Dylan Andersen reviews the Viltrox 23mm f/1.4 for Fujifilm X-mount, a $329 alternative to Fuji's pricier native lens. It delivers strong center sharpness and pleasing micro-contrast with a distinctive character, though it shows some chromatic aberration wide open. The autofocus works well on an X-T3, and the build quality and ergonomics are solid.
The other day I was reading a post by somebody and they were talking about how some of the Fuji lenses, some of the older 1.4 lenses, are so incredible and they had something of character or they had some sort of magic. And in my time using the Fuji system, I've typically gone towards the 35mm F2, the 23mm F2, and have kind of stayed away from some of the more expensive 1.4 lenses. Primarily because I've heard a lot of things about autofocus and, you know, all the differences that they have. But over time, one of the things that people keep saying again is this magic, this character. And unfortunately for $900, the Fuji 23 millimeter F1.4 is just not in my budget at that price for a product where I already have the F2. And it's okay. I probably use the 35mm F2 the most when I'm out shooting. Whether it's portraits or even landscapes, I love shooting on that lens, which is kind of strange, but it's a great lens. But I've always kind of liked that 23 millimeter focal length. I just kind of wish it had at least a 23 millimeter F2 from Fuji, just had a little bit more depth of field and had more character. So when Viltrox announced that they were going to come out with a couple new lenses for the Fuji system that had autofocus and that they had reverse engineered Fuji's autofocus, I was pretty excited. And immediately when the 23 millimeter 1.4 came out, I went and purchased it. So this is the Viltrox 23 millimeter F1.4. It's an incredible lens, very, very small, very well built. You've probably heard a million things about it by now. But one of the things I kind of wanted to talk today about is image quality. But just to take a look at the build quality, I mean, this is a very well built lens. You can look online and find out a lot people that are saying just that. But everything from the lens hood, which is this nice kind of aluminum material, definitely well built, better than the Fuji lens hoods, if you can call them now. They're very small, plastic, but it's a really great lens and I've had so much fun with it. And I've been looking for character for that focal length on the Fuji system and I just haven't found it until this lens. So I want to put up some photos and I kind of want to talk about a little bit about this character. This Magic that this lens definitely has some of that. Certainly the 23 millimeter f1.4 native Fuji lens may have more of that, but I think this lens definitely does a good job. So here's a photo of a pool, my apartment, community, and you know, just from the get go. Some of these are a little edited, of course, with some color shifts and playing with some of the highlights and shadows. Basic edits, but the lens just feels good. Again, this 23 millimeter focal length is so wonderful. And this photo kind of shows that this next one here is just kind of through the leaves kind of general shot. But again, this focal length, a lot of people don't like it. I love it. I also love the 35 millimeter focal length. I also love the 50 millimeter focal length. But this focal length definitely is something special on this crop sensor. So again, this lens is sharp. This is shot at 1.4. And just the center sharpness is pretty awesome. And again, the kind of tones that you can get out of this lens, some of the contrast. We talk a lot about micro contrast with photography lenses and it definitely has some of that. Is it perfect? No, but it certainly has some really great qualities. This one here is just of an upshot of that same kind of image. But again, this is at 1.4. And you can see in some of the ferns there, of the palm tree. There was some chromatic aberration that got removed in post, which again, you can read anywhere that this lens does have some chromatic aberration at 1.4. Wide open. But again, super easily correctable. Doesn't even seem like it once you get to that point. This is a quick shot and this one I kind of wanted to showcase. A lot of people are saying, hey, photo focus is great. It's so fast. It is, but you gotta pay attention. Even on the X T3, a modern body like this, you may have a green square, you may have a lock. And it still feels a little strange because you're at F1. 4. You're definitely dealing with some really shallow depth of field. So you can see here, to the left of the Star wars poster, there's a Titanic poster. And there, you know, some of the flowers there had kind of lost focus and it just feels strange where is the focus? But again, you're at F1.4. A lot of things are going to be happening here. This is just a picture of an energy drink. And again, this is a sharp lens. There's been multiple comparisons out there that it is sharper at the center than the Fuji lens. And this lens does not disappoint. I mean, some of the sharpness out of here at F1.4 is really incredible. So really good picture there. So this one here of an unavailable sign here, in and out. Again, character we were talking about. I don't know if this lens has magic per se, but definitely there is some character here. And it does bear repeating. It just feels different. You know, when you're playing with the F2 lens, you're not going to get an image like this. You're not going to get that depth, you're not going to get that sort of quality that we're looking for. But with the center sharpness here and some of the fall off, it just feels really good. This shot here of a hamburger and some fries and a drink and a little mask in the background. Again, quick shot, point and shoot. Auto focus, no settings, everything on auto, auto ISO, auto aperture, auto shutter speed. It just feels really good. Some of the focus falloff here again is what I really love. And it should be expected on an F1.4 lens. But for this price, what Viltrox is putting out is really mind blowing. But again, this shot is really, really great. Next shot here, just of the exterior of the restaurant. Again, you know, not a special shot by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly has a good feeling to it has some good character, the way it lets light in. I've read some reports that at 1.4 it's actually letting in as much light as an F2. But again, that depth of field, that bokeh is pretty great and it bears looking at. So here's just. And lastly, I just kind of want to show you a quick portrait. Again at 1.4. You get that depth, you get that character I think a lot of people are looking for in the lens and I think just some of the sharpness here is really spectacular. I'll post a link to some of these high resolution versions that you can see up on, I believe Flickr. But again, lens is just really special. And lastly here, just want to kind of show again, point, shoot, F1. 4, 23 millimeters. I mean, it's a great shot. Again, you can see some chromatic aberration in the bottom. Yeah, the bokeh is a little busy for most people's taste. But again, for 329 bucks, you really can't go wrong. So I'll kind of end it there. Just again, quick video. Just wanted to talk about the Viltrox. I love this thing. I mean, I can't imagine not having it attached to my X T3 at all times now. Definitely worth purchasing if you're a Fuji user and you don't already have the Fuji 23mm F1.4. Definitely get this. It is a fantastic lens, fantastic quality. Viltrox has done very well. By the way, these images you're looking at are on the stock. I know they've come out with a firmware upgrade. I haven't even had a chance to upgrade to it. I've been super, super impressed so far, but again, amazing, amazing lens. This is the Viltrox 23 millimeter F1.4 for the X mount and they're calling it the XM and a lot of the XF info. So take a look again. Just wanted to share that with you real quick and if you're thinking about this lens, I definitely recommend getting it. I'll put a link down in the description, you can pick one up. Alright, thanks so much.
