When it comes to macro, they say that you can never get too close. Many macro photographers push their lenses to the limit to get things as magnified as possible to take a peek into the tiny world around us.
True macro lenses typically have a reproduction ratio of 1:1. A handful of them go to 2x and even fewer beyond that. Laowa just changed that with the announcement of their Aurogon FF 10-50x NA0.5 Supermicro APO.
Aurogon FF 10-50x NA0.5 Supermicro APO
So far, the new lens only appears to have been announced in China, with a price of 8,999 Yuan – or, around $1,254. For a lens that gives this kind of magnification, that doesn’t seem like that bad of a price.
There are a number of solutions out there that let you adapt microscope lenses for such extreme macro capabilities. This lens appears to be based on that same principle but is an end product specifically designed for photographers and filmmakers.
10-50x Extreme Macro
It’s made up of five parts, with a base mount that attaches to your camera and then four different objectives, at 10x, 20x, 35x and 50x zoom levels. So, it’s not a variable focal length zoom lens in the traditional sense. It has four preset magnifications based on which objective you attach.
I expect the market for this will primarily be science and research. But, at that price, it makes for a fun experimental toy for any photographer or filmmaker as a creative tool, too. And it does seem to produce some great-looking images.
At these sorts of magnifications, the depth of field is going to be extremely shallow. So, be sure to invest in some kind of macro rail to let you shoot a bunch of images for focus stacking. An extra sturdy tripod wouldn’t go a miss, either! For subjects like this, I find that video tripods often provide the best stability, even for stills.
Aurogon FF 10-50x NA0.5 Supermicro APO Specs
| Magnification | 10, 20x, 35x, 50x |
| Adjustable numerical aperture | 0.5/0.45/0.4/0.35/0.3/0.25/0.2/0.15 |
| Working distance | 20mm |
| Format | Full-Frame |
| Focus type | Manual Focus |
| Mount | Canon EF, Canon RF, Nikon F, Nikon Z, Sony E, Leica L, Fuji GFX mount, PL mount |
| Dimensions | 50x167mm (mount) + 70x112mm (10x) / 70x163mm (20x) / 70x210mm (35x) / 70x253mm (50x) |
| Weight | 447g (Mount) + 299.4g (10x)/370g (20x)/420.2g (35x)/465.1 (50x) |
Price and Availability
As mentioned, it appears that the Laowa Aurogon FF 10-50x NA0.5 Supermicro APO is only available in China for a price of 8,999 Yuan. This currently works out to be around $1,254. Hopefully, if it does make it out to the rest of the world, it’ll stay around that price. But, there’s no telling when that might happen.
[via Sony Alpha Rumors]
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