I have had the Viltrox 56 F1.4 for a couple of months now and absolutely love it. If you look at images like a normal human, without pixel peeping, it’s rock solid. Oddly, my end cap swaps between the 56 and my Fuji lenses with no problem. Go figure. I think I will add the 23mm (35mm FOV) as well (and maybe even loose a couple of my Fuji lenses along the way). When a lens performs 99% as well for 30% of the cost? It’s not a tough choice, really it isn’t.
So, I am like you in that I’ve shot Canon for decades, I shoot Nikon at work, and recently switched to Fuji. The focal length numbers throw me off now that I’m on the crop sensor on a XT-5. But I do have two Viltrox lenses and love them. But they certainly do have some issues with CA. Love you channel!
I went with the 50 f2 because of size and WR. I LOVE the f2 lenses so much. I have the 23 35 and 50, and I use them all regularly. I do sort of wish I had a 1.4, but overall its fine. i also have the 16-55 and that thing is amazing.
It was a tough choice for me between a new Viltrox 56/1.4 and a second-hand Fuji 50/2 as that is sharp wide open and smaller. In the end I decided on the extra stop of light and slightly shallower DoF. My thought being that the Viltrox at f/2 is likely similar in sharpness to the Fuji at f2. But yeah, it took me a while to decide between the two and going for a no-name brand was a concern.
I have the 50mm f2 and I t’s an amazing little lens but I recently got the 56 f1.2 in a great deal and it just blows everything else out of the water. It has a magic only matched by going FF. If you can, try one, it’s astonishingly good.
Thanks Booray for your lovely, informative review. I came to the Fuji XT5 with the 16-80 kit lens which is OK...just. Then I bought the 56 1.4 Viltrox lens and the 27 1.2 lens and the shooting experience and IQ have been night and day. Finally, full frame DoF with Fuji colours and AF just as good as say Nikon (overall). Also, importantly, there is a kind of thrill and magic about Fuji shooting. Can't put my finger on it but it's def. a factor. I'll be shopping for a Viltrox 23mm 1.4 next with more money in the kitty!! 👍😀
I have the Viltrox 23mm f1.4, 56mm f1.4 and the 85mm f1.8. These lenses are great for their prospective prices and yes the purple fringing that you showed is easily correctable.
@@MrProset An 85mm is an excellent choice for portraits and I use it in studio. Make sure that you have the room in a studio or home environment because the 85mm with a crop size is a small telephoto, so make sure you have the room to move around, but outside it doesn't matter. The 56mm is I believe about an 85mm in full frame, maybe a little less. If you are doing mostly photos, get the 85mm. Remember that the Viltroxes have a tendency to have some chromatic aberrations and some tines a slight color fringe, but it is correctable in post, so not really a big issue. Both lenses are good for their price points. I shoot both Fuji and Nikon and wanted to provide you with as much info as possible.
@@sidvicious3129 thanks for the info Sid, much appreciated. I mostly shoot friends outside, I probably would have nicer portraits with the 85, but I went with the 56 because I have a x-t20 (size) and the 56 was on sale for €275 on some chinese website :)
@@MrProset based off of the sale price, I don’t blame you. You should be happy with it and make sure you check your firmware if you run into any problems. Good Luck with your new lens when you receive it.
@@MrProset 56mm on APS-C body is equivalent to 85mm full frame. I have the 85mm 1.8 from Viltrox as well, but cannot us in Studio environment as it is equivalent to 125mm and there are rarely that big studios you can make use of it.
Totally agree with the not-necessity to analyse the bokeh.Bokeh is made to attract attention on what is _not blurry_. Only a photographer can have this very curious idea to zoom on bokeh and analyse the shape of it...
I have been lusting after Fuji's stellar new 56mm f1.2 R WR since it was announced and waffling on whether I want to spend another $1000 on a lens right now. Then I remembered that the Viltrox 56mm f1.4 exists. I have been very happy with their 33mm, and the price on the 56 is down to $300 now. Kind of seems like a great deal for giving up 1/3 of a stop of light. There's also the Sigma 56mm f1.4 on the system now, which might warrant consideration.
I have and tried all 3 lenses 56 f1.2, 50 f2 and Viltrox f1.4. The ranking regardless the price is 1..56 f1.2 2.50 f2 3. 56 f1.4. Recommendation: If you doing portrait and love good boekeh, focus fall off, no aberrations or color shift and money is no problem get 56 f1.2, if you are street shooter,shooting in different conditions, want to go light and focus fast on short distance and don't need extra light get 50 f2.If you shoot portrait occasionally, need faster lens, been on budget and can live with softness, color shift and correcting thing in post get Viltrox. I went off with first two since they producing different images and make no mistake 56 is not 50 and other way around. Viltrox is send back, nothing wrong with lens but found other two more usable for my work.
The 56mm 1.2 is my money lens for weddings and portraits. The images, in my opinion are stellar. And on my XT2 the focus is fine. I’ve never missed a shot with it. My portraits at F1.2 are simply stunning. And I have the 50 mm F 2 4th street photography. I love the 75 mm it reminds me of shooting with my Leica. And it’s a great lens. I guess I’m partial to Fuji lenses! That’s why I bought into the Fuji system from Nikon Full frame.
Just wanted to point out: the 50mmF2 has a shorter minimum focusing distance than the Viltrox--to take from your point about the 16-55. The 50mmF2 is DEFINITELY worth a look, especially on the used market. Compact, sharp, and quiet (and quick) auto focus too!
I’m stuck between Viltrox 56mm and the fuji f2. I think the weather resistance of the f2 and the smaller size is what makes that decision for me (and then also the aperture ring)
Great video, I’m thinking about this lens for quite a bit now, I think I’ll go for it. I already working with the 23mm Viltrox, and it’s doing the job!
@@BoorayPerry it has the same problem like the 56mm, better at 2.0 or 2.8 ^^ I've got some samples on my instagram profile, @mattlxb. I used the acros to avoid the purple fringing...
Don't forget the Tokina lenses, after seeing 50+ videos on Vitrox and Tokina lenses, Iam going to buy the Tokinas, better autofocus and the color profiles are my main arguments, indeed comparing to 50 F2 and 56 1.2 it is the better option!
Good Morning. I completely agree and I own it. The lens makes a big difference for me in low light which I enjoy doing when walking the streets. Again, I am an enthusiast so “good enough” really works. Nice review, BR. Regards....Wayne
Can you please give me an advise? To get along with the 15 to 45 kit lens of my xt200, would you rather prefer the 56 or the 85 viltrox? Which one would you choose as your second lens?
@@BrandonTalbot portraits and vídeo. These are the main reason. My YT channel is a mix about tecnology and tourism and I usually used a phone for vlogging the intros of my vídeos, and got the x-t200 to level up these vlogs. For that, the kit lens isn't bad at all, although I wished it could be wider for arm lenght vlogging. However the vlogs are usually shot on my studio, so there's no big deal about it. But when it comes to portraits, I feel my phone (Huawei P40 Pro) can do better job for blurry background than the camera. And that's mainly because I am for sure a newbie on cameras and some how I am doing things wrong, but I also heard about it, in YT that this kit lens isn't the best for that. That's the reason why I am thinking about getting a second lens. But I would like to get one that also give me some chance to shoot landscape also, for my travel vlogs, along my 360 camera. So, what would you choose? 56 or 85 mm?
Thanks for this review. I shoot on X-T3 and I got the 56, got the 33 and also got the 85 from Viltrox. All great in my opinion. For rings at weddings, I use the 56 with the Fuji MCEX-16 tube. Works out great for me.
hey my friend. thanks for the review. CAn i have your advice? i bought a xs20 and a sigma 18-50 2.8. Now i want to take only one prime, because of budget. I do a lot of portraits. I work of fashion industry as a model and want to shoot models as well. I was thinking about getting 33 1.4 (50) or a 56 1.4 (75). The 56 is to tight for some situations. Do you think i can achieve nice portraits with the 33 (50) as well?
@@BoorayPerry can I achieve good headshots with the 33(50) as well? So I can do full body and head shoulder . Many talk about the distortion.. Thanks for the attention.
Just stumbled across this video and you are like a breath of fresh air in your review/presentation, fantastic as was looking at buying this, subscribed!👍😎🇦🇺
Thanks for a nice review and for pointing out the pros and cons. I also was wondering about the auto-focus speed? I shoot a lot of concerts and high school sports. For me, your point about ISO values shooting 2.8 versus 1.4 - 2.0 is huge. I really like my 50-140 2.8 but in low light (gyms) I reach for my 90 F2 or 50 F2 most of the time. I really appreciate your common sense approach, not just numbers that other base their reviews on. So much easier to just show some good examples and let the viewer decide if it's good or bad.
I didn't experience any problems with the focusing speed at all. In fact, when I was doing the very low light comparisons it was the Fuji lens that I could not get to grab focus.
Great practical review. I really like the {do I need this explanations.} Although I was considering buying, now I have changed my mind. Thanks again, keep up the good work.
What?? I have one Samyang lens, one Fuji lens and two Viltrox lenses, i switch back and forward and take the end cap from the one i am switching to. I have never ever seen that problem with the end cap. Incredible.
i realised a problem with the viltrox lens cap and also first thought that it doesnt fit on my fuji lenses. but all it needs is a tighter screwing-on, just a bit more force, and then it sits well on any other lens too.
Thank you for your realistic point of view on this lens. I'm not interested in the heavy technical details, I just want to know if it fits me personal. I just bought the lens this afternoon online and it will be delivered the day after tomorrow. Thank you foor two sleepless nights ;-)
So it's a budget 1.4 and you have to decide if the tiny details of a much more expensive lens is worth the cost. I would argue that you can make a justification if you are going to be using the more expensive lens a LOT, at wide open. The chances of paying clients noticing these details is almost zero though.
i have this lens for just a few weeks now, and i love it. but after seeing this review i also want to replace my 16-80 f4 with the 16-55 2.8. the 16-80 is just too poor indoors. now that i enjoy the 56mm 1.4 so much for its light capabilities, i really need to have also a faster zoom
Before my writing comes an Hi!!! Hi, how are you? I would like to say thanks for this video. Just because I am a newbie and do not understand nothing about optics and cameras. Just beginning a RU-vid channel, here on my country (Portugal) and got a X-T 200 with the 15 to 45 kit lens to try to level up my content on the channel. Somehow, your explanation, made sense to me without knowing why. Talking about f stops is literally Chinese to me. But watching this video made me see things clearer. If course price is a factor, and an important one. As my second lens, I am seriously considering buying this viltrox. I was looking for videos that enlighten me about which focal length I should choose to go further than with the kit lens, and I believe I found it. Just not sure if I should invest on the viltrox 85 mm instead. This is now my doubt. But thanks to your video, I now know that my choice is going to be between these 2: 56 or 85. The 35 and the smaller one are out of my way... Thanks for that!
Hi Booray, may I ask how this lens behaves with the 40MP sensor of the X-H2? I'm not asking for pixel peepers ultimate sharpness but I also don't want to get a severely "outdated" lens. Love your channel, you made decide to go for the X-H2 instead of the X-T5. I'm loving that beast of a body.
Booray Great Review! I have the Viltrox and wanted to get your opinion. When you shot with the Viktrox did the images seem overly contrasty ? My darks seemed too dark and my whites were too white. I switched to Astia and that seemed to help. Ty Dan
Hello, if you can only get one: Would you get the viltrox 56 now because you can afford it or get sigma 56 later Bec you have to save up for the price diff?
Fun review; but, yeah, you talked yourself into it. You didn't mention autofocus so hey, why not try an adapted manual lens? Lots available under $100. And stabilized on your X-T4.
Nice video. I am an odd ball I have some amazing fuji glass but I have never owned the 50mm or 56. Definitely lenses I should own as I do mainly portrait work. lol But I do have the 90mm F2 and 50-140mm 2.8 I also have the Viltrox 23mm F 1.4 and my thoughts almost mirror yours. Although I thing the 23 is a bit sharper at 1.4 then your 56
I still can't decide which lens is right for me ... viltrox 56 mm 1.4 or Fuji 18-55 ..:))) I just decided to go with 18-55:)) Great review,thank you so much!
Great review thanks, Ive got the viltrox 85mm, love it, thinking of the viltrox 23mm 1.4 (ill get 2 extra stops)for pictures up at/in the stables where the iso is usually high and the fuji grain is horrible
I don’t shoot Fuji. I shoot Nikon. Viltrox also makes the same APS-C lens for the Nikon crop sensor mirrorless cameras. This was a great review of the lens and convinced me to add it to my camera bag. Thanks for a very practical review!
A year later .... Used excellent condition Fuji 56mm f1.2 version I sells for $450. new Viltrox is $300 new, 200 used. Is the Fuji a better buy for $150 more today?
@Booray Perry as mentioned ... the 56mm fuji in excellent condition with hardly any surface scratches on body and clean glass all around, with all accessories.
Awesome review. I’m thinking about getting this lens because, yes, price is a factor. I do have the 16-55 and I’m getting 70-300 soon as well, but having the ability to shoot at f/1.4 is a great thing to have in your back pocket.
Sir, you spoke about price and of course that is main consideration in practical world. I cannot even get Viltrox for now for XE-4 (yet to get it). So would begin with Pergear 1.8 50mm. No exif data. What is your take on manual lens with no exif data?
I found the viltrox 56mm okay for the money. Build and autofocus are great. But it does not compare to the fujifilm 56mm f1.2 in my opinion. The rendering, the color, the details are on another level. Not to mention the results with a f-stop lower f2.0 on the viltrox where basically unusable for me, at least with my copy of the lens. The viltrox is not a bad lens, but you do get what you pay for, the fuji is definitely worth the extra penny in my opinion.
Im thinking to buy the Sigma 56mm f1.4 instead of this at it has better IQ from what I watched in several reviews and it has a lot of praise. But the plasticky feeling, lack of aperture ring and it costs more, really love the metal construction of viltrox lenses, I might consider this lens for portraits. CA or purple fringing can be corrected at post and its not a hassle at all because I will edit Raw photos anyway, so its not a deal breaker for me. As you said it could have been better if it has a click aperture ring. Other than that at this price it’s definitely worth it for the enthusiast like me.
Good stuff. I find the CA annoying and think the whole discussion will be completely flipped if Sigma ever release their 56 1.4 which should be $110 more at $440. It will have acceptable CA at 1.4 and be as sharp as f2.8.
Anyone having an issue with getting this lens' "lens profile" to work on LL classic? I followed the guidance on the viltrox sight but it doesn't like me. (Using Mac OS)
When you shoot portrait (headshot) with a white, grey, black background of course you don't shoot 1.4, why would you do it? But if you shoot portrait with background where you have items in the background and you wish to blur them, you will shoot 1.4.
@@BoorayPerry Ya, however if you want sharp eyes (both) you can still shott 1.8, 2. I'm not bothered by soft (one) eye if the other is sharp, but can imagine that someone want tag sharp images.
@@BoorayPerry oh goodness no! I am looking at getting into Fuji (from FF Canon), and you earned a very quick subscription from me :) I enjoy seeing photographers who don't allow pixel peeping to dictate their content. You, sir, have a great balance IMO.
If the aperture is in Auto the camera controls it. I suppose you could set up your camera so that you control the aperture with a dial but that's a major change that would change how every lens works on your camera.
@@BoorayPerry I have my lens set to A, Shutter set to A and Iso is on auto. Basically, Aperture priority. Any time I can switch my S to T and now I’m in manual. This allows me when in Aperture priority to control Aperture without messing with the lens or accidentally changing my Aperture. Also, I can change things viewing the viewfinder without look at the dials. If I want old school I just take it all off A. All my lens work fine that way.
You lost me with the first part: "I have my lens set to A, Shutter set to A and Iso is on auto. Basically, Aperture priority" That's Full Auto, not Aperture Priority. Aperture Priority is when SS and ISO are Auto and Aperture is Manual. If you have everything in Auto and you switch the SS to T, you are now in Shutter Priority. When you move the front dial it will change the shutter speed and then change the Aperture and ISO to get correct exposure but it changes the Aperture first. So, in a dark situation, the camera will take the aperture to 2.0 immediately before raising the ISO. If you want full control over the aperture you need to set it on the lens or configure your dials so that it is set by one of them. If it is in Auto, the camera will decide when to move and by how much.
@@BoorayPerry odd. on my xt3 when lens is on A, ss dial is on A and iso dial on A, the display screen tells me I’m in “A” aperture priority. I can use the the front command dial to change my aperture and camera does the rest for me with the ss and iso. if I only switch ss dial to T, display screen states I’m in “M” for manual. Now with the rear command dial I can change ss and front dial I can change aperture. ISO is still in auto. I learned this from a uTube video but also there was settings within camera u have to change for it to work like this.
@@artsmodelstation9396 When I first saw your comment I checked it on my Fuji X100V. This time I went and grabbed my X-T4. With all 3 set to "A" I can't do anything. Turning the dials has no effect because the camera is in full auto. The "A" in your screen is not for Aperture, it's for Auto. :) My camera must not be set up the same as yours. :)
I have the 50 F2. I think it’s a better option than the Viltrox. It’s very sharp wide open, it’s weather sealed, it has a clickable aperture. We now have the Sigma 561.4 which seems to also be better optically than the Viltrox.
Really bad CA, fringing, edge bleeding, no in camera lens distortion correction, soft even in the centre at f1.4, poor focus in low light. Got mine today, sending it back tomorrow. 50mm F2 focusses CLOSER and has zero of the above optical defects the Viltrox has.
