Viltrox 50mm F2 Air – A Brand New and Very Impressive ‘nifty fifty’

Lens manufacturer Viltrox has added an autofocus 50mm f2 to its Air Series of optics, described by the manufacturer as ‘compact, lightweight and versatile.’ It covers full-frame digital cameras and retails for $199 or 229 Euros, so is more expensive than the existing Sony 50mm f1.8 FE which can be bought for £159 in the UK, though some reviews of the Sony have pointed out slow autofocus on older Sony bodies, and the autofocus being noisy.

The Viltrox 50mm F2 Air is now available in Sony FE and Nikon Z mounts, and I’ve been using the lens in Sony FE mount on my Sony A9 mirrorless camera and the results have been impressive. The pictures were edited in Adobe Lightroom Classic, but as the lens is so new there wasn’t a lens profile available, so the pictures presented here have no corrections for vignetting, chromatic aberrations or geometric distortion, but the results are impressive, nonetheless.

When I first got into photography it was common to buy a 35mm SLR camera with a ‘standard lens’, usually a 50mm f1.8 or a more expensive 50mm f1.4 – now often referred to as a ‘nifty fifty’. Over time it became more common to buy an autofocus SLR, and later DSLR, with a ‘standard zoom’ ranging from a moderate wide angle to short telephoto focal length. It has been refreshing to get back into the mindset of using a fixed focal length.

The Viltrox 50mm F2 Air is supplied in high quality packaging, coming with front and rear lens caps, a matched bayonet reversible lens hood, and a drawstring pouch. The body, focusing ring and lens hood are all constructed of plastic, which helps keep the weight down to a modest 205g (seven ounces). The lens mount is made of metal.

The optical formula consists of 13 elements in nine groups, and nine aperture blades. The autofocus, which worked accurately on my A9 camera, is internal focusing, meaning the lens doesn’t extend as it is focused on closer objects. Viltrox states the closest focus is 51 cm (20 inches) though in practice I could focus closer than that, more like 30cm or 12 inches. The autofocus speed and accuracy was comparable to my Sony Zeiss Sonnar ZA 55mm f1.8 which I’ve owned for several years. The Sony lens has a metal body but is longer and feels heavier – weighing 280g as opposed to the Viltrox’s 205g.

The small, concave, front element is quite exposed but could be protected by a filter – the filter thread being a fairly large 58mm diameter.

Viltrox state ‘this lens delivers exceptional image quality with a fast F2 aperture, making it the ultimate tool for photographers and videographers who need both portability and performance. As part of the Air Series, this lens is designed to help you carry less, capture more—whether you’re capturing portraits, street scenes, or landscapes.’ I used it on several occasions near where I live in Gloucestershire and was pleasantly surprised by its performance.

Vignetting is noticeable at the widest aperture, but this could be corrected as and when Adobe adds a lens profile to its Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) software.
I took photos of the Kingswood Abbey Gatehouse in Gloucestershire, built in the 12th century by Cistercian monks, at the full range of apertures to analyse the performance. Central sharpness is excellent at all apertures though vignetting is obvious at F2. That vignetting disappears when stopped down to f4. Image quality across the frame is impressive even at the widest aperture, and any slight softness at the edges of the picture disappears when stopped down to F4. Pictures are still impressively sharp the minimum aperture of F16 with little signs of diffraction softening the picture.

The Viltrox 50mm F2 Air handles flare very well, and when shooting into the sun very subtle ‘starbursts’ are visible even at fairly wide apertures, but not significant enough to be distracting. Similarly, there is very little chromatic aberration in high contrast scenes. Colour rendition is also very impressive, even in contre-jour shots.

Viltrox states ‘The F2 aperture provides a smooth, natural bokeh that isolates your subject with ease, perfect for portraits and creative shots. The wide aperture lets in more light, making the 50mm/F2 Air ideal for low-light environments without sacrificing sharpness or detail.’

Bokeh, how the out-of-focus areas of a photo are rendered, is a subjective topic but I found it smooth and not distracting, and the focused area impressively sharp – judge for yourself in the photo of the iron railings below.

The Viltrox 50mm F2 Air joins a long list of other third-party manufacturers’ 50mm options for Sony FE, as well as Sony’s array of standard lenses, ranging from the £159 50mm F1.8 to the top-of the range 50mm F1.2 GM lens at £1,499.

If, like me, you spend most of the time with a 24-105mm F4 lens on the camera, the Viltrox is small and light enough to keep in your camera bag for those occasions when you need a wider aperture and shallower depth of field that is also a great performer and doesn’t break the bank!

You can find more on the Viltrox website here

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