[thibs]

Lunch time unboxing, I'm really impressed with how solid the lens feels. Finishing looks really good as well.
Now if I was smart I'd have a body with me.

Getting back to work would be even harder 😂

[ecostigny]

Getting back to work would be even harder 😂

I would take the afternoon off if I were you.

[gaweidert]

Picked up this morning, now I just have to sit with it in my office all day

There day down there are pretty long right now. Should be no problem.

[Doundounba]

Thanks for the helpful response. I figured you weren't relying solely on ambient light and was curious as to your lighting solution.

Yeah, shooting greater than lifesize macro without a flash would be quite a challenge...

Thanks for the set-up image. That's a bit more advanced than my standard Pringles tin diffuser! What bracket are you using?

It's just an old vintage L-braket. Photo of the "doodads" below. Note that I'm triggering the flash from a Yongnuo wireless trigger, but it's not wireless triggering! The trigger just happens to have a PC-sync port with screw threads. I tried using the one on the K-3 body directly, but that doesn't have the same size of threads, so I couldn't screw the cable in place, and it kept unplugging itself at inopportune moments. The most important item is the bracket to get the flash horizontal. I got it on Ebay and I think it was meant for video lights, but the nice thing about it is it can't move left to right. Some people use small ballheads to achieve the same thing, but if your flash is heavy (and mine is), this solution is much sturdier. I'm not finding it on Ebay at the moment though...

Lunch time unboxing, I'm really impressed with how solid the lens feels. Finishing looks really good as well.
Now if I was smart I'd have a body with me.

I agree. Aside from the hood, there's not much to criticize in the build quality. Coming from the D-FA WR, I do find that there's not much area to grab onto that is neither the focus nor the aperture ring. Thankfully, the focus action is very well damped, so you're unlikely to change your shot's magnification inadvertently while approaching the critter.

Oh, and since the actual front element recesses deeply into the outer barrel - which may allow both dust and even inquisitive small critters in - IMHO you should consider the included UV filter as a replaceable front element and always leave it on.

[Thagomizer]

Yeah, shooting greater than lifesize macro without a flash would be quite a challenge...



It's just an old vintage L-braket. Photo of the "doodads" below. Note that I'm triggering the flash from a Yongnuo wireless trigger, but it's not wireless triggering! The trigger just happens to have a PC-sync port with screw threads. I tried using the one on the K-3 body directly, but that doesn't have the same size of threads, so I couldn't screw the cable in place, and it kept unplugging itself at inopportune moments. The most important item is the bracket to get the flash horizontal. I got it on Ebay and I think it was meant for video lights, but the nice thing about it is it can't move left to right. Some people use small ballheads to achieve the same thing, but if your flash is heavy (and mine is), this solution is much sturdier. I'm not finding it on Ebay at the moment though...

I've got one of those folding brackets too> I've got a number of options if I decide to use auxiliary flash rather than built-in pop-up, and that's one of them. I

[Genobreaker]

Mine arrived today. Few days earlier than expected. (Sorry, no space to post a photo atm)

[sculptor666]

mine arrived today. f8 on a k-3. hopefullly more time to test it out over the weekend.

[Thagomizer]

mine arrived today. f8 on a k-3. hopefullly more time to test it out over the weekend.

Excellent result!

[automorphism]

mine arrived today. f8 on a k-3. hopefullly more time to test it out over the weekend.

That is a very nice shot. What a cool lens!

[Not a Number]

Pretty quick delivery times. The more I see the more I want. I wish I had the funds available.

[bdery]

I received the test unit yesterday, will start putting it through its paces soon! It's a well-built lens, like all Laowa I've seen, much bigger than Pentax's 100m m macro (that one is 1x, of course).

I'll be hard at work reviewing it in the coming weeks!

anyone with beautiful pictures taken with that lens who want to see them featured in the review's gallery, drop me a note! I'l be happy to include them, I always like to give as broad a coverage as I can, and critters are hidden by the first snows around here

[sculptor666]

didn't horse around too much today, but another f8 on the k3.

[Thagomizer]

I received the test unit yesterday, will start putting it through its paces soon! It's a well-built lens, like all Laowa I've seen, much bigger than Pentax's 100m m macro (that one is 1x, of course).

I'll be hard at work reviewing it in the coming weeks!

anyone with beautiful pictures taken with that lens who want to see them featured in the review's gallery, drop me a note! I'l be happy to include them, I always like to give as broad a coverage as I can, and critters are hidden by the first snows around here

Looking forward to that review, whether I get the lens or not, it's neat to see what others do with it.

---------- Post added 11-29-20 at 12:52 AM ----------

didn't horse around too much today, but another f8 on the k3.

Like this!

[ecostigny]

didn't horse around too much today, but another f8 on the k3.

Looking impressive so far. I can picture focus stacking behind helpful with cooperative subjects.

[fgpinarli]

Is it a regarded brand in US?