LAOWA ARGUS 45MM F/0.95 FF

Does its sharpness match its softness?

- James Artaius

www.venuslens.net £869/$799

The Laowa Argus 45mm f/0.95 FF is the latest in Venus Optics’ line of signature Argus lenses, all of which feature a monstrously wide f/0.95 aperture. In short, every Argus lens, including this one, is a bokeh machine. The choice of a 45mm focal length is an interesting one though. This puts the Laowa Argus 45mm f/0.95 FF roughly in ‘nifty fifty’ territory, but the extra width makes the field of view tangibly different.

At f/0.95, this is one of the fastest lenses you can buy, though this aperture isn’t as novel as it once was; we’ve got full-frame lenses like the almost equivalent Mitakon Speedmaster 50mm f/0.95 and Venus Optics’ companion prime, the Laowa Argus 35mm f/0.95 FF.