Here is a lens that I never thought I would be owning, but due to circumstances I’ve ended up with one! The Viltrox 28mm F/4.5 Chip lens is a strange, tiny little lens, and I don’t know how much use I’ll get out of it when I have so much better lenses at my disposal. Then again, it is not always about the quality of the glass. Sometimes it’s just about having fun.
“A Look At The Lens”
The Viltrox 28mm f/4.5 Chip Lens is about as close as you can get to attaching a high-tech lens cap to your camera and calling it a day. Coming in at around 60 grams and just 15mm thick, it completely changes the dynamic of carrying a mirrorless body. You can toss your camera into a jacket pocket or over your shoulder for a walk without feeling like you’re hauling around heavy gear.
Using it feels a lot like shooting with a classic retro point-and-shoot camera. There’s a clever little lever on the front to open and close the built-in lens cover, and because the aperture is fixed at f/4.5, you don’t even have to think about controlling your depth of field. You just flip it open, turn the camera on, and start snapping. Surprisingly, Viltrox managed to squeeze a quiet, fairly quick motor inside, so the autofocus snaps to subjects much faster than you’d expect from something this tiny and inexpensive. It’s also very accurate, even though it does feel like it’s hunting quite a lot.
“Qualities”
Image-wise, it hits a really fun sweet spot. The centre of the frame is unexpectedly crisp, while the edges show a bit of softness and it has a heavy vignetting. Instead of looking like a flaw, that light falloff gives street photos and casual snapshots a cool, filmic character straight out of the box. In some lighting conditions it does lose a bit of contrast.
Naturally, a lens this minimal comes with a few trade-offs. Being locked at f/4.5 means it isn’t meant for low-light night scenes or creamy, blurred-out background portraits, and the front cover design means you can’t screw on standard filters. But as a lighthearted, budget-friendly everyday carry lens, it’s an absolute blast to shoot with, just keep your camera in auto-ISO and it’s the ultimate point and shoot camera!
On the Nikon ZF it looks very very nice! Suddenly your Nikon ZF can fit in your (big) pocket or sit lightly around your neck. I love choosing my Nostalgic film recipe and most enjoying the moment with it.
“Conclusion”
The Viltrox 28mm F/4.5 Chip lens is a strange and seemingly unique lens that divides photographers. For many people it is far too limited, being a fixed 28mm focal length (that you will either love or hate), a fixed aperture of F/4.5 that can instantly put people off if they shoot in lower lighting conditions and not even the option to add a creative filter (such as a mist filter).
To others it can be seen as a bit of fun, or an ultra compact everyday carry, keeping things really light. The image quality won’t be an issue for most people in this situation as they will mostly only be posting to social media (let’s be honest, that’s where almost everyone posts anyway!)
I’ll fall into the second category here for now. Although I find 28mm a little wider than I like (I’m a 35-40mm guy usually), for certain situations it can work. I’m not worried about higher ISO’s in lower light, and I will often use a small flash like the IM22 if more light is needed anyway.
Come back for more images in the future. The story and the review has only just began.
“Examples Images”
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My name is Mark G Adams and I run Photography By Mark G Adams. I am a professional photographer from South Wales, shooting weddings, events and portraits as well as running meets and workshops. For fun I like to shoot landscapes, wildlife and occasionally do street photography. Enjoy my website as I share my knowledge learned over decades of working and having fun in photography. Feel free to like, comment and subscribe!
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