Choosing a quality portrait lens can be overwhelming, especially with so many options claiming professional-level performance. If you’re looking for a sharp, versatile lens that doesn’t break the bank, the Viltrox AF 135mm f/1.8 LAB is worth considering.
Coming to you from Prince Meyson, this comprehensive video explores the Viltrox 135mm f/1.8 lens and its performance. Meyson highlights the build quality, describing it as sturdy and professional. The lens is made from a mix of magnesium alloy and plastic, featuring a rubberized focus ring, a clickable aperture dial, and a small LCD screen that displays focus distance and aperture settings. While the screen is a minor feature, it adds a modern touch to the lens. The package also includes a sleek, leather-like pouch, making it feel more premium than its $764 price tag suggests.
Meyson emphasizes sharpness as the standout feature of this lens. At f/1.8, the Viltrox captures intricate details, making it ideal for portraits. The lens performs exceptionally well between f/4 and f/5.6, delivering crisp, vivid images. Colors are well-rendered, and vignetting is minimal, giving you the flexibility to add more in post-processing if desired.
Key Specs
- Focal Length: 135mm
- Maximum Aperture: f/1.8
- Lens Mount: Sony E
- Lens Format Coverage: Full Frame
- Focus Type: Autofocus
- Filter Size: 82 mm
- Minimum Focus Distance: 2.36' / 0.72 m
- Maximum Magnification: 0.25x
- Optical Design: 14 elements in 9 groups
- Diaphragm Blades: 11
- Dimensions: 3.7 x 5.7" (93 x 145.7 mm)
- Weight: 2.7 lb (1235 g)
Meyson notes that while the autofocus is reliable, it isn’t quite at the level of Sony’s G Master lenses. For portrait or wedding photography, this isn’t a dealbreaker, as the lens consistently locks focus on the subject’s eyes with minimal effort. However, it may struggle with fast-moving subjects, making it less ideal for sports or action photography. The lens is also heavier than similar models, which could feel unbalanced on smaller camera bodies.
Meyson sees room for improvement in a future version of this lens, particularly in reducing weight and enhancing autofocus performance. Despite these minor drawbacks, he concludes that the Viltrox 135mm f/1.8 LAB offers incredible value, delivering results comparable to lenses that cost double or triple the price. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Meyson.
As a hobbyist and not really a portrait capturer it is refreshing to see a review that really shows sharpness even at the F1.8 and also saying the sweet spot is F4/5. What I did not see is at 1.8 and eye AF with sharp eyes but also the tip of the nose and ears also in focus, maybe the distance from subject. What I am pointing out is when I use my FE 90 mm F2.8 Macro G OSS or my FE 50mm F1.8 and I have them at wide open and eye AF on I get a blurry nose tip and ears, yea maybe distance is the thing.
But I use the FE 24-105mm f/4 and get great bokeh balls and even using my FE 24-240mm I get great bokeh blur in backgrounds of distance subjects but very sharp heads.
I mean just getting things and being surprised at results. At the price and lack of use over time it would be nice to have in a bag of tricks, for there comes times!!!
1. FE 50mm F1.8
2. FE 24-105mm F4
3. FE 24-240mm F3.5-6.3 OSS
4. FE 50mm F1.8