As I grew older, my camera preferences has also evolved. I traded my DSLR camera to a mirrorless camera because of size. Then I started using prime lenses for compact and image quality. Also tried using manual lenses like the 7artisans 35mm F1.2 – one of my favorite lenses. However, I soon found out that it was not my preferred focal length for everyday use. Also, I’m kind of over using manual lenses and wanted to keep things simpler and fast.
Now came the new Viltrox 28mm F4.5 AF “Chip” lens. A cheap autofocus pancake lens from Chinese lens maker, Viltrox. I know Chinese companies often gets bad rep. But with what 7artisans, TTartisans, Viltrox and other Chinese lens makers have done in the past, I think that impression has long been gone. To put it simply, this lens is unique and awesome!
The Viltrox 28mm F4.5 lens only cost me less than $80 (Php 4000) after discounts, very cheap for a full frame autofocus lens. It has a focal length of 28mm in full-frame and around 42-45mm equivalent on an APS-C camera. The APS-C equivalent is very similar to a fixed lens rangefinder film camera. The lens is made mostly out of plastic but doesn’t feel cheap. The main uniqueness of this lens besides the size is that it has a fixed aperture at F4.5 and doesn’t have manual focus control. Set any camera to auto, and now you have a modern compact point-and-shoot.
What’s great about this lens, and most might disagree, is its simplicity. Obviously it doesn’t have a zoom, it doesn’t have an aperture control and no manual focus. That’s a first for me actually, to have a lens that has autofocus and not manual focus control. Speaking of autofocus, the Viltrox 28mm F4.5 lens has decent autofocus. It is fast and accurate most of the time. However, its performance takes a hit on low light situations. The lens cover is also clever as it is built-in the lens, no more loosing the lens cap!
I think one of the downside of its simplicity (aside from having a fixed aperture) is that it doesn’t have a filter thread. So there’s no way to attach a filter or a lens hood. Which is a bummer, since the lens suffer from heavy flare specially when shooting against a light source.
Still, as mentioned before, the Viltrox 28mm F4.5 lens performs good optically on right situations. Sharp images, good colors, decent and quiet autofocus – best of all, very discreet.
Since the lens is fixed at F4.5 aperture. Getting enough light on gloomy days or in any low light situation can be a challenge. You can always use a flash, use higher ISO, or play with slow shutter speeds to add motions to your images like the photo above.
The colors the lens produces are also great! These photos are almost straight out of camera with just slight tweaks on the exposure but no color corrections. Also, the decent autofocus makes the lens usable when shooting kids or any moving subjects.
Using the Viltrox 28mm F4.5 lens makes any camera like a point-and-shoot but produces better image quality. I found this lens better paired with already compact cameras like the Fujifilm X-E3 to make it even stealthier – my kind of camera for street photography. But remember, this is also a full frame lens and will give you more field of view on full-frame cameras. Current mount available as of writing are Fujifilm X-mount (APS-C), Sony E-Mount (APS-C and Full frame), and Nikon Z-mount (APS-C and Full frame).
King 