Laowa has announced its new Laowa Ultima 12-120mm T4 S35 Zoom which is being touted as a good option for those shooting news or documentaries with Super35-sized sensor cameras.
12-120mm is an incredible range, especially for a lens of this size. The lens covers a lot of the focal lengths users require when shooting fast-paced content.
You could certainly use this lens for a wide array of applications including reality TV shows, news, some sports, documentaries, music videos, corporate work, etc.
It can be paired with an optional MOVCAM Servo Unit for control of focus, zoom, and aperture when doing studio or ENG/EFP work. Currently, the lens will only be available in ARRI PL mount, but Laowa may make a B4 mount version in the future based on market demand.
The lens covers image circles of up to 29.5mm and it has a 114mm front diameter.
As you would expect a lens like this requires a lot of glass! The optical construction of the lens consists of 28 elements in 20 groups and there are 9 aperture blades.
The minimum focusing distance is 1m /3.3′.
The lens weighs in at 3.2kg /7 lb so it is a little on the heavy side, but considering the range and constant T4 aperture I think Laowa has done a good job in keeping the weight down.
The Laowa Ultima 12-120mm T4 S35 Zoom will be available between Q3 2024 – Q1 2025. I don’t currently have any information about pricing.
