Laowa Ranger Compact Full-Frame Cine Zoom Lens Series Announced

Lens News

by Francesco AndreolaJune 14^th, 2023

Laowa has just unveiled two new lightweight and compact parfocal cinema zoom lenses, the Ranger 28-75mm T2.9 and 75-180mm T2.9. Both lenses offer a constant T2.9 aperture with no ramping throughout the zoom range, full-frame coverage, a parfocal design, an interchangeable lens mount, and a built-in close-focus adjustment system. Pricing starts at $2,999.

It’s not the first time that Laowa launches a zoom lens for cinema applications. Indeed, their first experiment in this field dates back to 2018, when the company showcased the OOOM 25-100mm T2.9. However, this lens – which started shipping only two years later – is limited to Super 35 sensor coverage. (Our sample footage, here).

Now, after focusing on their Nanomorph and Proteus anamorphic series for a while, the company seems ready to adventure into the world of full-frame cinema zooms. So let’s take a closer look at their new Ranger series!

Laowa Ranger 28-75mm and 75-180mm T2.9 – features

The new Laowa Ranger series will initially consist of a 28-75mm T2.9 and a 75-180mm T2.9 cinema zoom. Additionally, the company claims that a 16-30mm T2.9 wide-angle member will “soon” join the tribe.

With an image circle of 43.2mm, these cine zooms are designed to cover full-frame imaging sensors. By default, the lenses come with an ARRI PL mount out of the box, but an interchangeable Canon EF lens mount is also included. On top, optional interchangeable lens mount options are available for Canon RF, Sony E, Nikon Z, and Leica L mirrorless systems.

The Ranger zooms are claimed to be parfocal, meaning that focus distance should remain constant when zooming in/out. Furthermore, the lenses seem to have very good close-focus capabilities. Indeed, the minimum focusing distance is 0.49m/1’7” for the 28-75mm and 0.89m/2’11” for the 75-180mm.

Last but not least, the rear section of each lens integrates a back focus adjustment mechanism that should eliminate the need of going through a tedious shimming process.

Optical and physical design

The optical scheme of the Laowa Ranger 28-75mm T2.9 includes 22 elements arranged in 18 groups, while that of the 75-180mm T2.9 consists of 14 elements in 14 groups. The T2.9 aperture features an 11-blade design and both lenses are claimed to showcase minimal focus breathing.

Each lens weighs approximately 1.4kg/3.08 lbs – which is definitely not much for zoom lenses of this kind. Moreover, their size is contained: the 28-75mm measures 17.9cm/7” in length, while the 75-180mm is a tiny bit longer (18.9cm/7.5”). The zooms have a front outer diameter of 80mm and can also accommodate screw-on filters via a dedicated 77mm thread.

The lenses come with M0.8 focus, iris, and zoom gears whose position is unified across the series to facilitate the use of lens accessories, such as a follow focus system. Moreover, the long 270° focus throw should help you achieve smooth focus transitions, while focus markings on the lens barrel are displayed in both metric and imperial units.

Price and availability

The new Laowa Ranger 28-75mm and 75-180mm T2.9 cine zoom lenses are now available to pre-order from the manufacturer’s website. Each lens retails for $2,999, while the 2-piece kit will set you back for $5,799. Moreover, the interchangeable RF/E/Z/L mirrorless lens mounts cost $100 each.

According to Laowa’s webpage, limited quantities of the 2-lens kit are in stock, while the single-lens options should start shipping towards the end of this month.

Major competition in this price range comes from lens series such as DZOFILM’s Catta and Catta ACE or the CHIOPT EXTREME 28-85mm T3.2 and 75-250mm T3.2.

For more information, please visit Laowa’s website here.

Have you ever tried Laowa’s cinema lenses? What do you think of their new Ranger cine zoom series? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!