In a world of standard lenses, a tilt-shift is a great option to get magical photographs in-camera. Whether you are into portraits, urban landscapes, or architecture, a tilt-shift lens can help you get images that stand out from the crowd, without having to mull over your edit table during post-processing. However, we all know that such lenses are fewer in number, with many costing one a few thousand dollars. To help budding photographers and serious enthusiasts, 7Artisans has announced a tilt-shift, which is not only fun to use but is quite affordable!
According to Asobinet, 7Artisans has finally announced its 50mm f1.4 Tilt Shift, which the company has been teasing for the past year. However, the lens is finally available for purchase, and it just costs $226. Here is a look at its specs:
- Lens Mount: E/FX/M3
- Compatible Sensors: APS-C
- Focal Length: 50mm
- Lens Construction: 7 elements in 6 groups
- Maximum Aperture: f1.4
- Minimum Aperture: f16
- Aperture Blades: 12 sheets
- Minimum Focusing Distance: 0.5m
- Maximum Magnification: –
- Filter Diameter: 46mm
- Image Stabilization: –
- Teleconverter: –
- Coating: Not clear
- Size: φ75×73mm
- Weight: 364g
- Dust and Water Resistant: –
- AF: MF Limited
- Aperture Ring: Mounted
- Other Controls: Tilt ±15° | Shift ±3m | Revolving 360°
While the lens can work on a full frame camera, our Gear Editor, Feroz Khan, stated that it will certainly lead to a lower resolution. “If you put this on a 24MP full-frame sensor, you’ll get a 75mm field of view picture that’s around 10 megapixels in resolution,” he explains. this is because it’s designed for APS-C sensors. So, if anyone is interested in buying something similar, you have other options from companies such as Laowa 20mm f4 Zero-D Shift and Astrhori 50mm f1.4 Tilt. However, the Laowa one will certainly cost you more, and offer you a far narrower f-stop than the Astrhori variant.
The 7Artisan tilt-shift lens also promises a tilt-and-turn mechanism, which will allow you to make any scene look miniature. With F1.4, the company states you will get great bokeh, which, when coupled with the tilt-shift, will give you breathtaking portraits and cityscapes. However, this is an entirely manual focus lens, and so, it will slow down your shooting process. But we don’t think of this as a drawback, considering that you get plenty of time to recompose your images before you actually shoot.
The price tag, on top of this, is as good as it gets. If you are someone who wants to get creative images in-camera, then this is a good option for you. But professional photographers will have to look at other variants such as Fujifilm Fujinon GF 30mm F5.6 T/S, designed for medium format cameras, or Laowa.
