7Artisans AF 18mm F2 Review - DustinAbbott.net

Several months ago Viltrox released the extremely popular full-frame 26mm F2.8 pancake lens (my review here). It was that lens that I was most reminded of while reviewing the new 7Artisans AF 18mm F2. This is essentially an APS-C version of that lens, giving an equivalent focal length of 27mm, providing an aperture ring, and delivering nice optics. The 7Artisans 18mm F2 is much cheaper, however, at just $169 USD, making it an excellent bargain for those looking for a new lightweight walk-around/multipurpose lens. Find out more in either the video review below or by reading on in the text review.

Thanks to 7Artisans for sending me a review sample of this lens. As always, this is a completely independent review. *The tests and most of the photos that I share as a part of my review cycle have been done with the Sony a7RV and the Sony A1 II. You can find the listing for the 7Artisans AF 18mm F2 here.

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SUMMARY: The 7Artisans AF 18mm F2 is a compact and affordable APS-C pancake lens, offering a focal length equivalent to 27mm with a lightweight design that makes it ideal for diverse photography, especially street and hiking. While it features a decent build, including an aperture ring and STM autofocus, there are notable drawbacks, such as limited weather sealing and occasional softness in corner sharpness. Priced at just $169 USD, it presents good value but falls short of the optical quality found in higher-end lenses. Overall, it’s a practical choice for casual photographers seeking a lightweight addition to their gear.

Strengths:

Compact and lightweight design (27mm size, 109g weight).
Affordable price point ($169 USD).
Decent autofocus performance for both stills and video.
Versatile focal length, suitable for various photography styles.

Weaknesses:

Limited weather sealing and design issues with the USB-C port.
Corner sharpness can be soft and prone to chromatic aberrations.
Average optical performance compared to more expensive lenses.
Bokeh quality can be inconsistent, with some images appearing jittery.

Much like the Viltrox, the 7Artisans AF 18mm F2 has a nice combination of size, features, and performance, thought with a quirky lens hood design that creates a rectangular opening to the lens.

This is a great walkaround focal length, providing a nice balance between been reasonably wide but without getting too much stretching in the corners.

It would be a fun street lens, but also a nice one for hikers like myself.

A lot of people are going to find this lens very useful. Let’s take a closer look.

7Artisans AF 18mm F2 Build and Handling

This is a very compact lens. It is just 27mm (1.06″), making it very slightly thicker than the full frame Viltrox lens.

The diameter is a little smaller than the full frame Viltrox, however, at 64mm (2.5″) in diameter.

This results in a very lightweight lens, weighing just 109g (less than 4oz).

The features are limited to an aperture ring, though that is very welcome. It is a clicked ring with detents at each of the one-third stops and markings at full stops. The ring feels slightly plasticky but of reasonably good quality.

Also present is a manual focus ring that moves with fairly good damping.

One thing I don’t like in the design is that the USB-C port for firmware updates is located on the side of the barrel, and rather than being weather sealed internally (or located on the lens mount, which is where the last 7Artisans lens I tested had it and is preferred), it has a little rubber gasket that comes completely out and will invariably get lost.

There doesn’t seem to be a weather sealing gasket present at the rear of the lens.

Up front we have 52mm filter threads.

Filtering could be complicated by the somewhat odd lens hood, as it bayonets over that same area and does not leave enough space to use filters and the hood at the same time.

Inside we have 9 aperture blades, which is a reasonably high count for an inexpensive lens like this, though when stopped down significantly (as is shown here), the aperture shape isn’t quite even.

Still, the aperture does a good job of maintaining a circular shape in my tests from F2.8-5.6.

The minimum focus distance is 20cm, giving a decent level of magnification. I estimate it to be near 0.20x, which is similar to the Viltrox EVO 26mm F2.8.

The focal plane isn’t particularly flat, as you can see that the center is sharp but the corners fall out of focus a bit.

Add this compact package to a price tag of just $169 USD, and you have an interesting pancake lens that should prove very interesting for Sony APS-C shooters.

Autofocus for Stills

Autofocus comes courtesy of an STM, or stepping motor. The glass elements are tiny in this lens, so it doesn’t require a lot of thrust to produce fast autofocus. I found that focus zipped back and forth with good speed and quietness. 7Artisans has definitely gotten better in this regard…even with their cheaper lenses.

I had no problem nailing shots with fine focus.

The good news is that while this is an inexpensive, compact lens, the state of play on modern E-mount is that most lenses autofocus very well unless there is some serious issue with firmware/algorithms. I saw no such issue here, so good news.

Video AF

The video front largely brings positive things. Touch to focus pulls are smooth and quiet, and I saw no issues with pulsing or a lack of confidence locking focus on the subject. Focus breathing does exist, though there isn’t a massive amount.

My typical “hand test” where I alternatively block the camera’s view of the face with my hand and then remove it went well in terms of confident movement from my hand to my eye and vice versa, though the focus changes were a little abrupt.

Focus seemed fairly stable as I panned with the lens while shoot video, though I felt like focus was tighter in the moments when I stopped moving and the focus motor had a little more opportunity to stabilize focus. Here’s a few screenshots from such a clip.

In general, though, I wouldn’t hesitate

7Artisans AF 18mm F2 Optical Performance

The 7Artisans AF 18mm F2 has an optical design of 9 elements in 7 groups. This includes 2 ED (extra low dispersion) elements and 5 HR (High Refractive) elements, leaving only two normal elements. The MTF chart shows a a fairly sharp center but lower resolution as you move off-axis. The corners will look fairly soft.

I definitely saw a sharpness profile similar to what is shown here even with the lens stopped down. Here at F5.6 we can see a fairly sharp center but that the edge performance is fairly soft.

Images shot in the “sweet spot” of performance looked better, even at F2. The “sweet spot” appears to not only be where the subject is situated in the frame, but also the distance to the subject, with a medium distance seeming to be best.

Let’s break it down.

Longitudinal chromatic aberrations (LoCA) show up as fringing before or after the plane of focus. I looked for LoCA before and after the plane of focus and found a fair bit of it, primarily in a form of a green fringing after the plane of focus.

There’s also some obvious fringing on shiny edges here and around specular highlights.

Lateral chromatic aberrations (LaCA) show up in the contrast transitions near the edge of the frame. There is also evidence of fringing here.

You will have to accept some fringing as a part of the package here.

Distortion and vignette aren’t terrible for such a compact lens. There is a bit of barrel distortion (a +5 to correct) along with an average amount of vignette at F2 (+55 to correct).

There’s nothing too concerning there.

How about sharpness and contrast? I’m testing on the Sony platform (a Fuji X-mount version of the lens will come later), so the standard isn’t as demanding as Fuji’s 40MP sensor. I’m using the 26MP APS-C mode of the Sony a7RV for these tests, with results shown at 200% magnification. Here’s the test chart that the crops will come from:

Sharpness and contrast at F2 are somewhat below average for modern lenses, though one has to bear in mind that A) this is a pancake lens and B) it is very inexpensive. Here’s a look at the F2 crops from the center, midframe, and lower right corner.

Real world images rarely wowed me in terms of contrast at F2.

Interestingly, though, I found results got better if I moved just a little further back. These are crops from images taken a few seconds apart, but with one I was near the minimum focus distance while with the other I moved another 8-12 inches back.

Stopping down to F2.8 did improve contrast somewhat, though detail still isn’t fantastic.

Stopping down to F5.6 further improves sharpness and contrast (midframe shown below), though I would call the results approaching good but far from excellent.

Real world landscapes vary a bit depending on scenes, but for the most part I would say that photographers will be satisfied with the sharpness at F5.6-F8.

Diffraction will soften the image somewhat at F11 and F16 (minimum aperture), though the effects of diffraction seem to be minimal here on Sony. Expect them to look more pronounced on a 40MP Fuji sensor.

Many Chinese lenses have struggled a bit with their coatings than established brands from Japan. This is obviously a more difficult area of lens design than most people consider. The end result is more issues with flare. This is a lens that has some issues with ghosting (flare patterns) and some veiling or loss or contrast.

The unique lens hood helps a bit, but it obviously isn’t very deep.

The bokeh quality varies according to the setting. I found the transition zone to be a bit nervous or jittery looking in some images.

Depth of field will rarely be particularly shallow with a wider angle lens like this, so don’t expect strongly blurred out backgrounds.

I see a bit of a “soap bubble” effect here, with a lot of outlining around specular highlights. A bit of fringing there will further draw the eye.

In general, though, the bokeh is not terrible and can have a bit of personality in certain instances.

7Artisan’s optical glass and the resulting colors are fine but not great by any stretch. I find that colors tend to look a little garish when pushed much.

Zeiss glass it is not, but neither is it priced to be. This is a compact, inexpensive, fun lens that can produce nice-looking images. Here’s a mini-gallery of images from the lens.

Conclusion

Pancake lenses are great for those who really like the idea of a “pocketable” or near-to-it camera. A lens like the 7Artisans AF 18mm F2 can turn small APS-C mirrorless camera into the equivalent of a fixed-lens camera. This is a very flexible focal length, with decent brightness, and an easy-to-use design that can go everywhere with you. It’s a nice wide-angle counterpoint to throw into your bag if you are going out with a telephoto lens attached in case a wider view presents itself.

Autofocus worked well on my Sony camera, without any fuss or noise in operation. This is a nice backpacking or hiking lens to capture interesting things along the trail, and would work well if you have some kind of clip that attaches a lightweight camera to the strap of your backpack.

The price of just $169 USD makes this a very approachable option for those on a tight budget. It’s not the most exciting optic that I’ve tested, but the overall package is interesting. Pancake lenses remain relatively rare, and this is a nice APS-C option for someone wanting a compact low-visibility lens for street photography or hiking.

Pros:

Compact Size and Weight: At 27mm and 109g, it’s an exceptionally portable lens, ideal for travel and street photography.
Affordability: Priced at $169 USD, it offers excellent value for budget-conscious photographers.
Aperture Ring: The clicked aperture ring with detents at one-third stops allows for intuitive adjustments.
Good Autofocus Performance: Features an STM motor providing fast and quiet autofocus for both stills and video, enhancing shooting experience.
Versatile Focal Length: Equivalent to 27mm, it balances wide-angle capabilities without excessive distortion, making it suitable for various genres.
Lightweight Walkaround Lens: Ideal for casual shooting, it’s particularly appealing to hikers and travelers.
Minimum Focus Distance: With a minimum focus distance of 20cm, it provides decent magnification for close-up shots.

Cons:

Soft Corner Sharpness: Image quality shows significant softness at the corners, especially evident in wide shots.
Chromatic Aberrations: Noticeable longitudinal and lateral chromatic aberrations can detract from image quality, particularly in high-contrast areas.
Complicated Filtering: The lens hood design complicates the use of filters, as it doesn’t leave enough space for simultaneous use.
Bokeh Quality: Bokeh can appear jittery and unrefined, with some images exhibiting a “soap bubble” effect around highlights.
Ghosting and Flare: Prone to ghosting and flare, particularly in backlit situations, which may reduce contrast.
Optical Performance: Overall optical performance is modest, especially at wider apertures, with sharpness and contrast being below average.
Design Issues: The USB-C port is poorly placed and lacks effective sealing, increasing the risk of losing the rubber gasket.

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