The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Laowa 17mm f4 Shift and the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z 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. Laowa 17mm f4 Shift is the longer of the two lenses at 111mm. The Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z with a length of 56mm, is 55mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Laowa 17mm f4 Shift also has a larger diameter of 93mm compared to the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z's 65mm 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. Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z weighs 175g, 77% (595g) lighter than the Laowa 17mm f4 Shift's weight of 770g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Perspective Control Prime Lenses in Nikon Z Mount for size comparison purposes.
Ultra-Wideangle Lenses in Nikon Z Mount for Size Comparison
Filter Threads
The Laowa 17mm f4 Shift has a filter size of 86mm whereas the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z has a 58mm diameter. Larger filters are generally more expensive than the smaller ones given all the other features are equal.
Below are links to the 86mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the Laowa 17mm f4 Shift:
And these are the 58mm filters that we recommend for the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z:
Lens Mounts
Both the Laowa 17mm f4 Shift and the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z has the same Nikon Z lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Nikon Z lenses are Nikon ZR, Nikon Z5 II and RED Komodo-X 6K Z.
Laowa 17mm f4 Shift is also available in the Sony E , Canon RF and Leica L mounts.
Focal Range
Laowa 17mm f4 Shift is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 17mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides a 35mm (FF) equivalent of
25.5mm.
On the other hand, the Viltrox 9mm F2.8 Z is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 9mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 13.5mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
