[5.56 to 18.5mm] I was hesitant to buy this lens having never heard of Venus optics but glad I took the chance on it. I know some photographers opt for auto lenses for convenience but a manual lens like this offers amazing versatility and the ability to get shots you couldn't otherwise. The 10mm setting lets me capture pics I couldn't get with a wide angle like a 12 or 15mm. The lens has a rear filter and I picked up a ND 1000 for strong sunlight shots. Sunstars are excellent on this lens and the shots are clear with amazing color. The key with super wide shots is infinity focus. In short this lens is a valuable addition to my camera bag and I am using it regularly because it captures some great shots and is a lot of fun to use. It's a solid lens with metal case construction but not too heavy and amazingly compact. Great lens.

[5.56 to 18.5mm] If you're on the fence about Laowa lenses, I can assure you, you will not be disappointed. As a person who normally buys strictly manufacturer lenses, Laowa is right on par with them and the Sharpness from this lens is unbelievable!

[L-Mount] Excited to have these for macro photography, but buyers should know at least mine arrived dark grey rather than black.

[10 to 50x] Requires very precise positioning of camera, subject and lighting to get the best out of it.

[10 to 50x] Get Those WAPs ( wide angle photos ) This is my first laowa Lens and I am not Disappointed. From all of the testing I've Done all the edges are straight and legit no Distortion on this bad boy. at f/4 there is slight vignetting but disappears at f/5.6, IF you're like me and using this for Real Estate this is the lens for you on Photos, f/4 for Video is a little low for Aperture in Video but if you're using a Full Frame System you should be able to push your ISO a bit more in low light situations but maybe not the best lens for Small Homes.

[f/0.5] I was hesitant in purchasing this lens because I have become comfortable with Leica, Zeiss, and Voigtlander as my three manufacturers of choice for my M240. At the time of purchase, my wide options were the VM 12mm f/5.6 III and 21mm f/4. Here are some observations from tripod-based testing when comparing to the 12mm VM.

1) The Laowa is more contrasty than the VM at f/5.6.
2) The VM seems a bit sharper across the frame when approximating an equal frame, not enough for me to consider this a major factor. For example, I didn’t notice a difference until at 200% zoom in my ~10 comparison shots.
3) The Laowa is noticeably brighter per f stop. This could be due to a number of factors that I don’t have the equipment to test but I would say the Laowa is around 1/3 stop brighter at f/5.6 compared to the VM at f/5.6.
4) The Laowa rendered noticeably warmer than the VM
5) The Laowa has a tactile stop at 0.7 meters that I personally appreciated.
6) Build-wise, the Laowa seems to have very narrow tolerances. It feels like my 50 Planar ZM in build quality and smoothness of focusing.
7) The filter compatibility is a nice touch that I plan to test in the future. That said, the same option is available for the 15mm f/4.5 VM III.
8) The Laowa has noticeable vignetting wide open.
9) The whole zero distortion thing isn’t just marketing. While I was only taking test shots around the house, I think I’ll appreciated this when traveling.

In sum, I’m going to give this little guy a shot. The 12 VM is on to its next owner. I’m still on the fence as to whether to keep my 21mm VM but it will at least stay in the cabinet for a few months to see if I can live without it. I’m still fixated on the idea of having one lens wider than my 28 Biogon and don’t want the bulk of the Tri-Elmar (or the hole in my wallet). It will take some time to see if the Laowa’s focusing stays smooth and the build quality holds up. I’ll try to update my review or post a new review down the road with some images.

[Manual Focus] Having read two reviews, one bad one good I was wondering what I would think of this lens. I would say as in the good review critical focus may be important when working up close. But for anything @ distance I found f11-f8 @ infinity and everything as close as 3ft was amazingly sharp. A great lens for landscape, especially if its LARGE & close. Canyon walls etc.

[L-Mount] Vignetting, corner softness wide open, and some distortion are noticeable. But when you factor in the size and weight of this thing, it's an engineering marvel that such a lens is possible, and at such an affordable price. I own the Samyang 10mm f/3.5 XP and that lens has a very annoying green cast in the corners, and I am delighted that this lens suffer way less, and much easier to fix in Lightroom or CameraRAW. However, stopping down the lens doesn't improve vignetting, unlike the Samyang.
Strangely, the mid-frame some how isn't as sharp as the extreme corners when you focus using the center. I suspect that the plane of focus isn't a plane not a sphere. It could be mustached, but further investigation is required.
This lens works well with the Techart LM-EA9, and can get you very close to your subject as long as you are not blocking all the light. It's a shame that the TTartisan adapter would not correctly read the code of this lens as the Leica 6-bit code cannot represent9mm f/5.6 at all. Let's see what happens in the future.
Despite its many non-idealities, I am still inclined to give it a 5/5 for being a pioneer in ultra wide angle non-fisheye.

[f/0.15] This is fun lens, super-wide and it performs quite well. Not a lens to be used for Milky Way shooting, but great for landscapes or normal night photography, including star trails. Coma is fairly well controlled with its smallest f/5.6 aperture. If you are comfortable using fully manual lenses, this is a nice addition, very compact in the bag!

[L-Mount] Use it for most of my work, great wide angle. Great light controls on the lens, easy to work with.