In this review, we are diving in Viltrox 35 mm f/1.2, a lens that surprised me in the best ways. I have this thing in my hands for more than a month and now used it in several sessions, and – Spiiler Alert – It is one of the best and cheapest 35 mm lenses for Sony.
As you dive into the review, please keep in mind that all my conclusions and opinions of this lens are based on a pre-production model.
build quality
Physically, the lens feels really solid – more premium than my expectation. It is not small in any way, but it is manageable and well balanced on my camera, considering a f/1.2. Compared to my Sony 35 mm f/1.4 cz, 35 mm f/1.2 Heavy, broad, and a long tall. But given the additional limit on the aperture, this is to be expected. For control, this lens offers everything you expect from a modern mirrorless camera. It has an AF/MF switch, a declining switch, two FN buttons and an aperture ring. Only one thing is really missing the locking switch for the aperture ring. And then one thing is that most of the lenses are not, the small LCD screen that displays focus distance and aperture settings.
And this small screen is required to tell you an aperture setting because the lens has no aperture mark. This is because the aperture ring rotates immensely in both directions. So you have to look at the screen on either LCD screen or your camera on which setting you are on and how this setting is changing. And this is really my only and biggest things that I do not like about the lens. Not only this setup allows you to make changes during the camera closing, but this ring is also not very accurate in the way you work. When the lens is set to f/1.2, a slight pressure can be potentially converted to f/1.3 without a click. From here, the lens sometimes takes one click to make aperture adjustments, sometimes two click, and sometimes even three clicks. And I cannot understand any poem or reason that one click will not always be equal to an aperture adjustment. Thankfully, you can throw the ring into one so that the lens can get the camera control. But due to no locking switch on the lens, you can easily return the ring into manual control on the lens.
Another defect here is that at any time you turn the camera off and turn back, the lens will be back to f/1.2. Not only does this mean that you have to reset your aperture setting every time when you turn the camera on or turn, but you also have to make a huge ring adjustment to bring the lens back to the settings every time.
The last thing I want to talk about in the context of build elements is two FN buttons. These buttons come with some cool pairs of functionality, but do not even give you some functionality that you can expect. For one, these two buttons, through a simple setup process on the lens, set you up an FN button for cycling through the preset focus distance. So if you have a camera on a tripod, you can move from one focus point to another and back and back. For example, you can focus on the stars and then quickly turn into an foreground element without transferring your camera or move the focus points around. Or you can focus on the bride and then go to the groom – with a simple press of a button on all lenses. However, the negative side here is that while the lens has two FN buttons, my Sony cameras only recognize one of the buttons for programming custom functions. And when you may be able to establish other functionality with the Wiltrox app at the time of testing, the lens was not yet supported by the app.
Fierceness
When it comes to sharpness, this lens is a top level. The Wiltrox is part of the lab chain of 35 mm f/1.2 lens, which keeps it in the highest quality category for the company. And when it comes to sharpness, it is equally better or better than some Sony native glass. And thankfully, it is in the acute center and goes all the way to the corners. Even at f/1.2, I would be more than getting ready to keep a subject in the top corner and be convinced that the subject will be very opposite.
Vignating
It is one of those areas that, for me, okay. But if you are someone who does not like a good vignet, then you may need to stop for the best image quality. Because on f/1.2, there is a noticeable amount of the vignet. As you step below 1.2, you can see things cleaning on 1.4, and things become even better around f/2.
But a strange thing here is that as you go from f/1.2 to f/1.4, while the vignet gets better, in fact the center of the frame has a dark location that shows. Then, as you continue on f/2, vignetes and dark spots go away.
Other optical properties
For other optical elements, I found that deformation was handled very well. Even looking at an untouched raw file (there is no in-camera improvement and no lighter lens correction), the lens handles deformation very well. In the context of the new mirrorless lens, I think the manufacturers have started relying too much on post-production lens reforms. So it is good to see that this lens handles things very well outside the gate.
As Bokeh, the reproduction is good and clean, and you only see the boke of the cat’s eye with corners and edges at f/1.2. But it cleans very quickly around F/2.
When it comes to provoking it, I like to erupt a good in my images. And this lens also distributes it even when there is a good amount of contrast. At f/1.2 it is more noticeable, and it is rapidly going to f/1.4 and then almost more on F/2.
Autofocus
Autofocus on this lens is really good. I had never had a lens hunt or miss focus, even when F/1.2 was shot nearly. And when I have no specific tests that tell a way or another, I think the new Sony GM lens is a bit sharp. But viltrox is not slow in any way. In fact, I would say that is connected to me Sony A9 IIII have tried on the system of any other competitive brand compared to any lens. But, because the Wiltrox is clearly from a third party, you will not get access to things such as 120 frames per second on Sony A9 III, and you are limited to 1/16,000 shooting 1/16,000 of 1/16,000 instead of a potential 1/80,000, you can get with supported lenses. So it is to keep in mind if these characteristics are important to you.
What did i like
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Fast f/1.2
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More cheaper than other f/1.2 prasad and more cheaper than f/1.4 Prasad
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The size and weight for a f/1.2 lens is very good and manageable
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Fast and accurate autofocus
What i didn’t like
conclusion
While there are some quirks and things that I really don’t love this lens, it’s still Best and cheapest 35 mm f/1.2 lenses Sony is available for e-mount. The size and weight are more than acceptable, and the optical performance goes well to amazing.
