Cheap camera lenses used to be terrible.
But ever since the dawn of mirrorless cameras, cheap, capable lenses have streamed out of China.
TTArtisan is one of the better lens makers, and I have its 35mm 1.4 lens formy Fujifilm X-Pro3.
TTArtisan
Its far from perfect, but I love it because of those imperfections.
Why Buy Manual?
The lenses have an all-metal design, are small, and are 100% manual.
TTArtisan
Theres no autofocus, and the lens doesnt even tell the camera what aperture it is using.
So why buy it?
The main reason is these lenses are fun.
Charlie Sorrel / Lifewire
Modern lenses are just incredible, but theyre oftentoogood.
And these glitches are part of the fun, especially at these prices.
One of the hallmarks of almost all these Chinese-made lenses is they have very wide maximum apertures.
Modern lenses are just too good.
This adds to the charm.
Why TTArtisan?
Ive tried a few cheap lens brands, and TTArtisan is my favorite.
To start, quality control is better.
TTArtisan lenses (I have two) work as expected in all these aspects.
Its far from perfect, but I love it because of those imperfections.
TTArtisan lenses also have click-stops for the aperture.
Without clicks, you never know if the aperture has drifted, and theres no viewfinder readout to check.
And a 50mm 1.4 is an utter classic, neither wide angle or telephoto.
I like it for portraits, and for general, everyday carry-around snapping.
Out-of-focus areas look lovely, characterful without being busy or distracting.
Charlie Sorrel / Lifewire
How does it compare to Fujifilms own 35mm 2?
At a glance, youd be hard-pressed to see a difference.
But itcosts almost five times as much($399).
If you have a Fujifilm camera, buy one of Fujifilms amazing Fujicron lenses in your favorite focal length.
And then start playing with these cheap lenses.
Some are great, most are fun, and all of them are dirt cheap.
