Laowa Argus 28mm f/1.2 FF

Testers found it very good across the frame by f/2 at infinity, with only moderate softness and corner astigmatism wide open. Longitudinal colour fringing is well controlled for an f/1.2 design, and coma is acceptable at f/1.2 and gone by f/2. Close-range rendering is smooth, while busy backgrounds at middle distances can look nervous towards the edges.

The weak points are flare and ghosting with strong light sources, heavy vignetting (about 3 EV wide open and still over 1.5 EV stopped down), and wavy distortion that needs a profile to correct fully. Build and focus damping get good marks, though the aperture stops are cramped between f/4 and f/16.

Owners like having a genuinely fast, compact 28mm for low-light reportage and starry skies at a price below most autofocus f/1.4 lenses. The short, smoothly damped focus throw is quick to use with focus peaking.

The missing electronic contacts are the most common complaint, since apertures are not recorded and IBIS needs the focal length entered by hand. Some users also report a green ghost from point light sources at night.