NiSi 9mm F2.8 vs Laowa 9mm f/2.8

I have heard so far Laowa is lighter and Nisi has better IQ and better sunstar
What is your opinion and understanding?

https://www.dpreview.com/news/7369587738/tamron-announces-11-20mm-f2-8-ultra-wide-zoom-for-fujifilm-x-mount

This is also fantastic news. It weighs lower than Nisi.  11mm is enough. But can this compete with prime lens image qulaity.

Bumping this because I was curious too. The NiSi is tempting because I loved using the Nikon 20mm F1.8G with sunstars.

At least a Sony review says the Nisi has better quality but it's 364 grams, which is getting close to the Viltrox 13mm at 420 grams. The Nikon 20mm F1.8G is actually about 360 grams too, albeit you need a DSLR body or the FTZ adapter that is significantly more weight to use it.

Right now I like the Laowa 9mm and Fuji 16mm F2.8 on a smaller body. It's a good focal distance separation and they share the same filter size. Then I use the Viltrox 13mm and Tamron 18-300 on the XH2 body. The bigger lenses are more comfortable with the grip.

I think the wise thing to do is wait to see what the Fuji 8mm is like. That looks like it's autofocus too which would be more convenient.

Nisi vs Laowa (https://phillipreeve.net/blog/review-nisi-9mm-2-8-aps-c/) (Sony but lenses should be the same)

Sharing the same focal length and maximum aperture this Laowa lens is the most obvious competitor. The Laowa lens is significantly smaller and lighter but had some issues with flare resistance ruining the landscape party a bit.

It really comes down to whether you prefer the small size of the Laowa or the better optical performance of the NiSi.

Laowa vs Fuji 10-24 (https://fstoppers.com/originals/fstoppers-reviews-laowa-9mm-f28-zero-d-fujifilm-x-236999)

Comparing the 9mm f/2.8 to Fujifilm’s 10-24mm f/4 at 10mm, there are some interesting findings. With both lenses wide open, the Laowa resolves more detail than the Fujifilm in the center of the frame. However, the Fujifilm has significantly sharper corners. The Fujifilm catches up to the Laowa for center sharpness when both lenses are stopped down to f/5.6. However, by f/5.6 the corners of the Laowa image are looking better than the Fujifilm. At f/16 and beyond, the Laowa retains more sharpness than the Fujifilm.

I just got the 9mm laowa, but don’t have the nisi. I got it for the rumored simplicity and specific need for when I visit Spain next month. Test shots are excellent - far better than I expected, and quite nice and sharp even at 2.8. Perhaps I got a great copy. It is in fact super easy, even though it’s a manual focus - set it to infinity and f/8 and everything 4 feet and forward will be in focus. I’m so far very happy with the laowa and it’s very compact and light. On par with the 27mm pancake in terms of portability. It’ll be a great travel lens.

I was hoping for the upcoming. 8mm but it won’t be released in time for my trip.

The Laowa is an excellent travel lens! I went on a trek in Nepal where we had severe weight restrictions for luggage and it was great.

Also in case you didn't know it is also good for close focus similar to the 16 f1.4.

Close focus

normal

From today

Metadata shows 21mm?  Why?

• ms18 wrote:

Metadata shows 21mm? Why?

Because the Laowa doesn't transmit metadata, the metadata just has whatever focal length you put in the Fuji menus.

Yes they're all with the Laowa.

Reply to vcxz

Especially the last one, really impressive from IQ point of view. Also in the corners.

And a great image, too I like it.

Do you remember the aperture?

Did you counteract vignetting in post?

Cheers,

Martin