7Artisans 35/0.95 APS-C review - Superfast standard prime! 

Thanks!

Maybe you'll like the TT Artisan 35/0.95 as well, which is a bit weaker at f/0.95 than the 7Artisans.

I didn’t shoot any of those 35mm f/1.2 lenses yet. They’re a bit older designs and in my opinion, the lenses from these emerging Chinese suppliers have matured quite a bit from ~2016ish to ~2020 and newer. Maybe I should once review these older 35/1.2’s though because (1) they’re still sold new and (2) I realize many of you are still asking for it.

Thanks! Glad you enjoy this lens!

Hey M M ! Thanks for your feedback - very much appreciated! Very understandable - you can't have them all! I'm glad you enjoy the TT Artisan lens (as I still do for myself!).

@@tomscameras yeah, 1.4 is very, very balanced I'd say; super compact & light, sharp and fast enough in most low light situations, aaand CHEAP, just love it.

Well, many thanks! I appreciate your feedback!

Thanks Tony! Hope you're having a good time and looking forward to your next videos already!

I think this lens is very good for really low-light scenarios. I personally like the image quality very much at f/0.95. Keep in mind that focusing is critical, a manual-focus lens at f/0.95 is not always easy to master.

I checked the specifications of the A6400. It really seems that this camera doesn't have the full electronic shutter functionality. So YES you will need an ND filter if you want to shoot outdoors, in sunlight, at open aperture! I'd guess that 2-3 f/stops is all it needs.

Hey and many thanks for your comment. As for your question - in the end you have to judge for yourself what you value the most. You already know the specific advantages of these lenses! 🙂 Having said that ... I have two more questions for you to think about, and a suggestion: 1) which lenses do you use the most right now? If you only have the kit zoom, do you prefer using it on the wider or the tele end? Answering this question might give you a hint if you would prefer a 25mm lens or a 35mm lens in general ... 2) what are the subjects that you love to shoot? The 35mm lenses, especially the 35/0.95, are great for portraits and low light! The 25's great for street or travel. And finally, here's my suggestion: if you can't figure out what you really want even after considering the two points above, then get the TT Artisan 35/1.4. I have a video where I explain why it's such a great choice as a first manual focus lens: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Z_ZDtbZV5zc.html

@@tomscameras thank you for the answer! I will think about this while using the camera next time and review old photos. You gave me useful suggestions, thank you!

Many thanks for your feedback, it's highly appreciated! I started producing RU-vid videos about one year ago and it was a steep learning curve. :) I hope sound quality is already a bit better in my newest videos, but I will definitely try the de-esser filter as well in the future.

I'm glad it was useful to you! Thanks for your feedback!

Yes you are right! There’s also the brand new Laowa Argus 33/0.95, but again with a 500+ USD price tag. The point of 7Artisans is clearly not to make the absolutely best possible lens, but make a really good one at a very attractive price tag. Personally I like this approach a lot. And the more lens options we get, the better!

I am shooting RAW and edit in Lightroom, sometimes I use Darktable which is a free software. But I do not edit a lot. Normally I start with the „landscape“ preset and then I edit white balance, saturation and contrast. Sometimes I add a graduation filter (for example of the sky is too bright). Note that I never edit or correct CA‘s, distortion or vignetting so that you can always see the character of the lens!

Hey Norman, that's a good question. Personally I am a sucker for standard prime lenses and can't have enough of them. :) But I also am a huge fan of traveling with minimum gear! The TT Artisan 35/1.4 is a great lens. I totally love it. It's small, it's dirt cheap and capable. Its performance around f/4 and f/5.6 for landscape shots is a bit better than this 7Artisans 35/0.95. And I am just a huge, huge fan of the hard stop at infinity. You can shoot landscapes and similar things without ever worrying about your focusing. This is so, so nice! However, a f/0.95 APS-C lens is really just something special! When I'm out shooting, this 7Artisans immediately puts me more in an experimental mode compared to the TT Artisan 35/1.4. The difference in bokeh / subject separation between f/0.95 and f/1.4 is pretty striking! This can make you start looking for different subjects and try out new perspectives! You also have to be careful to not overdo it but that's part of the challenge and the fun! OK back to your question: Even though these lenses do the same thing, there CAN be place for both of them in your camera bag, because their character and their strengths are actually pretty different. In your case I'd also have a look at e.g. the TT Artisan 50/1.2 - you get huge subject separation here as well, also cause of the longer focal length! Maybe that's a great addition to your 35/1.4! Or to put a long story short: The TT Artisan 35/1.4 is a great unobtrusive high-quality everyday companion. The 7Artisans 35/0.95 definitely adds some excitement!

@@tomscameras hey Tom, thanks for the answer. I am planning on getting the ttartisan 50mm f1.2 soon. I think it'd be a great addition in my collection. For this 7artisans 35mm f0.95 I'll probably skip for now and keep a lookout for any 2nd hand deal. Seems a bit redundant for me right now. Haha.

If you want AF - then Viltrox. Much faster / easier if you take e.g. portraits. But if you are prepared to train your manual focus skills, I think the 7Artisans is much more exciting!

Hey, telephoto lenses ... ok: A lot of questions :) What do you really need? Do you want low weight and are looking for a light-weight travel lens? Or do you also need fast speed because it also should be a portrait telephoto lens with great subject separation? Or do you want to try shoot wildlife? Having said all that, if you don't have ANY telephoto yet, and you don't want to break your bank account, just have a look at the basic offering from your brand! That's in your case the Sony APS-C 55-210! Please note that I never tried this lens for myself cause my Sonys were/are all A7 series thus full frame. I did, however, use similar "kit telephoto" lenses from Canon EOS, Panasonic MFT and Fuji X! So maybe you check out a few reviews and information for that lens.

Thanks! If you like manual lenses, I'm sure you'll have fun if you get it! The jacket I bought last year in a Dutch store. Their styles change a lot so maybe they do not offer that style anymore, though: www.thesting.com

It is faster and thus also more exciting to use sometimes. In terms of optical quality, I'd give the edge to the TT Artisan though, which at f/5.6 is a perfect landscape lens right into the edges of the frame, whereas the 7Artisans needs f/8. 7Artisans now also makes a 50/0.95 and a 25/0.95 (which is very big though). TT Artisan has the wide 17/1.4, I really wish they would add a 23/25mm to their lineup as well!

Yes what you say is essentially true - BUT only really valid for telephoto lenses! That's the reason why also many classic telephotos such as the Nikkor 300/4.5 etc. did not have the hard stop at infinity. However, at 35mm or 50mm focal length, it's technically no problem to have a hard stop at infinity. Any influence on focus setting due to temperature variations is negligible in practice.

@@tomscameras Maybe I've wrote not precisely enough what I meant. A hard mechanical stop at infinity has every lens, but the symbol for infinity should not be located at the physical stop, better slightly before, to avoid problems caused by temperature. I can recognize this as well at my 35 and 50 mm lenses (FF), while focussing on objects at infinity distance. Frequently I need the 1-2 millimeter before oder behind infinity.

​@@andreasd3346 Yes I precisely got what you meant ;) In my experience, the hard stop can be right at the infinity mark if it is a short or standard focal length! No problem there! All Leica M lenses are also like that with hard stop at infinity, for example! That you report to have issues there with 35mm or 50mm lenses, is actually very different to my own experience. BUT maybe then the masterplan is to have the focus ring user adjustable. I really really value the hard stop right at infinity, it is a huge help in practice! As the adjustment can be changed via the 3 small set screws, however, if someone - for any reason - should experience any problem (like you describe) that can be easily corrected as well.

@@tomscameras For me is the possibility to focus on infinity before, on or behind the symbol not a problem. It's a feature. In the cold morning I stay before, warm highnoon on and hot afternoon I focus behind slightly behind the symbol - and every picture is sharp. If you adapt lenses between different mounts, this feature is helpful too, to compensate tolerances of adapters.

@@andreasd3346 Sure. I'm shooting the 35/0.95 now all the time and there's no real issue for me as well to get sharp infinity shots. Still I'd like to stress out again how nice it is if you just don't have to worry about that setting at all. :) You see a landscape or anything else far away, you take out the camera, just "click" against the hard stop at infinity and you're ready to shoot. It saves just a few fractions of a second ... but it makes the shooting experience just that bit more easy and nice!

Sadly, I didn't have a chance yet to try out the Viltrox. I'm also very curious to try the upcoming Sigma 30/1.4. I know that lens from MFT already, and there it is just a marvel.

No!

Many thanks!

Hey! Yes, the 35/0.95 also tends to have that triangular-shaped bokeh towards the borders and corners. With both the 50/0.95 and 35/0.95, it depends also on the subject distance - when the subject is close, and the bokeh balls big, they look a bit more like cat eyes towards the borders. When you're a bit further away from your subject and thus the bokeh balls get smaller, they also get more triangular at the borders. Overall, I do prefer the 35/0.95 over the 50/0.95.

Hi! I think the first and most important question is if you want manual focus or autofocus lenses. I really love shooting manual focus, but of course sometimes you’re much slower! So especially in street photography that can be a problem maybe! Maybe you would like to combine e.g. an autofocus 35mm with a manual focus 50mm. If you go that way, the 50 could still be a f/0.95 … so you get that maximum shallow depth of field. I would rather combine a 35/1.4 with a 50/0.95 than the other way around. I would also consider a wide angle lens such as the TT Artisan 17/1.4 as the third lens for your setup! Hope this helps a bit! 😀

@@tomscameras thank you for reverting back sir😊... & Yes... I was very clear about my purchasing decision about choosing manual lens duo over autofocus one mainly for 2 reasons, 1) i might have to robbed the bank to acquire fuji's brand new 35mm f1.4😂😂😂 2) i once got an opportunity to get my hands on 80's era film camera from leica , been fan of manual photography since then.. Autofocus lenses do have their advantages but i dont mind spending more time while capturing moments... Its quite an experience 😊 & perhaps, Im someone who like to use his camera as tool for capturing moments... Not as tool which can be used as machine gun😂😂😂

Since I got this lens, I am using my TT Artisan 35/1.4 much less, even though I like two things much more on the TT Artisan: The hard stop when focusing to infinity (very helpful in practice!!) and that the aperture has click stops! But the f/0.95 aperture is just a lot of fun and provides some extra possibilities that you just don't have at f/1.4. I had the Fujinon 35/1.4 (but at the time, I didn't do RU-vid videos) and really liked it. Its a great lens and one of the best Fujinon lenses. People dislike the slower AF (compared to newer Fujinon glass) but I totally didn't mind. It was precise and plenty fast for my needs. Hey, I'm now shooting manual focus lenses only. So, in the end: If you have the budget, and you want/need AF, then take the Fujinon 35/1.4. If you don't need AF but want maximum aperture for low light shots or for more background blur, then go for this 7Artisans 35/0.95. Oh, regarding size: This 7Artisans 35 is a little bit longer than the Fujinon. But the main difference is that it is much more heavy than the Fujinon. The weight is almost as the Fujinon 56/1.2.

@@tomscameras wow, thank you so much for your reply. I have a lot of lenses, including both XF35 and Touit 32... but I am so cuious and excited by non fly-by-wire manual focus. You see when I focus on a spot, let's say someone walks into frame... well camera is in focus, so no wait to prime autofocus, and bang... I nail the shot faster and more reliable than AF

The manual focus ring of all the 7Artisan and TT Artisan lenses feels very good in use and yes it is much nicer than on an AF lens. With f/0.95 depth of field is of course razor sharp thin and this will slow down focusing because you have to be accurate. However at f/5.6 or f/8 that is less an issue. Overall I’d also think about a wide-angle lens with manual focus because there you can easily zone-focus due to the added depth-of-field and you’re then VERY fast, just point and shoot in an instant. Like the TT Artisan 17/1.4 …

@@tomscameras zone focus on wide-angle... great tip, thx... let me look up the 17mm

No, I haven't tried out that one yet!

I made a review about the TT Artisan 50/1.2 as well, did you see it? :)

You're welcome!