Laowa Argus 35mm f/0.95 FF

Phillip Reeve found it sharper than the other f/0.95 lenses he had tested. The centre is sharp at infinity, but wide open there is visible glow at close range and astigmatism in the corners. Performance tightens noticeably by f/2 and is very good across the frame from f/4. Its bokeh is the main draw: smooth and often preferred to autofocus 35mm f/1.2 lenses, with only slight outlining of off-centre highlights.

The known weaknesses are purple fringing in backlit scenes at f/0.95, strong but easily corrected lateral CA in the corners, about 3 EV of vignetting wide open, and coma that needs f/2.8 to disappear. Flare is better than other f/0.95 lenses but not as clean as slower modern 35s.

Owners use it for low-light portraits, weddings and night street photography, and many say the look at f/0.95 is worth the manual focus. The long, well-damped focus ring and declick switch make it popular with video shooters.

The usual complaints are the lack of EXIF and aperture control from the camera, the 0.5m minimum focus distance, a reflective hood interior, and cramped aperture stops between f/4 and f/16.