Viltrox has been making third party lenses for a while now and has been hitting the benchmark of build and quality at a very reasonable price range. Their latest version, the 13mm f/1.4, is aimed at photographers and vloggers.
First off, I'll say that I do prefer Viltrox lenses, especially the 85mm f/1.8, I've had it on two different bodies Nikon systems, and I'm currently using it on a Nikon Z 7II. But that’s not to say this review is biased in any way. I wanted the lens for one specific reason, vlogging, so I could lock it on a wide aperture and let the lens do the rest. My current vlog setup is a Nikon Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens, which is around the 20mm mark, so combining it with the Viltrox 13mm f/1.4 and the crop factor gives me a wider aperture and lower cost The focal length range I'm after.
Build and handling
The lens is solid, the metal construction is machined to a high standard, and it feels more expensive than it actually is. Whether this is a benefit is up to the user, but it will definitely make your investment feel worth it, and at just $429 , you'll definitely get your money's worth. I have the Viltrox AF 85mm f/1.8 Z and I love using the lens for different subjects, but my one complaint about it is the lens hood. It's really annoying and I'm lucky if I can get it to work right the first or second time. When I took the metal lens hood of this lens out of the box and tried to attach it, it worked without any issues, as it should. The
lens mount has a USB-C port, which should mean future-proofing the lens through firmware updates. I haven't had to update yet, so I can't say whether it will be a smooth process, but I'm sure it will be. There's no weather sealing on the lens, but since it's an internal focus lens, there shouldn't be too much concern about dust getting in. The aperture can be controlled through the lens, which I prefer. The lens feels like a Fuji lens in build and operation, so that's a plus. The aperture ring can also be used very smoothly manually, or can be locked for automatic use with the camera. The
does not have lens stabilization, which means you have to rely on the camera's own IBIS for handheld shooting or shooting. However, this is not a bad thing as most cameras these days have IBIS. This also keeps the price of the lens low and competitive.
Performance The
autofocus is surprisingly fast, not that I thought it wouldn't, but it performs faster than I actually expected and produces good results every time. For the examples below, I used point focus and provided the initial shot plus a 100% zoom of the focus area so you can see the results. The following image was taken at f/1.4 to see how the lens looks wide open, and for the purposes of this review I simply enabled Auto in Lightroom.
It is not a bulky or heavy lens, at only 429 grams it can easily be carried around all day if you want to be able to shoot in different lighting conditions. It also performs well at different apertures, with no obvious flaws that ruin the image. For myself, the sweet spot is between the f/5.6 and f/8 ranges, and although it performs well at f/1.4, I tend to prefer f/2.8 for my photography. Shooting at f/1.4 is a dream and for any vlogger who is considering this lens I would definitely go for it as it has such a lovely bokeh transition on this site.
The phone lens below should hopefully give you a context of the distance between the lens and the bridge wall. This photo is related to the first image in the gallery, which is a series of photos taken at different apertures from f/2.8 to f/16.
What I like
I am a fan of the aperture ring on the lens.This can be locked so your camera controls aperture. The lens itself isn't heavy, although I wouldn't want to use it for a full day of vlogging. Lenses combined with gimbal will be the right combination for longer vlogging sessions. Did I mention the lens hood? Well, it connects exactly as it should, with no clunky or curse-involved frustrations like my past efforts with 85mm.
What I don’t like
So far I haven’t found anything bad about the lens. If anything, the aperture is so smooth I think you could knock it out while using it manually. I've been shooting with the lens mostly locked on a tripod, so there's really no chance of moving it around a bit, and your on-screen display will indicate if the aperture has moved before or after the shot. On the Nikon Z 7iI, selecting image area in the menu is disabled, so I can only assume that might be coming in an update.
Conclusion
At this price and with a wide aperture of f/1.4, this lens is really worth considering adding to your kit. Whether it's photography or vlogging, it performs well. For me it's going to be mainly used for vlogging, but that's its intended use anyway. However, I could see this being used as a general lens when I'm walking around the city or countryside. It's not the smallest lens around, but it's also not the most obtrusive for everyday carry. It covers many sizes.
Bokeh at wider apertures is very acceptable, with a lovely transition between focus point and background. It's a sharp lens with minimal edge distortion.
If you're using this for vlogging, I don't think you can get a better lens with such a wide aperture anywhere close to this price range at the moment, so the money will be well worth it. The focal length is just right for handheld, face-to-face footage, keeping your background and face well positioned in the scene. The wide aperture also helps set it apart, and considering there's almost no focus breathing, it'll definitely give you the results you're looking for.
From a general photography perspective, I really enjoy using this lens in different situations. I also like the challenge of being fixed on one focal length when out shooting as I feel like it tightens up your composition skills to a certain extent. The
Viltrox 13mm f/1.4 has excellent sharpness and is very portable at a very competitive price, making it a lens definitely worth considering.
