Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro: one-minute review

I’ve had a busy time reviewing Viltrox lenses this year – including a range of primes such as the cheap and characterful ‘body cap’ 28mm f/4.5 lens, my dream reportage photography 35mm f/1.2 lens, the buttery bokeh-delivering 135mm f/1.8 LAB and the lightweight 50mm f/2 Air. Now, it’s the turn of the AF 85mm F1.4 Pro.

In the hand, the Viltrox 85mm F1.4 Pro’s rugged build quality is immediately evident – this is a weather-sealed metal lens, with a range of external controls for photo and video work, even if it lacks the digital display found in Viltrox’s flagship ‘LAB’ lenses.

Image quality is top drawer in every regard, too, demonstrating everything you’d hope for in a portrait lens; detail is sharp, bokeh is smooth, lens distortions are minimal. And then comes the mic drop: this lens costs just $589 / £569 / AU$919 – that’s a third of the price of Sony’s 85mm F1.4 GM II, and almost half the price of Sigma’s 85mm f1.4 Art DG DN. It’s regularly on sale for less, too.

Surely we can forget these rival lenses then, and save a packet with the Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro instead? Not quite. At 800g and measuring 108.5mm in length, this is a hefty lens that’s a fair bit heavier than rivals. If an 85mm f/1.4 lens is your workhorse optic, it could be well worth forking out extra for a lighter alternative.

Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro: price and availability

• Available in Sony E and Nikon Z-mount versions
• It costs $598 / £569 / AU$919
• Viltrox regularly discounts its lenses – there’s 15% off the AF 85mm F1.4 Pro at the time of writing

Viltrox’s ‘Pro’ series, which includes the 85mm F1.4 lens, sits between its flagship ‘LAB’ series, and above its lightweight ‘EVO’ in terms of both price and quality. At $598 / £569 / AU$919, it’s not a cheap lens by any means, and is the priciest of a trio of Viltrox 85mm lenses, with an f/1.8 and f/2 EVO also available. That said, the f/1.4 aperture is a better option, especially for pros who work in challenging situations, including indoors and low light.

The lens is currently available in Sony E and Nikon Z versions, but not L-mount or Canon RF (don’t expect the latter – Canon has locked Viltrox out. But for reference, Canon’s own 85mm F1.4L VCM costs 3x the price of Viltrox’s, and for me is very similar).

Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro: specs

Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro: design

• Durable, weather-sealed design, but prone to scratches
• Around 25% heavier than alternatives
• External controls suit photo and video work

The Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro’s build quality and design are clearly excellent, and remind me of Sony’s current standard-focal-length GM lenses – and even more so of Canon’s new range of hybrid ‘VCM’ lenses, which includes a triple-the-price 85mm F1.4L VCM. As mentioned, Viltrox isn’t permitted to make Canon RF lenses, but I’ve used both the Canon RF 85mm F1.4L VCM and Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro, and I’m having a hard time spotting any meaningful differences, besides the Canon lens being 25% lighter.

There’s a ridged aperture ring that can be set to clicked or smooth adjustments between aperture values, and which could host a follow-focus mechanism for cinematic manual focusing, equipping the Viltrox 85mm lens well for photo and video work. Elsewhere, there’s an AF/MF switch, a custom button, plus a large focus ring – every control is beautifully dampened / smooth in operation.

A rear rubber seal confirms the weather-sealing, and you’ll find a USB-C port within the metal rear mount, through which future firmware upgrades can be installed.

Viltrox supplies a chunky lens hood which easily screws on and off, while the lens accepts the common 77mm size of threaded filters.

There’s a reassuring weight to the metal lens, although it’s perhaps a little too weighty for its own good; at 800g it’s around 25% heavier than the aforementioned Sony, Sigma and Canon equivalents. Measuring 108mm in length, it’s similar in size to the Sony lens but bigger than Sigma’s.

Despite its weight, I thought the balance between the Viltrox lens and mid-range Nikon camera, with which I was testing the lens, felt pretty good. I wouldn’t want it any heavier or longer, but it just about sits within comfortable limits – and it would be an even better match with chunkier a Nikon Z8.

Over the course of two months with the lens I’ve managed to look after it, and it still looks pristine. However, I’ve tested other Viltrox lenses in other scenarios with less care, including the AF 35mm F1.2 LAB which has a similar finish, and they’ve proved to be prone to scratches. I’m not going to test that theory for the sake of it, but that’s my word of warning.

Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro: Performance

• 11-blade rounded aperture with f/1.4 to f/16 range, capable of smooth bokeh
• Speedy and reliable VCM autofocus
• Extremely sharp between f/2 and f/8

That big f/1.4 aperture is for sure a major selling point of the lens, especially when you consider that Viltrox already has two 85mm lenses for full-frame cameras in its range: the original 85mm f/1.8 and an 85mm f/2 EVO – the latter is the lightweight and affordable choice.

You can see how chunky the diameter of the lens is in the product gallery above, plus how big the lens aperture is through the range, with a generous 11-blades creating a circular aperture for attractive bokeh.

Like Canon’s range of hybrid lenses, the Viltrox 85mm lens employs a Voice Coil Motor (VCM) which drives autofocus, and the result is snappy autofocus – it’s quicker in my experience than Viltrox’s pricier 135mm f/1.8 LAB.

Focusing is internal, meaning the lens size remains unchanged as it focuses, and that there are ‘floating’ lens elements inside. That means there’s an unsettling rattling noise when moving the lens when it’s not on the camera, or when the camera is not turned on. There’s nothing to worry about here – that’s totally normal, and it’s the same with all such lenses. Those elements ‘lock’, and are ready to go for focusing when paired with a camera that’s turned on.

Image quality impresses, truly. Detail is incredibly sharp, especially between f/2 and f/8, where lens distortion is also pretty much non-existent. Open the lens to f/1.4 and there’s vignetting (darkening in the corners), but that’s gone by somewhere between f/2 and f/2.8.

Only in the most extreme scenarios, and with all lens corrections turned off, have I seen chromatic aberrations in my photos. One example was an image that included dew drops on a backlit cobweb.

Bokeh is super-smooth. Provided you’re relatively close to your subject and shooting between f/1.4 and f/2.8, you’ll typically get smooth and big bokeh that’s rounded in shape – no ugly onion-ring effect in sight.

Increase focus distance and, as bokeh consequently gets smaller, it can go a little cats-eye in shape. Overall, however, bokeh looks lovely, and is a real reason to opt for this 85mm lens over Viltrox’s other offerings.

As is the case with other 85mm f/1.4 full-frame lenses, macro photography is not the Viltrox lens’s forte. Minimum focus distance is 0.79m, making for a modest 0.13x maximum magnification. To be clear, the Sony and Sigma alternatives are no better.

Close focusing beyond the lens’s capabilities is hardly the regular concern of a portrait photographer, but for me I like mixing up what I photograph, and would appreciate more versatile close focusing – it would make for a more complete lens.

Should you buy the Viltrox AF 85mm F1.4 Pro?

Buy it if…