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Macro Lens

AstrHori’s second probe lens is an 18mm f/8 2x Macro for APS-C mirrorless

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Following up on the release of AstrHori 28mm f/13 probe macro lens (buy here), AstrHori has released a second probe lens. This time, it’s the wider AstrHori 18mm f/8 probe macro lens. Don’t get too excited just yet, though. Unlike the 28mm f/13, which is a full-frame lens, this one is for APS-C cameras. So, it offers a similar field of view at around a 27mm full-frame equivalent.

While there’s no benefit to full-frame users with the new lens, it does offer APS-C shooters a wider view. On APS-C bodies, it’s wider than the previous 28mm probe or the Laowa 24mm T14 probe lens (buy here). The price is also very attractive, coming in at $719 – slightly less than the AstroHori 28 at $739 and significantly lower than the Laowa at $2,299.

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Lens review: TTArtisan 100mm F2.8 2x Macro tilt-shift

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Talk about ratcheting up the complexity!  I’ve reviewed a number of TTArtisan lenses before, and they have mostly fallen into the categories that are filled by a lot of what I call “Boutique Third Parties”.  These include various manual everything prime lenses with varying maximum aperture sizes.   While engineering for larger apertures (like their F0.95 lenses) are more challenging, their newest lens adds a LOT of new moving parts.  That lens is the TTArtisan 100mm F2.8 2X Macro Tilt/Shift (we’ll shorten that to TTA100M for this review).

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Meike announces 60mm f/2.8 macro lens for E, X, Z, EF-M, RF & M43 mounts

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Meike has announced their new 60mm f/2.8 APS-C manual focus macro lens. It’s a very low-budget lens, with a price tag of only $189.99, and as such, it probably won’t be able to compete with higher-end (and autofocus) lenses with a similar field of view. But, if keeping costs as low as possible and having a play to see if you even like macro is important, this lens might be worth having a look at.

Aside from being pretty inexpensive as macro lenses go, it’s available for six different camera mounts. Sony E, Fuji X, Nikon Z, Canon EF-M, Canon RF and Micro Four Thirds. Despite the fact that the lens is available for Nikon Z and Canon RF, it is an APS-C lens. So, if you’re trying to use it on full-frame bodies, you’ll definitely need to do some cropping!

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Price and photos leak ahead of OM System 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS lens announcement

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After a little bit of a specs leak last week, photos of the upcoming OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS PRO lens have now leaked, along with a price. There doesn’t seem to be anything in the way of new specs, but a selection of images shows what the lens looks like on its own, in a full macro rig with flash, its various accessories, along with some examples apparently shot using the lens.

The lens is still expected to be announced tomorrow, although there’s no word on exactly when it’ll be available or start shipping yet. According to the latest leaks, though, it’s expected to have a price of 231,000 yen in Japan. This seems pretty high, as that equates to around $1,750. That’s an awful lot of money for a macro lens of this focal length and aperture.

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Specs leak for OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm F3.5 Macro IS PRO ahead of announcement

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Development of the OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm f3.5 Macro ISO Pro (wow, what a mouthful!) was announced back in September 2022 in a road map update. The spot was actually allocated a year earlier, in September 2021, in a previous road map update. Until very recently, though, there was no real news on when we might hear an announcement. Then, a couple of weeks ago, that changed.

OM System released a firmware update on January 20th for the E-M1 Mark II, E-M1 Mark III, E-M5 Mark III, E-M1X and OM-5 cameras. This firmware was specifically (and only) to ensure compatibility with the M.Zuiko 90mm f/35 Macro lens. No announcement date was available then, but now OM System has announced an event on February 8, and specs for the new lens have leaked ahead of that announcement.

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OM System firmware update leaks impending 90mm f/3.5 Macro lens announcement

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The expectation that OM System will release a long focal length (long for Micro Four Thirds, at least) macro lens has been around for a while now. A macro lens in the 90-105mm region popped up on the lens roadmap way back in September 2021, and development of a 90mm f/3.5 Macro was announced in a September 2022 roadmap update. Now, thanks to a firmware update for the E-M1 Mark II, E-M1 Mark III, E-M5 Mark III, E-M1X and OM-5 cameras, we know it’s on the way soon.

While OM System has not made an official release announcement about a new macro lens, the notes for the new camera firmware updates state that they’re pretty much only to ensure compatibility with the new M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 90mm F3.5 Macro IS PRO lens. B&H has been quick to jump on adding a listing on their site, although it reveals no details beyond those made during the development announcement.

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The new AstrHori 28mm f/13 2x Probe macro lens is half the price of Laowa’s 24mm f/14 Macro Probe lens

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Relatively new and unknown lens manufacturer, AstrHori, has announced a new 28mm f/13 2x Probe macro lens. It offers a waterproof design, allowing you to submerge the end into liquids while keeping your camera save above the water level, and comes in at about half the price of Laowa’s 24mm f/14 2x Macro Probe Lens.

The new AstrHori lens full frame and is available in a whole bunch of different mounts including Sony E, Leica L, Nikon Z, Nikon F, Fuji X, PL, Canon RF and Canon EF-M. Its working distance is a mere 10mm from the end of the lens, allowing you to get extremely close up to your subjects and it has a variable f/13-40 aperture.

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Ricoh launches newly designed HD Pentax-D FA Macro 100mm F2.8ED All Weather lens

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Ricoh has announced the new HD Pentax-D FA Macro 100mm f/2.8ED AW (All Weather) lens. This is the first Pentax macro lens to feature all-weather dustproof and weather-resistant construction. Ricoh says that when mounted to a weather-resistant Pentax DSLR, the new lens creates “a highly dependable, durable imaging system that performs superbly in demanding shooting conditions”.

The lens features a new optical design, although Ricoh says it’s almost as compact as its Pentax-D FA Macro 100mm f/2.8 WR predecessor. And as well as new insides, it also has a new exterior. The new design includes Pentax’s Quick-Shift Focus System. This enables photographers to instantly switch from auto to manual focus after the camera’s AF system locks on.

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Laowa announces new T2.9 Cine versions of its 65mm and 100mm 2x Ultra Macro APO lenses

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This one might come as a surprise to some of you but guess who’s released two new macro lenses? I’ll give you a minute. I bet you’ll never get it… Oh. Yes, that’s correct, it’s Laowa! Well, technically they have and they haven’t. They’ve taken two of their popular full-frame and APS-C stills macro lenses and packaged them up into cinema housings. So, they’re sort of new, but also not.

Anyway, today, Venus Optics has officially announced the Laowa 65mm T2.9 2x Macro APO Cine for Super 35mm and the Laowa 100mm T2.8 2x Macro APO Cine for full-frame cameras. Both lenses come in an array of mount options and are optically identical to their stills counterparts, but with all the filming benefits of a cinema lens housing.

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Loawa has released another macro lens – the 58mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO for mirrorless cameras

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When it comes to macro lenses, the name that springs to mind most these days is Laowa, produced by Venus Optics. Now, they’ve added another new one to their lineup, the Laowa 58mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO designed specifically for mirrorless cameras. Like Laowa’s other lenses, it’s a manual focus lens, and this one comes in four full-frame flavours. Sony E, Canon RF, Nikon Z and Leica L mounts.

The new lens offers a 40.9° field of view on full-frame sensors and focuses all the way from 2:1 magnification to infinity, making it suitable for not just macro but also portraits or a general walkaround lens. It features an apochromatic (APO) design to suppress chromatic aberration as well as 3 ED and 3 Ultra-High Refractive Index lenses for maximum sharpness.

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