To get a really tight depth of field and make the main subject in a scene stand out against a blurred background, there’s no substitute for a prime lens with an aperture of around f/1.4 to f/1.8. This kind of lens also enables you to freeze movement, even under dull or indoor lighting, without the need to bump up your camera’s ISO setting, which can impact the image quality.
Some primes are even faster, such as the Nikon Z 50mm and Canon RF 85mm F1.2L USM lenses. They’re both fabulous lenses, but pricey at around £2,300/$2,100 and £3,000/$2,800 respectively. That’s a deal-breaker for many photographers, as the budget simply won’t stretch that far. Look further afield, however, and some independent lens manufacturers are serving up fast glass with relatively inexpensive price tags.
If you’re after a specifically DX format, native Z-mount prime for cameras including the Z 30, Z 50 and Z fc, there’s nothing on the horizon yet from Nikon. However, other manufacturers, such as Sigma and Viltrox, offer some tempting options, while 7Artisans and Yongnuo deliver the goods for FX Z-series cameras.
Viltrox AF 56mm f/1.4
£263/$299
This is an excellent DX format lens that’s ideal for portraiture, still-life photography and much more besides, at a reasonable asking price
While the Viltrox AF 33mm gives an entirely standard field of view on APS-C format cameras, the AF
