Ludwig or Ernst Ludwig was a German optical company. It was based at Lausa, a small town near Dresden that merged with the neighbour town of Weixdorf in 1938. Some prewar lenses were thus marked Ludwig Lausa Dresden. Ludwig made entry level lenses, often with three elements. After the war, they were offered as a low price alternative to the Carl Zeiss Jena or Meyer lenses. In 1972 it was absorbed in VEB Kamerafabrik Freital, and in 1980 it fell under VEB Pentacon.