The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift and the Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH is the longer of the two lenses at 238mm. The Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift with a length of 99mm, is 139mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH also has a larger diameter of 88mm compared to the Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift's 80mm diameter.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift weighs 575g, which means it is 415g (41%) lighter than the Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH which has a weight of 990g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Wideangle Zoom Lenses in Leica L Mount for size comparison purposes.
Ultra-Wideangle Lenses in Leica L Mount for Size Comparison
Lens Mounts
Both the Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift and the Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH has the same Leica L lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Leica L lenses are Leica TL2, Leica TL and Leica T Typ 701.
Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift is also available in the Sony E , Nikon Z, Canon RF, Fujifilm X and Leica M mounts.
Focal Range
Laowa 12-24mm f5.6 Shift has a focal range of 12-24mm and
2.0X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
18-36mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
On the other hand, the Leica 16-35mm F3.5-4.5 ASPH has a focal range of 16-35mm and 2.2X zoom ratio .
