Can an $800 f/0.95 Lens Compete With a $8,000 Option?

No doubt, many of us would love the extremely thin depth of field and light-gathering powers of an f/0.95 lens, and the price range of those options covers a huge range. Can an $800 f/0.95 lens keep up with an $8,000 f/0.95 lens? This great video review compares the Mitakon Zhongyi Speedmaster 50mm f/0.95 III to the Nikon NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lens to find out.

Coming to you from Christopher Frost, this awesome video review compares the $800 Mitakon Zhongyi Speedmaster 50mm f/0.95 III to the $8,000 Nikon NIKKOR Z 58mm f/0.95 S Noct lens. Of course, at literally 10 times the price of the Mitakon, you would expect the Nikon to be a better performer, but I was truly impressed by just how remarkably good the 58mm f/0.95 was in comparison. Seeing it compared to another option really brings into relief the optical achievement of the lens. But of course, at $8,000, you would expect it to be a stellar performer, and unless you truly need the absolute top performance, the Mitakon might be a better choice for the sort of fun creative experimentation a lot of people use such an ultra-wide-aperture lens for. Check out the video above for Frost's thoughts on both lenses. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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5 Comments

The Mitakon is so bad it is even worse than any regular 50mm f/1.8 of any camera manufacturer of the last many decades. Such comparisons do not make any sense at all.

Oof. I remember watching a Mikaton macro lens review and the thing was absolutely covered in grease lol. They seem to be the dollar store quality lens company.

The Mitakon is garbage right out of the box. After purchase it should be added to scrap metal for recycling. Any nifty fifty 50mm is better. The Zeiss 50/1/4 zf is blurry at wides aperature and considered 'not usable'. This Mitakon, however, is the death trap of your wallet. The entire product is scam. It is a 1.8 with a gaped aperature.
The comparson doesn't make sense either.

Good lord gouda above that lens is MAHOOSIVE lol.

So the Mitakon is an overpriced f4 that has blades that happen to open up wide and let you take really bad photos