Wow! Viltrox delivered what neither Fuji nor Sigma did: A small, yet fast 90mm option. Arrived today from China.
My first impression is really very good. It is very sharp from 2.2 and stays that way to f8. I like the rendering. And it has an f-stop ring (lenses w/o one are a no go for me). Sharpness is on par, if not better, that that of the Fuji 90f2.
Built quality is excellent, too, and AF works fast, silent and -it seems- reliably. Manual focus is pleasant and precise.
If Sigma had offered their 90f2.8 for X-Mount. But they didn't. A smaller than the Fuji 90f2 was the only lens still missing in my set (well, I am still pondering something wider than 16mm).
Will take this lens with me to the Island of Juist and see how it performs. Can easily crop to 270mm FF Equivalent with excellent quality,
The set I am taking is the X-E5, the 23f2.8, 50f2 and the Viltrox 90f2.2. Very small and light kit. Looking forward to it.
Thanks for the review, that looks good. I had the Fuji 90/2 early on, but that was before the bodies were stabilized and I ended up using my 50-140 instead. A very compact medium tele lens is a nice addition to a prime lens kit.
Just a little update on AF-S with this lens: As with the Fuji 90f2, AF-S is reliable and steady. Once focus is acquired, several half presses of the AF button do not make the focus change a bit. That is really good. My copy of the lens has infinity focus just a tiny bit in front of where infinity focus is on the EVF distance scale. So there is a little room for focusing beyond infinity. But as with the Fuji 90f2, the lens doesn't focus beyond infinity despite my trying hard to make it go beyond. Makes me happy.
With this lens and the other Fujicrons and pancakes on the X-E5, I am seriously thinking about selling my Sony FF gear (except for the RX1R MkIII).
A word of warning from someone that has used all of the full frame EVO lenses now...if you are happy with AF performance, do NOT update the lens firmware. They have made it worse on 2 lenses now.
RoamingScott wrote:
A word of warning from someone that has used all of the full frame EVO lenses now...if you are happy with AF performance, do NOT update the lens firmware. They have made it worse on 2 lenses now.
Thanks for the heads-up. I am so happy with the AF performance now, I won't :-)
Was just looking to upgrade my telephoto options. If I wanted to use this for indoor (equestrian) sports, would the STM focus motor be too slow? Would it work okay with AF-C?
coffeelogic wrote:
Was just looking to upgrade my telephoto options. If I wanted to use this for indoor (equestrian) sports, would the STM focus motor be too slow? Would it work okay with AF-C?
Hardly ever use AF-C. But in my initial testing, it appears on par with the Fuji 90f2 when switching between subjects near and far. Both need half a second to re-aquire focus.
Back from the Island of Juist - and somewhat disappointed. Using the 90mm extensively in bright sunshine, AF-S was not as precise as I thought it would be after my initial test back home. About 30% missed critical focus. It is still a sharp lens, small and light. But I returned it and will keep the Fuji 90f2 which has never let me down when it comes to AF.
This is why I never entertained the thought of buying this lens. The 90F2 just delivers consistently. Nielk Mike wrote:
Back from the Island of Juist - and somewhat disappointed. Using the 90mm extensively in bright sunshine, AF-S was not as precise as I thought it would be after my initial test back home. About 30% missed critical focus. It is still a sharp lens, small and light. But I returned it and will keep the Fuji 90f2 which has never let me down when it comes to AF.
