LENS TEST
EXPERT OPINION ON THE LATEST KIT
A ‘pro’ lens with a consumer price tag
www.viltroxstore.com £420/$545
The Viltrox AF 27mm F1.2 Pro picks up the baton from some seriously good f/1.4 lenses that are available in Fujifilm X, Nikon Z and Sony E mount options. We were impressed by the Viltrox AF 23mm F1.4 Z, Viltrox AF 33mm F1.4 Z and Viltrox AF 56mm F1.4 Z, which are all pretty much the same size and weight, plus the slightly larger Viltrox AF 13mm F1.4 Z. Personally, I was so impressed by these four lenses that I bought them outright as my go-to lenses for when I’m shooting with my Nikon Z fc camera.
Combining fast and consistently accurate autofocus with good handling characteristics, Viltrox’s back catalogue of lenses include de-clicked aperture rings and are terrific value at the price, although the 23mm, 33mm and 56mm lack weather seals. The newer 27mm lens, which so far is available in Fujifilm X and Nikon Z mounts, sets the bar higher with its ‘Pro’ badge and superfast f/1.2 aperture, along with a feast of upmarket features. It’s naturally bigger and heavier than the trio of 23mm, 33mm and 56mm f/1.4 lenses, and getting on for twice the price, but is still standout value for money.
Key features
The 27mm focal length of this APS-C format lens gives an ‘effective’ 40.5mm in full-frame terms, with a viewing angle of 55.3 degrees. It’s a little wider than a standard 50mm lens, but not quite as wide as a 35mm lens (again, in full-frame terms). I find the focal length works well for everyday walkabout shooting and street photography.
A key feature of the lens is its super-fast f/1.2 aperture rating. This enables a tight depth of field, which is always more challenging with crop-sensor cameras that with full-frame models. The quality of bokeh comes to the fore and, to help maintain good bokeh when stopping down a little, the lens features a particularly well-rounded 11-blade aperture diaphragm. A further bonus of the speedy aperture rating is that you can retain fast shutter speeds for freezing action, even under gloomy or indoor lighting conditions.
As we’ve come to expect from a lens with a linear stepping motorbased autofocus system, it enables fast autofocus for stills, as well as being
