Viltrox AF 16mm f/1.8 FE: B&H Photo / Amazon
Optical Limits published its full Viltrox AF 16mm f/1.8 FE review which you can read in full here. You can also check out the excerpt from the review below:
The Viltrox AF 16mm f/1.8 FE impressed us, to say the least… the lens has performed surprisingly well both in our lab as well as during field sessions. The center performance is exceptionally high – most manufacturers manage to do this. However, the Viltrox lens is also capable of providing high-quality results in the outer image field. At f/1.8 and f/2.2, the image corners are already pretty good. At medium aperture settings, the borders/corners are boosted to very good levels – surpassing even the Sony FE 14mm f/1.8 GM here. The field curvature is also very moderate. Lateral CAs are low. Another almost baffling aspect is the near-absence of image distortions in RAW images. The vignetting is high at f/1.8 – more so in RAW images – although that’s to be expected in this lens class. Auto-corrected images show a reasonably low light falloff from about f/2.8 onward. Viltrox also made progress with their lens coating – backlight is handled quite well.
The build quality of the Viltrox AF 16mm f/1.8 FE is very high, thanks to a dust-proof, all-metal construction with internal focusing. Viltrox kept the weight at a reasonable 550g. The lens also features higher-end goodies such as a dedicated aperture ring with a clickless mode option and custom buttons… distance scale via an LCD display… STM AF is decently fast and noiseless. Video shooters will also appreciate the lack of focus breathing…
Many users may still not be aware of Viltrox as a lens manufacturer, but they are becoming a force to be reckoned with. The AF 16mm f/1.8 FE leaves the Laowa 15mm f/2 far behind in the dust. It’s a very serious alternative to Sony’s own offering. And Viltrox managed this at a much lower price tag. Therefore – Highly Recommended!
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