For those interested, it is on sale for $249 at B&H today only as part of the deals on 8/31/23
Mario
August 27, 2023 7:31 am
I had that lens for 2 weeks before I sent it back. I did like its optical qualities, but when I wanted to dismount it from the camera, I had to turn it back one degree, otherwise it wouldn’t dismount. First I thought I could live with that but it really annoyed me after a few days, especially if I wanted to change lenses in a hurry. That put me off Viltrox a bit. Has anyone else had this problem or was it just bad luck with my sample?
Yep, that happens on my 85mm, and Nikon Ricci notes the same thing in his YouTube review of the lens. It’s never really bothered me that much, though.
Jim
August 26, 2023 4:33 pm
Thanks Spencer. When needing a wide, fast lens on my F mount cameras I’ve been using a couple of Rokinon/Samyangs. It’s almost exclusively for skyscapes at night so AF isn’t really useful. So, I’m not sure how to think about the little Viltrox. For landscape use my zoom at f8-11 is plenty sharp. So, I’m not sure what the Viltrox brings to the table that’s new.
Rob C.
August 26, 2023 2:37 pm
I’ve had the Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 for a couple of years now, and I’ve been pretty impressed with it. The build quality far exceeds that of most $400 lenses, and it performs better than my old F-mount 85mm f/1.8 G.
My reasoning for buying it was that I wanted an 85, but I don’t shoot the FL very often so I didn’t need an 85. So in my case a 50% discount from the price of the S-line lens made a lot of sense. If I suddenly fell in love with the FL and started shooting portraits for money, then I could see upgrading. But for my needs the Viltrox has been great. And my evaluation process would be similar if I were considering a 24mm prime.
Robert John
August 26, 2023 10:53 am
Looks like the Nikon 24-200 is comfortably sharper than the Viltrox at 24mm and f4. I’m sure other photographers will use f1.8 at 24mm, but I haven’t. I’ve got my 85mm for that. I’ve only used one 3P lens other than Sigma or Tamron, and that was a Samyang 85/f1.4 f-mount. It focussed well on my D7500 but not on my Z5 or on the shop’s Z7II. Accordingly I’m a bit suspicious of them. I bought a used 85/f1.8G instead, and that’s a good little number.
There was a time when Sigma and Tamron were known as cheap, low-quality lenses – these things can change quickly! I’d bet Viltrox will start adding weatherproofing and improving their lenses in other ways before long.
Dmitry
August 26, 2023 2:51 am
Thank you for the review and the potential savings of $ 400 to me!) It is generally +/- with my Z 24-200 on matching diaphragms and completely insufficient on open ones. The lack of weather protection and the potential absence of a profile in DxO negates the expediency of its purchase.
Sure thing! Main reason to get it is if you need the f/1.8 aperture at 24mm on a budget. At typical landscape apertures, the 24-200mm and most other 24-XX zooms will be good.
For those interested, it is on sale for $249 at B&H today only as part of the deals on 8/31/23
I had that lens for 2 weeks before I sent it back. I did like its optical qualities, but when I wanted to dismount it from the camera, I had to turn it back one degree, otherwise it wouldn’t dismount. First I thought I could live with that but it really annoyed me after a few days, especially if I wanted to change lenses in a hurry. That put me off Viltrox a bit. Has anyone else had this problem or was it just bad luck with my sample?
Yep, that happens on my 85mm, and Nikon Ricci notes the same thing in his YouTube review of the lens. It’s never really bothered me that much, though.
Thanks Spencer. When needing a wide, fast lens on my F mount cameras I’ve been using a couple of Rokinon/Samyangs. It’s almost exclusively for skyscapes at night so AF isn’t really useful. So, I’m not sure how to think about the little Viltrox. For landscape use my zoom at f8-11 is plenty sharp. So, I’m not sure what the Viltrox brings to the table that’s new.
I’ve had the Viltrox 85mm f/1.8 for a couple of years now, and I’ve been pretty impressed with it. The build quality far exceeds that of most $400 lenses, and it performs better than my old F-mount 85mm f/1.8 G.
My reasoning for buying it was that I wanted an 85, but I don’t shoot the FL very often so I didn’t need an 85. So in my case a 50% discount from the price of the S-line lens made a lot of sense. If I suddenly fell in love with the FL and started shooting portraits for money, then I could see upgrading. But for my needs the Viltrox has been great. And my evaluation process would be similar if I were considering a 24mm prime.
Looks like the Nikon 24-200 is comfortably sharper than the Viltrox at 24mm and f4. I’m sure other photographers will use f1.8 at 24mm, but I haven’t. I’ve got my 85mm for that.
I’ve only used one 3P lens other than Sigma or Tamron, and that was a Samyang 85/f1.4 f-mount. It focussed well on my D7500 but not on my Z5 or on the shop’s Z7II. Accordingly I’m a bit suspicious of them. I bought a used 85/f1.8G instead, and that’s a good little number.
There was a time when Sigma and Tamron were known as cheap, low-quality lenses – these things can change quickly! I’d bet Viltrox will start adding weatherproofing and improving their lenses in other ways before long.
Thank you for the review and the potential savings of $ 400 to me!)
It is generally +/- with my Z 24-200 on matching diaphragms and completely insufficient on open ones.
The lack of weather protection and the potential absence of a profile in DxO negates the expediency of its purchase.
Sure thing! Main reason to get it is if you need the f/1.8 aperture at 24mm on a budget. At typical landscape apertures, the 24-200mm and most other 24-XX zooms will be good.