12 lenses of Christmas: Laowa and Viltrox try to outdo each other for most new lenses in the same month!

For each of the 12 days of Christmas, I’m revisiting a month’s worth of lenses that we covered on DCW. Today it's September 2025… check out the other 12 lenses of Christmas!

Almost like it was a competition to see who could bring the most new stuff to the party at the IBC expo in Amsterdam, Venus Optics announced no less than six new lenses.

Making potentially the biggest splash was the new Laowa AF FF 200mm f/2 C-Dreamer, with a tilt-shift tag team of FF II TS 35mm f/2.8 C-Dreamer Macro 0.5x and FF II TS 17mm f/4 C-Dreamer playing supporting roles.

There was also a new AF FF 180mm f/4.5 C-Dreamer Macro 1.5x and a pair of lenses for cinematographers in the movie star likeness of the Sunlight 40–80mm T4.5 2x and Sunlight 70–135mm T4.5 2x.

Not to be outdone, Viltrox showed up at IBC with a new AF 50mm f/1.4 Pro, a tandem of lightweight ultra-wide AF 9mm f/2.8 Air (APS-C) and AF 14mm f/4.0 Air (Full-frame) primes, the beginnings of a whole new series in the AF 85mm f/2.0 Evo and even a ‘mech-inspired’ Viltrox Z3 mini-flash.

And as if all that wasn’t enough, ten was another milestone number for Viltrox as it became the tenth official member of the L-Mount Alliance.

Hey, it’s still September and not too late for a summer vacation. A ground-breaking, globe-trotting new travel lens was revealed in just one of three simultaneous Sigma announcements.

That was the full-frame compatible all-in-one Sigma 20-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DG Contemporary, designed to be versatile and robust for the journey. It also takes the title for the most astonishingly wide maximum viewing angle for a ‘superzoom’ lens, and at a modest price of just $999 / £799.

There were also prime announcements of the super-fast Sigma 35mm f/1.2 DG II Art at $1,549 / £1,299 and the Sigma 135mm f/1.4 DG | Art at $1,899 / £1,649, the last being another groundbreaking lens as the world’s first 135mm f/1.4 prime.

Yet more (but separate) news from Sigma centered on the Sigma AF Cine Line 28-45mm T2 FF as its first autofocus cine lens for Sony and L-mount shooters.

Aiming not to be left out of the all-in-one news, Tamron also announced that it was developing a new Tamron 25-200mm f/2.8-5.6 Di III VXD G2 full-frame superzoom.

Meanwhile, Canon rumors suggested the company was working on new 1.2x wide-angle super macro RF lenses. For the here and now, there was the launch of the Canon Cine-Servo 11-55mm T2.95-3.95, also to be known by the even less catchy title of the CN5x11 IAS T R1/P1, or as we called it, ‘an 8K behemoth’.

Getting back to ‘super-macro’ lenses, Sony launched its first ever G Master lens to deliver an oversized 1.4x magnification. Indeed, the Sony FE 100mm f/2.8 Macro GM OSS can serve up a whopping 2.8x magnification if you use it with a 2x teleconverter. The price of the lens was set at $1,498 / £1,400 / AU$2,599.

Meanwhile, the previously reported LK Samyang Schneider-Kreuznach (or Rokinon) AF 24-60mm F2.8 FE for Sony cameras hit the shelves, and the company also teased some LK Samyang L-Mount lenses in the pipeline.

Okay, here’s some big news of a big lens, albeit in a more compact build than you might imagine.

I'm talking about the new Panasonic Lumix S 100-500mm f/5-7.1 OIS, which was unveiled as the company’s most powerful telephoto zoom for L-mount cameras, complete with ‘industry-leading’ optical stabilization worth up to 7 stops. Pricing was advertised at $2,099 / £1,799 / AU$3,699.

Delivering seriously powerful super-telephoto reach from a relatively compact and lightweight package, we proclaimed, “The reason to shoot Micro Four Thirds isn’t the sensor – it’s the lenses. This new 100-400mm equivalent f/2.8 zoom is a prime example!”

The lens in question was the new OM System 50-200mm f/2.8 IS Pro, which delivers an equivalent 100-400mm zoom range in full-frame terms, complete with a constant f/2.8 aperture. Launching at $3,699 / £2,999 / AU$4,999, the purchase price is also a lot smaller than equivalent full-frame lenses, if you could even find one.

Actually, I do remember a Sigma 200-500mm f/2.8 lens for DSLRs – but it was about the size of a house and cost nearly as much, at around $29,000 / £15,000. Maybe that’s why the OM System lens was such an instant hit that back-order delays promptly followed.

Oddball lenses to land on our news desk in September were many and varied. There was the AstrHori 18mm f/5.6 APS-C pancake shift lens in E, L, X and Z-mount for $119, and the promise of an unfeasibly fast telephoto LLL 300mm f/1.9 Apo for medium-format cameras.

The more mainstream 7Artisans AF 24mm f/1.8 became available for Nikon Z and L-mount cameras at just $329, while the Laowa 180mm f/4.5 1.5x Ultra Macro Apo in several mount options weighed in at pretty much the same weight as a loaf of bread.

Then there was the ultra-light, ultra-cheap Brightin Star 10mm f/5.6 Pro APS-C format fisheye lens for just $109, although the UK price has since gone up from £82 to £188. Quite a hike! And finally, there was the dinky little Lailens 50mm f/1.1, reported to weigh less than 338g and vying to be the smallest f/1.1 lens in the world.

On the reviews front, September spawned a monster schedule. ‘Hectic’ doesn’t even cover it. And there were some instant classics in the mix as well, so here they are blow by blow, in date order.

First up was the Nikon Z 24‑70mm f/2.8 S II, the company’s best ever standard zoom. Then we moved on to the mighty Zhongyi Mitakon 55mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro and the epic Panasonic Lumix S 100-500mm f/5-7.1 OIS, followed up with the more down-to-earth Panasonic Lumix S 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 Macro OIS.

Two ultra-small but ultra-wide-angle primes followed, in the diminutive shapes of the Viltrox AF 14mm f/4 Air for full-frame cameras and the APS-C format Viltrox AF 9mm f/2.8 Air.

We went hands-on with the OM System M.Zuiko 50-200mm f/2.8 IS Pro, tested the long-awaited Canon RF 85mm f/1.4L VCM and finished off with the APS-C format but suitably pro-grade Viltrox AF 56mm f/1.2 Pro. Phew! And so to bed…

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Looking for more best-in-class glass? Take a look at the best Canon RF lenses, the best Nikon Z lenses, the best Sony lenses all for full-frame and APS-C bodies. For crop sensor cameras, check out the best Fujifilm lenses and the best Micro Four Thirds lenses. And for medium format, these are the best Fujifilm GF lenses and the best Hasselblad lenses.