Laowa 15mm f/4.5 0.5X Wide Angle Macro

Early reviews find it sharp in the centre with good contrast at close range, and much better behaved than the older 15mm f/4 macro at normal distances, with lower distortion and a cleaner field. The camera-controlled aperture and EXIF are welcomed as a big usability gain.

The trade-offs reviewers mention are the f/4.5 aperture, the modest 0.5x maximum compared with the 1:1 original, and the usual ultra-wide vignetting in the corners.

Early owners like how small it is and that it works like a native lens on Sony bodies, with aperture set from the dial and lens data in the files. The working distance is easier to light than the original's few millimetres.

Some would have preferred to keep 1:1 magnification, and the five-blade aperture gives less rounded highlights than the old 14-blade design when stopped down.