In the blink of an eye, a year has gone by, and the TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 has just celebrated its first anniversary. Unexpectedly shortly after its first anniversary, TTArtisan released a new autofocus lens, without any teasers or hints beforehand. They simply announced it out of the blue. The new lens is none other than the successor to the TTArtisan 35mm f1.8, marking the second iteration of this affordable lens.
Before I continue, I’d like to thank the generous people at TTArtisan for sending me this lens for review. Please note that they had no influence over the review I’ve provided here.
Design and Build Quality
If you have the first-generation lens, you will notice how incredibly short version II has become. It is now even more compact with a height of 49mm as opposed to 65mm in version I.
Similarly to the weight, it has reduced to 177 grams (according to my kitchen weighing scale), from 199 grams. The good thing is that TTArtisan maintained the same metal-built quality for this lens. Handling is good and I cannot find any complaint about this lens.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f1.8 . 1/1100″ . ISO 160 . Classic Chrome
What I like about this lens is the minimalistic, simple, clean design, and it’s cute (due to the compactness of it). This also means that this lens does not come with an aperture ring. Oh yes, it is still the same 52mm filter thread size.
Image Quality
I have a positive impression of the Mark I, and its successor maintains that same level of quality. The images captured at wide-open are impressive, showing decent sharpness (not clinically sharp though) and a good contrast.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f1.8 . 1/125″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome
Chromatic aberration is surprisingly well-managed (at least it’s not noticeable in my photos). While some vignetting is present, it’s not overly pronounced.
For sun star lovers, I think this is only one of rare lenses that I actually like its sun star result. The lines are well defined to my liking. Do note of the flares if you want to avoid, but I like how the flare creates and introduces to my images.
Focusing
With Stepper Motor (STM), the focusing speed is fast but not instantaneously snappy in most situations. This is within my expectation since this is not in the same category as the XF33mm f1.4.
In rare situations, I do encounter some focus pulling when I focus from MFD to infinity and vice versa. This can be happens on the good light condition as well. Also, focusing on MFD can be a little challenging when shooting indoor with average lighting availability around the subject. The focus will still succeed after a few tries. Apart from these phenomenons, everything is just fine.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f8 . 1/125″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
For videographers or photographers who intended to use this lens for videography purposes, the focus breathing is seems to be significantly far between the MFD and infinity. However, this is not a deal breaker for me.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f8 . 1/340″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
Update: On 17 December 2024, TTArtisan released a firmware update (FUJI-X AF 35mm F1.8 Mark II V1.0.1). While they did not mention what are the changes made, the focusing speed seems to have a good improvement over what I mentioned earlier, especially on the focus pulling.
Minimum Focus Distance (MFD)
If you compare the MFD with other lenses with similar focal lengths, you will notice that 40cm may not be a good MFD. But I have to praise the engineers that they have reduced from 60cm to 40cm and that is a 33% decrease in MFD.
Nonetheless, the image quality isn’t compromised much at MFD. The sharpness and contrast are slightly reduced but not affecting the overall much.
Price Point
Another pleasant surprise from TTArtisan is that the new lens is priced at just 125 USD, slightly cheaper than its predecessor, which was already a great deal at 149 USD.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f1.8 . 1/750″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
This could be the most affordable autofocus lens available for the X-mount system. For comparison, the XC 35mm f2 costs 199 USD, the Viltrox 33mm f1.4 is priced at 238 USD, the Meike 33mm f1.4 is 229 USD, and the Sirui 33mm f1.2 is 280 USD.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f8 . 1/1900″ . ISO 320 . Classic Chrome
While I understand that for an additional 100 USD, I could get a brighter, higher-quality lens, the TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II is ideal for photographers who need to stretch their budget as far as possible.
Others
There is one phenomenon that switching on the camera with this lens is slower (at least when I compared it with the Mark I). TTArtisan is aware of this and they are looking into fixing it.
Right: TTArtisan 35mm f1.8
Right: TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 with square hood
Right: TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 with petal hood
If you are a TTArtisan user, you should be aware that TTArtisan autofocus lenses come with a rear lens cap that includes USB-C port for future firmware upgrades. This lens is no exemption.
Who is this for?
If you’re new to photography and have chosen Fujifilm as your camera, trying out a prime lens could be a great way to start, and I think this lens is definitely worth considering. At 125 USD, there’s little reason not to give it a try. The 50mm focal length (full-frame equivalent) is highly versatile and suits a wide range of photography styles.
Right: Fuji X-T5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f5 . 1/3″ . ISO 125 . Classic Chrome
For professionals looking for a compact and budget-friendly lens for everyday use, this could be a solid choice.
Right: Fuji X-M5 . TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II @ 35mm . f1.8 . 1/80″ . ISO 400 . Classic Chrome
For those already using the first-generation lens, there’s no immediate need to upgrade unless the improvements genuinely meet your needs and contribute to your photographic growth and vision. If you are a new X-M5 user, you may consider pairing up this lens as the combination of the camera and the lens gives a well-balanced weight in terms of camera handling.
Conclusion
No doubt the Viltrox 35mm f1.7 is a direct competition to TTArtisan 35mm f1.8 II with performance, specifications and price very close to each other especially image quality. Given that almost everything is comparable (Viltrox has the upper hand for MFD at 30cm), I prefer TTArtisan than Viltrox because of the metal-built body. The handling feels better with metal-built quality.
I was caught by surprised how fast TTArtisan update their lens. TTArtisan do listen to the photographers’ feedbacks about the first generation lens, they improved it and then giving us a better one. Although this lens is not a perfect by any means, it is still a worthy upgrade from it successor. Will there be Mark III next year? I don’t know but we will see.
Thank you for reading.
Disclaimer:
1. All the shots taken here are shot by me.
2. Most of the shots are straight out of the camera with some shots edited via In-Camera Raw Processing.
3. The opinions are based on my experience. If there is any mistake, please kindly drop me a message and I will gladly make the amendment.
4. I reserve ownership of these images, if you wish to use my images, please notify me.
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Alwin Kok 