The path of lens buying has diverged over recent years. In my younger years, photographers simply balanced sharpness against budget. You bought the best you could afford.
Over the last decade and, I would argue, especially since the arrival of the Nikon Z system, things have changed. Sharpness can now be guaranteed without the need to sell parts of one's body. Some lenses have brought sharpness to a clinical level and photographers have begun to talk increasingly about other aspects of the way a lens performs. They talk about the way out of focus areas are presented and the overall way a scene is rendered. They talk positively about aspects of lens performance which realistically come under the heading of imperfections. For some photographers the pendulum has swung back a little away from clinical sharpness to artistic ‘sub perfection’. One might use the term ‘alternate perfection’ Such photographers are seeking something different from a lens other than every last drop of sharpness, contrast and control of aberration.
Some have exploded the market for vintage lenses. Old 1970/80’s Japanese and German lenses that 20 years ago were being sold by weight are now holy grails commanding outrageous figures. Other markets have opened up for brand new, retro, premium lenses giving a contemporary retro experience. One can have a metal body, manual focus for more than the current Autofocus equivalent. In return the buyer gets a thing of beauty that evokes a sense of the great days. In the right hands such lenses do wonderful things.
There is however another route to similar end points and that is one by which I am intrigued. The last few years have seen a huge expansion in the independent lens sector coming out of China. These began mostly as modest manual items often with legacy designs but we are now seeing fully fledged AF lenses giving at least consumer quality output and in some cases genuine pro level specs. Amongst all this are the ‘interesting’ lenses. The ones that seem to have a chance of sitting in and around the vintage classics. The trick here is for the lens to be generally good or excellent and for there to be no horrors anywhere. Beyond this, whatever imperfections there are, need to resolve in an overall look that pleases some or many people. In my case, I'll settle for it pleasing just me.
This brief review looks at the recently released TTArtisan 75mm f2 Full Frame lens, currently available in Sony E and Nikon Z mounts. The main features as as follows:
75mm Focal Range
F2.0 Max Aperture
F16 Minimum Aperture
Filter Thread: 62mm
Max Format: 35mm FF
Weight: 340g / 0.75 lb
Dimensions(øxL): 68mm x 69mm
Min Focus Distance: 0.75m
Max Magnification: 0.13x
Released in September 2024
I bought this example on release day direct from TTArtisan at full price. They are currently on sale for between about £150-200 depending upon whether you buy direct or from a UK camera shop.
The low cost lenses emerging from China are changing dramatically from the manual focus legacy designs of only a few years ago to modern, well made high quality optics. This delightful little lens is small, light, metal bodied and feels very well put together. The AF is quick and quiet ( I’ve no experience of video so can’t comment on that aspect). It does a very good job of selecting the tiny twig, leaf or branch that I’m aiming for on my original Z7. Focus is accurate.
Wide open at f2. Depth of field is shallow as one might expect and rendering is very pleasing
In use it is tiny and seems weightless compared with a Z85mm f1.8. My zeiss 100mm f2 Makro Planar weighs exactly twice as much, even with the FTZ and is more than half as big again. The new model costs roughly 10x what I paid for this TTArtisan and even a s/h version like my own older model is about 4 times the price.
Wide open at f2
Wide open at f2
Zeiss Makro Planar 100mm f2 at f2
TTArtisan 75mm f2 at f2 [ Distances adjusted to give similar filed of view to 100mm/2]
TTArtisan 75mm f2 at f11
TTArtisan 75mm f2 at f2
TTArtisan 75mm f2 at f2. Two images focus stacked.
TTArtisan 75mm f2 at f10
I’ve enjoyed using this lens and appreciated its lack of size and weight. The results are way better than one might have imagined for anything of this specification. The Zeiss is a little bit crisper in the corners but at a price in terms of price and size. The comparisons I made with my *5/1.4 af-d werent too far apart at all. It is very sharp in the centre and falls off gracefully a little towards the edges. To my eye it renders out of focus ares well. They are smooth, not too busy and transitions are pleasant..
Like any such lens, if you plan on using it wide open, the composition is critical. Organising a composition to ensure the elements you want in focus lie in the same plane is an art in itself. Careful focus is of course vital and 100% view in the EVF is ideal for this. If you’re considering a short telephoto lens with a wide aperture and have backed off the Nikon Z85/1.8 S on the grounds on size, weight, price, clinical sharpness or all four, this little lens is well worth a look.