifically designed for the Drones market but with the same optical performance available in Black only, the MSRP is anticipated to be £519.00