© Laowa
Not content with launching a pair of new tilt-shift lenses last month, Laowa’s newest shift lens eschews the tilt functionality in favour of adding a wide-angle zoom range. The new Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 Zoom Shift is an APS-C lens that offers some pretty remarkable features – starting with that 102.5°-63.9° angle of view coverage, coupled with a constant f/5.6 aperture throughout the zoom. The headline feature is the +7mm shift capability. While this, like the aperture, isn’t quite as versatile as the +11mm Laowa 15mm f/4.5 Zero-D Shift and Laowa 20mm f/4 Zero-D Shift lenses, those two are prime lenses.
While the Laowa 12-24mm f/5.6 Zoom Shift isn’t a Zero-D (distortion) optic, the company promises “exceptional distortion control”. The Zoom Shift is a pretty tiny little lens too, measuring just 99x80mm (that’s smaller than a soda can) and weighing in at just 575g. It has a 77mm filter thread, which requires the lens hood to be attached, and has an impressive 15cm close-focusing distance for creative compositions.