I have the 17mm f1.4, the 35mm1.4, the 25mm f2, the 55mm f1.4, and the 40mm f2.8 macro.... and I have purchase them thanks to your reviews....I do appreciate your time and effort in your reviews - LIVE LONG and PROSPER🖖🖖🖖
A very nice setup of lenses! If you enjoy manual focus, that setup about every situation that you will ever encounter when taking pictures! I wish you a lot of fun with all of them! 🖖
Leaving this as a gift for Fujifilm users: The filters for the DJI air 2s drone clip perfectly in front of the shutter inside the camera body. This means you can use them internally and they work for every lens. They do not interact with the manual shutter
I bought this lens for one reason... zone focusing. I already have the excellent Fujifilm XF 16mm f/1.4, but for street photography, nothing beats a lens that has comprehensive a DOF scale. It works great, just like my old film lenses. At f/8, I can set a zone from 1 to 5 meters which is perfect for this focal length. This allows for blind hip shots as long as you can estimate that the subject is within that zone.
Yes its short focal length makes zone focusing very practical! And the fact that the distances on the focusing ring are correct - infinity is where you see the infinity mark etc. - also helps a lot! I think this is really the great strength of this lens ...!
Excellent review! I am considering this lens and your balanced review is appreciated. The great thing about these modern manual lenses is no need to adapt unlike legacy lenses. I'm still so taken aback by how well this lens performs given its cost. Great sample photos btw!
Thank you! Another big advantage of these lenses is that they are designed for APS-C ... finding a legacy 17mm lens with f/1.4 would be very tricky ;) I've got a few Olympus PEN lenses from the 1960s which are designed for the same image format so they're small and only need a very short adapter ... but their shortest one is a 20/3.5!
I have three TT trio, images by these lenses are really nice even when comparing to the native fuji lenses. My favourite is the TT35/1.4 followed closely by the TT17/1.4 and finally the TT50/1.2. TT50 came last because the lens is really heavy. Mount it on a XE body becomes head heavy
Thank you for another great review. I have all three of the TTartisan lenses. I also think the 35 is the best followed by the 17 and then the 50. My copy of the 50 is a little soft. Overall these are excellent lenses, fun and wonderful value.
Thanks for your feedback! Yes, we've got really great choices these days, and nice to hear that you overall enjoy the TT Artisan lenses so much. Maybe there seems to be sample variation even though I reckon that these rather simple lens designs should be less problematic than more complex ones. I'm thinking to fetch either a 7Artisans 55/1.4 and/or the Kamlan 50/1.1 II to compare with the TT Artisan 50/1.2. Other reviews indicate that the Kamlan should have superior optics, but not by a wide margin. However it is also massive in size and weight ...
Hi Thomas, greetings from Latvia. Very successful lenses in terms of price and performance, and I found the model with 35mm f / 1.4 for 50 euros in the second hand. I think I will buy it. The review was very helpful for me, thank you.
Another beautiful Video, Tom! I've posted your Link from the 35/1.4 into some forums, back into the Day. Personally, i'd love to see a 23mm F1.4 from these Series - so that we'd have our 35mm FF-equivalent Focal Length onto the Fuji X-Mount, or any other APS-C System, with the optical Performance of the 35/1.4 (which i bought earlier into 2021) and for the same price, would being perfect.
Hi Marc, many thanks for your feedback and support!! Oh yes I also am longing for a high-quality manual focus 22/23 mm lens! I've already got the Zonlai 22/1.8, but while it is nice, it's only f/1.8 ... and then on APS-C, not that super exciting! There is also the Kamlan 21/1.4, I got the 28/1.4 of them just a few days ago and will do a review. The Kamlan's are also great but compared to TT Artisan, they lack a bit in handling! So if anyone from TT Artisan (or another company) is ever reading this: There is still space for a really nice 23/1.4 or maybe even 23/1.2 ... (just dreaming)!
@@tomscameras guess what, Tom - i've bought the Zonlai 22mm F1.8 for my black E1 into Fall 2020, because i wanted a close to 35mm Lens, being good, being pay-able. Not Leica territory of course, which i can't afford anyway. (edit) Tom, i do still have hope, Cosina (Voigtländer) would show up with a very cute, small 23mm/F1.2 NOKTON, with the same looks & small size, like their new, shiny 35mm/F1.2 Nokton for Fujifilm X-Mount ! (and same price - exactly) Perhaps into 2022, we'll see ! :-)
@@marcp.1752 Oh yes … Cosinas late venture into APS-C territory is great news !! And I also have some hope that they will come up with at least one dedicated APS-C optical design - at 22/23 you can’t reasonably use a FF design anymore!
@@tomscameras I really hope, Cosina would release a 23mm F1.2/F1.4 Nokton X-Mount, like their brand new 35/1.2 Nokton Voigtländer. If it would being better even - than the "Fujicron" 23mm F1.4 - why not? I don't need AF. I am used to manual focus since the late 80s. :)
Outstanding images in this video. Wondering if it as much Fujifilms color science or the lens that is most responsible for the quality. Great review, Thanks
Many thanks for your feedback! I have to admit that I always shoot in RAW and edit in Lightroom … maybe some of the Fuji color science is this replaced with my very personal color adjustments ;) But in terms of contrast and fidelity, the TT Artisan is good and neutral, maybe a bit cold yes. Definitely a bit colder than real vintage lenses …
I tried the 18mm a long time ago. But I am not picky when it comes to autofocus speed - for me the 18/2 (and also the old Fujinon 35/1.4) are more than good enough in that regard! Now the 18/2 is good, sure, yet still not the nicest Fuji optics (whereas I totally love the 35/1.4!) so that’s why I never came back to it again …
Thanks Tom I'm looking for a fast 28 for my Fugi X-T30 this looks a nice cheep lens gives good results a 26mm sounds fine to me for my use i love your honest opinion of these lenses and i trust you after watching many of your videos I think that I might take a chance and buy this lens Tom I like old glass manual lenses but a modern lens might make a nice change for me.
Thanks for your feedback! I think the biggest question before getting any of these lenses is if you’re happy with manual focusing. But as you like old glass, that shouldn’t be any problem! So I hope you’ll have a lot of fun with this lens!
Great video, as always. I thought I needed this lens, I already have the 7artisans 35mm 0.95 and I am definitely going to get a 7artisans 50mm 0.95. But seeing this video, I noticed there isn't much use for me having a 17mm that doesn't produce much bokeh. Instead I can use the Fuji 18-55 f/2.8-4 I already own, at 18mm f/2.8. Thanks, very helpful video 👍
The point of a wide lens with fast aperture is less the bokeh but more that you can shoot it in low light conditions where you maybe can't use a tripod or flash. But yes, I see your point a bit. I still find lenses like the 17/1.4 useful in those cases. If you don't miss the extra speed, then your zoom lens is a very good alternative!
@@tomscameras Yeah, I realised that before I posted that comment. So I actually tested the Fuji zoom lens in the dark, making a video of the street I live in. There are quite a lot of streetlights, it seemed fine 😄. Maybe I need this lens in the future, but for now I manage. First I'm looking forward to buying the 50mm 0.95, hopefully Black Friday will give me a nice discount, if I can wait that long 😉
Yes! The 50/1.2 has some special magic to it … like many portrait lenses!! This 17/1.4 does not have that maybe, but then such a wide angle lens often is just a very versatile companion … and thus also very important in your photographic life!
I prefer this lens over the Zonlai for its overall quality and handling. And it is a real "wide-angle" lens that equals full frame 26mm. The Zonlai has a different field of view (full frame about 33mm) which sounds only a few millimetres, but the difference is very noticable! Sadly there still is no third-party manual focus 21/22/23 mm lens that is truly great and convincing. I really think that TT Artisan or 7Artisans should make a lens in that focal length as well! Maybe TT Artisan a compact 22/1.4 and 7Artisans a super-fast 22/1.2 or 22/0.95 even. :)
I did not like this lens, at first, as much as the other two TTA lenses. But, the more I use it the more I like it. It’s aperture ring is not as clicky as the other two.
Yes, I agree! It's super versatile but maybe not as much "love at first sight" as the other two. But it grows on you the more you use it :) Do you have a lens where the font looks the same as the other two lenses, or one like mine where the font is different?
Yoo-hoo I was waiting for your reviewvideo! It is on my wishlist now. Yes designwise the drawing of the lens elements on the lens itself is ugly too, but who cares. I think about selling my old lenses and only keep this ttartisan trio plus my Fuji lenses.
Hey, many thanks for your feedback, it is greatly appreciated! I got information from a nice fellow visitor of my channel that there is a version of the 17/1.4 with the "correct" font face, see it on Amazon, the vendor is Lookingsky there. That one still has the drawing of the lens elements ... but at least it fits the rest of the TT Artisan lenses regarding the font face! I still have no real clue why TT Artisan sells two different versions though.
Excellent results for the price point and the wide-angle perspectives of a lens!! I really need a similar review for TT artisan's 7.5mm wide-angle lens!! I only have the technical aspects of the lens and I form a strong opinion for buying the lens, let me know if I should buy it!!
Can you recommend any other compact and fast lenses with a wider range!! This is what i need for my fuji camera. I was considering the fuji 18mm f2, but still ambivalent
The Fuji 18/2 is sometimes criticized for its optical performance. I never shot it so I can't really comment on that. It's compact and it is one of the original three Fujinon lenses when they launched the X system in 2011. I only know the other two - the 35/1.4 is still my #1 favourite Fujinon lens of them all! And the 60/2.4 Macro is also nice. They all three are said to have a "slow" auto focus by modern standards but I never really cared.
hi, I got this lens for XT30-II but when I put this on my cam, and try to take images it doesn't do anything and the cam doesn't take photos. I think I have to make some setting changes, can anyone help, i. am new to this cam n lense as well
There is a menu setting called "Shoot without lens" that needs to be activated. For some weird reason, it is deactivated as default when you get a new Fuji camera! Also see this thread in the DP Review forum, maybe it helps you to locate that setting in your menu: www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4054316
Thank you for a nice presentation. What are your opinions on the color rendition and micro contrast of this lens? Please stay safe and with my best regards.
Colors are vibrant and neutral, maybe a touch cold but that is of course also a matter of the camera's white balance and might depend on the camera (brand) you are using! Micro contrast (contrast in very fine detail) is not extremely high especially in the more open apertures, but stopped down it gets high and fine details are rendered crisp and clear. Note that micro contrast also depends a bit on the sensor characteristics! Again, my impression is that the general rendering of the TT Artisan lenses is a little bit different to really "modern" lens designs such as e.g. the Fuji 50/2 or 23/2. And this makes TT Artisan pictures look very well balanced and natural in a way.
Yes, with wide lenses like this you can always go for zone focusing! That's why it is so important that the numbers on the focus ring are calibrated correctly, as is the case with the TT Artisan lenses (not with many other brands though).
Thanks for a useful review. I sent my M43 copy back as the results were very disappointing. I suspect that TTArtisans have some quality control issues as my poor copy does not appear to be an isolated example.
That's bad to hear. What was the issue with your lens? Did you try a second example or give up on the lens? My copy is good, even though I just picked the very first one at the local photo store. In general, the more wide-angle you go, the more risk there is that a lens will show issues like "decentering". It's not the 100% technical correct term; what I mean is that the left and right sides, or one or two corners, look better or worse than the others ... even when you stop down.
@@tomscameras Hi there. I've the excellent Meike 35mm f1.4 and the useful 7 Artisans 55mm f1.4 to use as a benchmark. Sadly the 17mm wasn't really very sharp at all which meant that I wouldn't really use it. There was a big difference between many of the copies used for reviews and my one. There is on cautionary review on UA-cam and also some comments from someone who seems to have a worse copy than mine. I ordered my copy via Amazon and the suppliers were very good about giving me refunds for the lens and also the postage. The supplies of this lens seem to have run out so I wasn't able to have an exchange lens. I have heard that TTArtisans and 7Artisans' lenses are produced by the same company which makes me a little vary of buying lenses from either of them. A real shame that the QC is rather poor as these lenses offer great value for money and a different style of image.
Do you know of other 16 or 18 mm fast and also compact lenses? I know i'm asking for a lot. Also i try to understand the difference between 16 and 18...but to me i think the compactness and speed are the most important factors.
In practice, the difference between 16 and 18 mm is not huge. But ... most lenses at this focal length are not very fast and compact at the same time, that's true! That's what makes this TT Artisan 17/1.4 kind of unique.
I think, for events and weddings I'd normally rather recommend a lens with auto focus, unless you have a lot of experience with manual focus lenses already and are really confident in using them on such an occasion!
The only of the lenses that I handled different samples of is the 35/1.4. I bought two of those over the time for myself and also once shot a third one. They all performed equally well. But yes, that's a very small number of samples still. Of all the other lenses that you see in my video reviews, I only shot a single one sample. In the case of the 17/1.4 that you see in this video: I bought that lens in a local camera store. So, unfortunately I can only advice you to check out different other reviews as well, and maybe also have a look in the big online forums and see how the experience with customer service and/or sample-to-sample variation might be with any lens that you're interested to purchase.
Thanks for your feedback! I never tried the 25mm but I think that is a more basic design from the first days of 7Artisans. So you can expect better quality from these new TT Artisan lenses. (Also the newest 7Artisans lenses like 35/0.95 are better than their first ones.) I find these lenses (TT Artisan 17/35/50, 7Artisans 35/0.95) produce pretty neutral and accurate color and good contrast overall.
Hi, I currently have a Pen-F and Sigma 30mm 1,4 and am very happy but unfortunately too big. I am interested in a bright compact lens mainly for street photography and I am undecided between the two TTartisan lenses 23mm 1,4 (plus compactness) and the 17mm (plus focal but less compact) what do you recommend? I would have doubts about their sharpness, to be picky, the potential that the two lenses have in post-production both with open and closed aperture.
My review of the new TT Artisan 23/1.4 will be out in a few hours! I love this lens ... but the catch is: I'm shooting Fuji, not Olympus! For you, I have a completely different suggestion ... as all the TT Artisan lenses are optimised for APS-C, not for MFT (even though you can buy them for MFT). In your case I would get the Panasonic 20/1.7. It's even got AF, it is tiny as can be, it is not expensive at all, and it is a very capable lens! You simply can't go more compact than that! I had two copies of the Panasonic, one a long time ago on my E-M5 and then another one when I owned the PEN-F. I even wrote a review about the Panasonic a long time ago, maybe it could be still interesting for you: tomscameras.wordpress.com/2012/11/22/just-before-the-new-olympus-171-8s-arrival-revisiting-the-panasonic-201-7/
Hi Tom. Thank you for posting this review. Have you had any feedback from anyone who may have had issues about not being able to focus to infinity on this lens? The reason I ask is that I want to use this lens specifically for zone focusing in street photography. Do you know if the infinity focus issue is easy to fix on this lens? Cheers!
It was very easy to change the exact focus ring position in my case: loosen the three small set screws and then you can move the focus ring itself to the best position. But again, that was on my lens. I didn't try out one of the current production runs to see if it's still as easy. I know from other lenses such as the 25mm f/2 that they sometimes also add some glue to the internals and then it can be more tricky to get the focus ring loose to adjust focus.
Thanks so much for the reply. I think this lens is well worth the asking price, so I think its time to get one. Hopefully, it will be an easy fix, if needed. Have a great day 👍
This video was shot by Takahiro (he has his own channel: ua-cam.com/users/takahirooda ) on Canon EOS R with Tamron 15-30/2.8. Note that the EOS R is APS-C when shooting at 4k (what we did). But, yes, I have shot some videos with Fuji X and manual lenses like TT Artisan, Kamlan and 7Artisans, for example this one: ua-cam.com/video/Hu9_y0lyFn4/v-deo.html
Does it suitable for talking head videos? Im interest to buy sigma 16mm but its kind of pricey so seeking for alternative. I'll be using mostly for talking head videos, stay at my room.
Maybe just try your smartphone if it works in your conditions - most smartphones have a 24mm to 28mm equivalent lens so that gives you a good idea if the field of view of the TT Artisan 17/1.4 would work for you! (On APS-C, the TT Artisan is 17mm x1.5 = approx. 26mm equivalent).
f/8 and infinity focus. If the subject is close (not at infinity) then I will use manual focusing, but for far-away landscapes just set it to infinity and f/8. In daylight, I'll normally set the camera to ISO 100 and to A so it will select the shutter speed automatically.
Oh that is really a question of personal taste. 17mm is a wide angle lens that matches the "standard" lens on most iPhones (or other smartphones). A 35mm gives a much closer field of view than that! Normally, if someone's looking for their first fixed focal length lens, then 35mm is the usual recommendation. But if you're used to taking photos with your phone, you'll notice that the 35mm is very different.
I didn't test star shots with the 17mm, sorry. I always would recommend checking out the Samyang 12mm for that task. But of course, that's a wider lens!
Many thanks! I actually always shoot JPG+RAW and use Lightroom, sometimes Iridient X-Transformer or RAW Therapee (which is free ...) I'm really a dedicated RAW shooter because then I have more control over the result. For the JPG I mainly set it on Velvia (cause I like the vivid colors, and mostly I shoot landscape or city) or Provia (for portraits). I normally use automatic white balance but tend to pre-set it a bit warmer (= more yellow). Sometimes I use manual white balance. Mainly I use the out-of-cam JPG only if I want to share photos quickly with someone, or just have a pre-view before I open the RAW at home ... The photos I show in my reviews are RAW, processed in Lightroom. I never correct for vignetting or chromatic aberration in any shots that I show in my reviews. I also never correct distortion unless I say that in the video! Here I wrote something about my basic RAW processing, this time using RAW Therapee, and compare a JPG out of cam with my processed image: tomscameras.wordpress.com/2017/11/26/raw-therapee-and-the-fuji-x-e3/
Can I ask a question - when I look at the data at your photos I see sometimes 15sec exposure, sometimes 10 or 8 sec exposure. How do you know how long you should expose?
Just by using the camera's built-in light meter and A mode: So I set the camera to A (aperture priority) mode - this way the aperture is selected manually (as it is a manual lens) and the camera can select the shutter speed automatically. The Fuji goes up to 30 full seconds in automatic exposure, so this A mode also works well for night photography.
@@WVMUSIC_NL Also in daylight! The A mode covers all speeds! It's my standard shooting method ... I'd say most photographers shoot in A mode! If I want to over/under expose a bit, I use the exposure compensation ... The only case where I select manual shutter speeds, is when it gets dark, for example indoors: For example I want 1/60sec if there's persons on the photos that might move a bit, and/or to avoid blurred shots. So I set the camera manually to 1/60sec but instead set ISO to automatic ... so the camera will use ISO to get the right exposure. On the Fuji X-E3, this works up to ISO 12800, you can also set other max. ISO limits.
Hi Tom, is your camera's (fuji xa3) image peaking accurate when you're using these manual lenses? My Xm1's focus peaking is not so accurate. Tnx in advance and great job:)
It works very well, especially with this wide lens where focusing does not need to be as super accurate as with a 35/0.95! But with a superfast or manual telephoto lens, I often use the loupe function if I want to shoot it wide open, to be sure it is 100% accurate. Maybe that would help in your case as well?
for the price it is awesome. but also for the price it's not that 'useful'. I think this should go on black and white film camera because the low contrast may work out just ok
You can’t directly compare the 17mm with a 23/25mm because the field of view is very different. I think indoors you’ll often want wider than 23mm. But it really depends on your needs. If in doubt, try your smartphone‘s standard lens which normally is a 24mm to 28mm equivalent (similar to the TT Artisan 17/1.4 APS-C) and see for yourself if it’s the focal length and field of view that you‘re looking for.
@@tomscameras ok, but smartphones wont produce shallow depth of field. I mean, i want the best focal lenght Lens to do home blog videos on a tripod, but with the max bokeh. 1.4 it is good, but is 23 mm, sufferint só i can adjust the manual focus of the Lens, just by stretching my arm?
@@filipelollita806 no I didn't mean you should use the smartphone instead of your camera and lens. I just meant you can try if the field of view that you get from your smartphone lens is good, so you know if the 17/1.4 is the right lens. In case the field of view of your smartphone lens is wider than what you want/need, then get the 23mm or 25mm lens.
I have the 17mm f1.4, the 35mm1.4, the 25mm f2, the 55mm f1.4, and the 40mm f2.8 macro.... and I have purchase them thanks to your reviews....I do appreciate your time and effort in your reviews - LIVE LONG and PROSPER🖖🖖🖖
A very nice setup of lenses! If you enjoy manual focus, that setup about every situation that you will ever encounter when taking pictures! I wish you a lot of fun with all of them! 🖖
Leaving this as a gift for Fujifilm users:
The filters for the DJI air 2s drone clip perfectly in front of the shutter inside the camera body. This means you can use them internally and they work for every lens. They do not interact with the manual shutter
Thanks for sharing! I never would have guessed that this can work!
I been looking a lot of reviews for ttartisan lenses and you're videos are the ones that i enjoy the most
Many thanks for your kind feedback! 🙏
I bought this lens for one reason... zone focusing. I already have the excellent Fujifilm XF 16mm f/1.4, but for street photography, nothing beats a lens that has comprehensive a DOF scale. It works great, just like my old film lenses.
At f/8, I can set a zone from 1 to 5 meters which is perfect for this focal length. This allows for blind hip shots as long as you can estimate that the subject is within that zone.
Yes its short focal length makes zone focusing very practical! And the fact that the distances on the focusing ring are correct - infinity is where you see the infinity mark etc. - also helps a lot! I think this is really the great strength of this lens ...!
Best review so far. I think I’m sold!
Thanks for your feedback! I hope you'll enjoy the lens!
Excellent review! I am considering this lens and your balanced review is appreciated. The great thing about these modern manual lenses is no need to adapt unlike legacy lenses. I'm still so taken aback by how well this lens performs given its cost. Great sample photos btw!
Thank you! Another big advantage of these lenses is that they are designed for APS-C ... finding a legacy 17mm lens with f/1.4 would be very tricky ;)
I've got a few Olympus PEN lenses from the 1960s which are designed for the same image format so they're small and only need a very short adapter ... but their shortest one is a 20/3.5!
i love the 17mm 1.4 its my favorite lens right now
Glad you like it! Yes it is a super versatile lens. Sharp, small and easy to use!
I have three TT trio, images by these lenses are really nice even when comparing to the native fuji lenses. My favourite is the TT35/1.4 followed closely by the TT17/1.4 and finally the TT50/1.2. TT50 came last because the lens is really heavy. Mount it on a XE body becomes head heavy
Yes that is true, the 35 is really outstanding! If you think the 50/1.2 is heavy ... try the Kamlan 50/1.1 Mark II for a change :p
very humble speaker ~ support!
Thanks! 🙏
I love this lens, perfect everyday walkaround lens.
Yes, it is a very "practical" focal length!
Great review, i have the 25 & 35mm very nice lenses, great fun and enjoyable to use! Looks like ill be buying this one to...
Many thanks for your feedback! I hope you have a lot of fun with your lenses!
Thank you for another great review. I have all three of the TTartisan lenses. I also think the 35 is the best followed by the 17 and then the 50. My copy of the 50 is a little soft. Overall these are excellent lenses, fun and wonderful value.
Thanks for your feedback! Yes, we've got really great choices these days, and nice to hear that you overall enjoy the TT Artisan lenses so much. Maybe there seems to be sample variation even though I reckon that these rather simple lens designs should be less problematic than more complex ones.
I'm thinking to fetch either a 7Artisans 55/1.4 and/or the Kamlan 50/1.1 II to compare with the TT Artisan 50/1.2. Other reviews indicate that the Kamlan should have superior optics, but not by a wide margin. However it is also massive in size and weight ...
Great review, thanks!
Thanks for your feedback, I'm glad you liked it!
really top notch review, thaks for the content !1
Many thanks for your feedback! 🙏
Great video! Awesome quality
Thank you very much!
Soft spoken. LoVe it!
Thanks!
Hi Thomas, greetings from Latvia. Very successful lenses in terms of price and performance, and I found the model with 35mm f / 1.4 for 50 euros in the second hand. I think I will buy it. The review was very helpful for me, thank you.
Hey, many thanks for your feedback! 50 Euro's is a great price and the TT Artisan 35 is a fantastic lens! Regards to Latvia!
@@tomscameras thank you thomas 👍👋
Нищая латвия😂 Балтийские вымираты😂
Love the review and the Kodak Retina picture! Thanks.
Well spotted! That Retina is a true classic! :)
Great review! Love the suggestions and recommendations.
Thanks for your feedback, you're welcome! 🙏
Great Lens Review, Great Share
Thanks Tony for your feedback! Have a good time!
Wonderful review. The best ive seen. Your images are great as well.
Thanks a lot Philip, I really appreciate your feedback!
Another beautiful Video, Tom! I've posted your Link from the 35/1.4 into some forums, back into the Day. Personally, i'd love to see a 23mm F1.4 from these Series - so that we'd have our 35mm FF-equivalent Focal Length onto the Fuji X-Mount, or any other APS-C System, with the optical Performance of the 35/1.4 (which i bought earlier into 2021) and for the same price, would being perfect.
Hi Marc, many thanks for your feedback and support!!
Oh yes I also am longing for a high-quality manual focus 22/23 mm lens! I've already got the Zonlai 22/1.8, but while it is nice, it's only f/1.8 ... and then on APS-C, not that super exciting!
There is also the Kamlan 21/1.4, I got the 28/1.4 of them just a few days ago and will do a review. The Kamlan's are also great but compared to TT Artisan, they lack a bit in handling!
So if anyone from TT Artisan (or another company) is ever reading this: There is still space for a really nice 23/1.4 or maybe even 23/1.2 ... (just dreaming)!
@@tomscameras guess what, Tom - i've bought the Zonlai 22mm F1.8 for my black E1 into Fall 2020, because i wanted a close to 35mm Lens, being good, being pay-able. Not Leica territory of course, which i can't afford anyway.
(edit) Tom, i do still have hope, Cosina (Voigtländer) would show up with a very cute, small 23mm/F1.2 NOKTON, with the same looks & small size, like their new, shiny 35mm/F1.2 Nokton for Fujifilm X-Mount ! (and same price - exactly) Perhaps into 2022, we'll see ! :-)
@@marcp.1752 Oh yes … Cosinas late venture into APS-C territory is great news !! And I also have some hope that they will come up with at least one dedicated APS-C optical design - at 22/23 you can’t reasonably use a FF design anymore!
@@tomscameras I really hope, Cosina would release a 23mm F1.2/F1.4 Nokton X-Mount, like their brand new 35/1.2 Nokton Voigtländer. If it would being better even - than the "Fujicron" 23mm F1.4 - why not? I don't need AF. I am used to manual focus since the late 80s. :)
Outstanding images in this video. Wondering if it as much Fujifilms color science or the lens that is most responsible for the quality. Great review, Thanks
Lens has a slight coolish cast to it I've heard
@@techtt6213 Thanks for your input. Most appreciated.
Many thanks for your feedback! I have to admit that I always shoot in RAW and edit in Lightroom … maybe some of the Fuji color science is this replaced with my very personal color adjustments ;)
But in terms of contrast and fidelity, the TT Artisan is good and neutral, maybe a bit cold yes. Definitely a bit colder than real vintage lenses …
I would love to see this side by side with the fuji 18mm. From what I hear, the autofocus on the fuji 18mm isn't too great anyway.
I tried the 18mm a long time ago. But I am not picky when it comes to autofocus speed - for me the 18/2 (and also the old Fujinon 35/1.4) are more than good enough in that regard! Now the 18/2 is good, sure, yet still not the nicest Fuji optics (whereas I totally love the 35/1.4!) so that’s why I never came back to it again …
Thanks Tom I'm looking for a fast 28 for my Fugi X-T30 this looks a nice cheep lens gives good results a 26mm sounds fine to me for my use i love your honest opinion of these lenses and i trust you after watching many of your videos I think that I might take a chance and buy this lens Tom I like old glass manual lenses but a modern lens might make a nice change for me.
Thanks for your feedback! I think the biggest question before getting any of these lenses is if you’re happy with manual focusing. But as you like old glass, that shouldn’t be any problem! So I hope you’ll have a lot of fun with this lens!
It's a shame about the font, but I'll still pick one up once it comes in Z mount. Hopefully they fix the font for that release!
Of course, it takes great pics even with the wrong font design, yes 😜
Super review once again Tom, I'm in doubt between getting this or a second hand xf27, your video helps quite a lot
Glad to be of any help! Tell me what your decision will be! :)
Great video, as always. I thought I needed this lens, I already have the 7artisans 35mm 0.95 and I am definitely going to get a 7artisans 50mm 0.95. But seeing this video, I noticed there isn't much use for me having a 17mm that doesn't produce much bokeh.
Instead I can use the Fuji 18-55 f/2.8-4 I already own, at 18mm f/2.8. Thanks, very helpful video 👍
The point of a wide lens with fast aperture is less the bokeh but more that you can shoot it in low light conditions where you maybe can't use a tripod or flash. But yes, I see your point a bit.
I still find lenses like the 17/1.4 useful in those cases. If you don't miss the extra speed, then your zoom lens is a very good alternative!
@@tomscameras Yeah, I realised that before I posted that comment. So I actually tested the Fuji zoom lens in the dark, making a video of the street I live in. There are quite a lot of streetlights, it seemed fine 😄.
Maybe I need this lens in the future, but for now I manage. First I'm looking forward to buying the 50mm 0.95, hopefully Black Friday will give me a nice discount, if I can wait that long 😉
Great review and great lens, I have to get the 50 f1.2 first though 😁
Yes! The 50/1.2 has some special magic to it … like many portrait lenses!! This 17/1.4 does not have that maybe, but then such a wide angle lens often is just a very versatile companion … and thus also very important in your photographic life!
Great video! Thank you. Newly subscribed.
Thanks four your feedback! I really appreciate your support!
Would recommend this lens over the zonlai 22mm
I prefer this lens over the Zonlai for its overall quality and handling. And it is a real "wide-angle" lens that equals full frame 26mm.
The Zonlai has a different field of view (full frame about 33mm) which sounds only a few millimetres, but the difference is very noticable!
Sadly there still is no third-party manual focus 21/22/23 mm lens that is truly great and convincing. I really think that TT Artisan or 7Artisans should make a lens in that focal length as well! Maybe TT Artisan a compact 22/1.4 and 7Artisans a super-fast 22/1.2 or 22/0.95 even. :)
I did not like this lens, at first, as much as the other two TTA lenses. But, the more I use it the more I like it. It’s aperture ring is not as clicky as the other two.
Yes, I agree! It's super versatile but maybe not as much "love at first sight" as the other two. But it grows on you the more you use it :)
Do you have a lens where the font looks the same as the other two lenses, or one like mine where the font is different?
i love your reviews thank you
Thank you very much for your feedback!
Yoo-hoo I was waiting for your reviewvideo! It is on my wishlist now. Yes designwise the drawing of the lens elements on the lens itself is ugly too, but who cares. I think about selling my old lenses and only keep this ttartisan trio plus my Fuji lenses.
Hey, many thanks for your feedback, it is greatly appreciated!
I got information from a nice fellow visitor of my channel that there is a version of the 17/1.4 with the "correct" font face, see it on Amazon, the vendor is Lookingsky there.
That one still has the drawing of the lens elements ... but at least it fits the rest of the TT Artisan lenses regarding the font face!
I still have no real clue why TT Artisan sells two different versions though.
Thx!
You’re welcome, I am glad you enjoyed the video!
Excellent results for the price point and the wide-angle perspectives of a lens!! I really need a similar review for TT artisan's 7.5mm wide-angle lens!! I only have the technical aspects of the lens and I form a strong opinion for buying the lens, let me know if I should buy it!!
I have the 7.5mm TT Artisan fisheye lens and the review is on my to-do-list already :)
Thanks, I'm looking forward to the review with enormous eagerness!! I wanna be notified the soonest the best!!
How would you find this for say vlogging or as a webcam
I would maybe rather suggest an autofocus lens. Vlogging and web cam use are two specific cases where autofocus really helps!
Can you recommend any other compact and fast lenses with a wider range!! This is what i need for my fuji camera. I was considering the fuji 18mm f2, but still ambivalent
The Fuji 18/2 is sometimes criticized for its optical performance. I never shot it so I can't really comment on that. It's compact and it is one of the original three Fujinon lenses when they launched the X system in 2011. I only know the other two - the 35/1.4 is still my #1 favourite Fujinon lens of them all! And the 60/2.4 Macro is also nice. They all three are said to have a "slow" auto focus by modern standards but I never really cared.
hi, I got this lens for XT30-II but when I put this on my cam, and try to take images it doesn't do anything and the cam doesn't take photos. I think I have to make some setting changes, can anyone help, i. am new to this cam n lense as well
There is a menu setting called "Shoot without lens" that needs to be activated. For some weird reason, it is deactivated as default when you get a new Fuji camera! Also see this thread in the DP Review forum, maybe it helps you to locate that setting in your menu:
www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4054316
Thank you for a nice presentation. What are your opinions on the color rendition and micro contrast of this lens? Please stay safe and with my best regards.
Colors are vibrant and neutral, maybe a touch cold but that is of course also a matter of the camera's white balance and might depend on the camera (brand) you are using!
Micro contrast (contrast in very fine detail) is not extremely high especially in the more open apertures, but stopped down it gets high and fine details are rendered crisp and clear. Note that micro contrast also depends a bit on the sensor characteristics!
Again, my impression is that the general rendering of the TT Artisan lenses is a little bit different to really "modern" lens designs such as e.g. the Fuji 50/2 or 23/2. And this makes TT Artisan pictures look very well balanced and natural in a way.
If at f8, focus ring is at the infinity, what is roughly the minimum distance in focus, try to understand how easy it is to do zone focusing. Cheers.
Yes, with wide lenses like this you can always go for zone focusing!
That's why it is so important that the numbers on the focus ring are calibrated correctly, as is the case with the TT Artisan lenses (not with many other brands though).
Thanks for a useful review. I sent my M43 copy back as the results were very disappointing. I suspect that TTArtisans have some quality control issues as my poor copy does not appear to be an isolated example.
That's bad to hear. What was the issue with your lens? Did you try a second example or give up on the lens?
My copy is good, even though I just picked the very first one at the local photo store.
In general, the more wide-angle you go, the more risk there is that a lens will show issues like "decentering". It's not the 100% technical correct term; what I mean is that the left and right sides, or one or two corners, look better or worse than the others ... even when you stop down.
@@tomscameras Hi there. I've the excellent Meike 35mm f1.4 and the useful 7 Artisans 55mm f1.4 to use as a benchmark. Sadly the 17mm wasn't really very sharp at all which meant that I wouldn't really use it. There was a big difference between many of the copies used for reviews and my one. There is on cautionary review on UA-cam and also some comments from someone who seems to have a worse copy than mine. I ordered my copy via Amazon and the suppliers were very good about giving me refunds for the lens and also the postage. The supplies of this lens seem to have run out so I wasn't able to have an exchange lens. I have heard that TTArtisans and 7Artisans' lenses are produced by the same company which makes me a little vary of buying lenses from either of them. A real shame that the QC is rather poor as these lenses offer great value for money and a different style of image.
I had the same experience with neewer 25mm f1.8, unfortunately these lenses are a bit hit or miss in quality control
Do you know of other 16 or 18 mm fast and also compact lenses? I know i'm asking for a lot. Also i try to understand the difference between 16 and 18...but to me i think the compactness and speed are the most important factors.
In practice, the difference between 16 and 18 mm is not huge. But ... most lenses at this focal length are not very fast and compact at the same time, that's true! That's what makes this TT Artisan 17/1.4 kind of unique.
And do you feel there is much of a difference between f1.4 and f2?(or 1.8). I am considering the 25mm! Thank you! @@tomscameras
How good is this lens for cinematic videography for wedding and events???
I think, for events and weddings I'd normally rather recommend a lens with auto focus, unless you have a lot of experience with manual focus lenses already and are really confident in using them on such an occasion!
Can you do a sample variation test on one or more of this ttartisan lenses? It seems to be a lot of variation...
The only of the lenses that I handled different samples of is the 35/1.4. I bought two of those over the time for myself and also once shot a third one. They all performed equally well. But yes, that's a very small number of samples still.
Of all the other lenses that you see in my video reviews, I only shot a single one sample. In the case of the 17/1.4 that you see in this video: I bought that lens in a local camera store.
So, unfortunately I can only advice you to check out different other reviews as well, and maybe also have a look in the big online forums and see how the experience with customer service and/or sample-to-sample variation might be with any lens that you're interested to purchase.
Thank you Tom for this nice review. I own the 7Artisans 25mm. Nice lens but the colours are a bit plane. Does this lens a better job?
Thanks for your feedback!
I never tried the 25mm but I think that is a more basic design from the first days of 7Artisans. So you can expect better quality from these new TT Artisan lenses. (Also the newest 7Artisans lenses like 35/0.95 are better than their first ones.)
I find these lenses (TT Artisan 17/35/50, 7Artisans 35/0.95) produce pretty neutral and accurate color and good contrast overall.
Hi, I currently have a Pen-F and Sigma 30mm 1,4 and am very happy but unfortunately too big.
I am interested in a bright compact lens mainly for street photography and I am undecided between the two TTartisan lenses 23mm 1,4 (plus compactness) and the 17mm (plus focal but less compact) what do you recommend? I would have doubts about their sharpness, to be picky, the potential that the two lenses have in post-production both with open and closed aperture.
My review of the new TT Artisan 23/1.4 will be out in a few hours! I love this lens ... but the catch is: I'm shooting Fuji, not Olympus!
For you, I have a completely different suggestion ... as all the TT Artisan lenses are optimised for APS-C, not for MFT (even though you can buy them for MFT). In your case I would get the Panasonic 20/1.7. It's even got AF, it is tiny as can be, it is not expensive at all, and it is a very capable lens! You simply can't go more compact than that!
I had two copies of the Panasonic, one a long time ago on my E-M5 and then another one when I owned the PEN-F. I even wrote a review about the Panasonic a long time ago, maybe it could be still interesting for you:
tomscameras.wordpress.com/2012/11/22/just-before-the-new-olympus-171-8s-arrival-revisiting-the-panasonic-201-7/
Hi Tom. Thank you for posting this review. Have you had any feedback from anyone who may have had issues about not being able to focus to infinity on this lens? The reason I ask is that I want to use this lens specifically for zone focusing in street photography. Do you know if the infinity focus issue is easy to fix on this lens? Cheers!
It was very easy to change the exact focus ring position in my case: loosen the three small set screws and then you can move the focus ring itself to the best position. But again, that was on my lens. I didn't try out one of the current production runs to see if it's still as easy.
I know from other lenses such as the 25mm f/2 that they sometimes also add some glue to the internals and then it can be more tricky to get the focus ring loose to adjust focus.
Thanks so much for the reply. I think this lens is well worth the asking price, so I think its time to get one. Hopefully, it will be an easy fix, if needed. Have a great day 👍
TTartisans 17mm or 23mm which is the best ? Despite focal distance....
What about 7artisans 25mm 1.8 ?
I would rate the optics of the 17/1.4 to be better. The 25/1.8s I never tried out.
are you also using an TT artisan to film yourself
This video was shot by Takahiro (he has his own channel: ua-cam.com/users/takahirooda ) on Canon EOS R with Tamron 15-30/2.8. Note that the EOS R is APS-C when shooting at 4k (what we did).
But, yes, I have shot some videos with Fuji X and manual lenses like TT Artisan, Kamlan and 7Artisans, for example this one:
ua-cam.com/video/Hu9_y0lyFn4/v-deo.html
Does it suitable for talking head videos? Im interest to buy sigma 16mm but its kind of pricey so seeking for alternative. I'll be using mostly for talking head videos, stay at my room.
Maybe just try your smartphone if it works in your conditions - most smartphones have a 24mm to 28mm equivalent lens so that gives you a good idea if the field of view of the TT Artisan 17/1.4 would work for you! (On APS-C, the TT Artisan is 17mm x1.5 = approx. 26mm equivalent).
@@tomscameras Thank you for your reply. Noted
What settings are you using in body for focus with this lens to shoot landscape ?
f/8 and infinity focus. If the subject is close (not at infinity) then I will use manual focusing, but for far-away landscapes just set it to infinity and f/8.
In daylight, I'll normally set the camera to ISO 100 and to A so it will select the shutter speed automatically.
@@tomscameras tnx !
17mm or 35? What should i go
Oh that is really a question of personal taste. 17mm is a wide angle lens that matches the "standard" lens on most iPhones (or other smartphones). A 35mm gives a much closer field of view than that!
Normally, if someone's looking for their first fixed focal length lens, then 35mm is the usual recommendation. But if you're used to taking photos with your phone, you'll notice that the 35mm is very different.
Is this lense suited for milky way shots? Have you tested yet?
I didn't test star shots with the 17mm, sorry. I always would recommend checking out the Samyang 12mm for that task. But of course, that's a wider lens!
Are you using a greenscreen as background?
No, this was all filmed on location!
Hi! love your work.what settings do u use on your fuji xe-3?shadows highlights etc.
Many thanks!
I actually always shoot JPG+RAW and use Lightroom, sometimes Iridient X-Transformer or RAW Therapee (which is free ...) I'm really a dedicated RAW shooter because then I have more control over the result.
For the JPG I mainly set it on Velvia (cause I like the vivid colors, and mostly I shoot landscape or city) or Provia (for portraits). I normally use automatic white balance but tend to pre-set it a bit warmer (= more yellow). Sometimes I use manual white balance.
Mainly I use the out-of-cam JPG only if I want to share photos quickly with someone, or just have a pre-view before I open the RAW at home ... The photos I show in my reviews are RAW, processed in Lightroom.
I never correct for vignetting or chromatic aberration in any shots that I show in my reviews. I also never correct distortion unless I say that in the video!
Here I wrote something about my basic RAW processing, this time using RAW Therapee, and compare a JPG out of cam with my processed image:
tomscameras.wordpress.com/2017/11/26/raw-therapee-and-the-fuji-x-e3/
wow!just saw those raw vs jpeg comparison!That's insane!Thanks for the tip!I will check RAW therapee.
Can I ask a question - when I look at the data at your photos I see sometimes 15sec exposure, sometimes 10 or 8 sec exposure. How do you know how long you should expose?
Just by using the camera's built-in light meter and A mode:
So I set the camera to A (aperture priority) mode - this way the aperture is selected manually (as it is a manual lens) and the camera can select the shutter speed automatically.
The Fuji goes up to 30 full seconds in automatic exposure, so this A mode also works well for night photography.
@@tomscameras thankyou! This only goes for long exposure at night or do you use it during daylight too?
@@WVMUSIC_NL Also in daylight! The A mode covers all speeds! It's my standard shooting method ... I'd say most photographers shoot in A mode!
If I want to over/under expose a bit, I use the exposure compensation ...
The only case where I select manual shutter speeds, is when it gets dark, for example indoors: For example I want 1/60sec if there's persons on the photos that might move a bit, and/or to avoid blurred shots. So I set the camera manually to 1/60sec but instead set ISO to automatic ... so the camera will use ISO to get the right exposure. On the Fuji X-E3, this works up to ISO 12800, you can also set other max. ISO limits.
Hi Tom, is your camera's (fuji xa3) image peaking accurate when you're using these manual lenses? My Xm1's focus peaking is not so accurate. Tnx in advance and great job:)
It works very well, especially with this wide lens where focusing does not need to be as super accurate as with a 35/0.95!
But with a superfast or manual telephoto lens, I often use the loupe function if I want to shoot it wide open, to be sure it is 100% accurate. Maybe that would help in your case as well?
@@tomscameras Thanks so much, Tom. Great job:)
for the price it is awesome. but also for the price it's not that 'useful'. I think this should go on black and white film camera because the low contrast may work out just ok
Hmm, I didn't find any special issues regarding the contrast or color rendition on this lens!
11:18 LOL
😁
Hi tomas. How do you compare this Lens against the 25, or the 23? To do close up video, indoors, in small places, is 23mm enough? Thanks
You can’t directly compare the 17mm with a 23/25mm because the field of view is very different. I think indoors you’ll often want wider than 23mm. But it really depends on your needs. If in doubt, try your smartphone‘s standard lens which normally is a 24mm to 28mm equivalent (similar to the TT Artisan 17/1.4 APS-C) and see for yourself if it’s the focal length and field of view that you‘re looking for.
@@tomscameras ok, but smartphones wont produce shallow depth of field. I mean, i want the best focal lenght Lens to do home blog videos on a tripod, but with the max bokeh. 1.4 it is good, but is 23 mm, sufferint só i can adjust the manual focus of the Lens, just by stretching my arm?
@@filipelollita806 no I didn't mean you should use the smartphone instead of your camera and lens. I just meant you can try if the field of view that you get from your smartphone lens is good, so you know if the 17/1.4 is the right lens. In case the field of view of your smartphone lens is wider than what you want/need, then get the 23mm or 25mm lens.