Rankings
The Irix Firefly 15 mm f/2.4 is a manual-focus ultra-wide prime with weather sealing, delivering sharp images and low distortion, ideal for landscape and astrophotography.
The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM is a compact, fast prime lens offering excellent sharpness and silent autofocus, making it a great value for beginners and vloggers, though its plastic construction and lack of a hood limit its professional appeal.
The Lightdow EF 85mm f/1.8 MF is a budget-friendly manual-focus portrait prime offering a fast aperture, solid build, and UMC coating, making it a good entry point for enthusiasts seeking shallow depth-of-field on Canon EF-type mounts.
The Samyang 135mm f/2.0 ED UMC is a manual-focus telephoto prime that delivers studio-grade sharpness and beautiful bokeh at a budget-friendly price. Its solid aluminum construction and high-quality optics make it ideal for portrait and low-light work, though the lack of autofocus and its weight limit its use for fast action.
The ZEISS Classic Planar 50mm f/1.4 delivers classic rendering, excellent build quality and a non-rotating front element, making it a strong choice for portrait and video work. However, its softness at f/1.4, lack of autofocus and weather sealing, and premium price limit its appeal for fast-action or rugged shooting.
The JINTU 85mm f/1.8 is a manual-focus portrait prime for Canon EF/EF-S DSLRs offering a fast aperture, solid metal construction and good sharpness at a budget price. Its lack of autofocus and stabilization limits flexibility for fast-moving or handheld low-light shooting.
The Tokina ATX-i 11-20mm f/2.8 is a rugged ultra-wide zoom for APS-C DSLRs, offering a constant fast aperture, excellent sharpness and weather-sealed construction. It excels for landscape, architecture and video work but is heavier and lacks built-in stabilization.
The Yongnuo YN50mm f/1.8 for Canon EF is an affordable, lightweight prime offering a fast aperture and decent optics. It excels in portability and price-to-performance but lacks weather sealing and has a noisy autofocus motor.
The Yongnuo 50 mm f/1.8 II offers a fast aperture and solid optical performance at a very low price, making it a popular choice for beginners and budget-conscious shooters. Its slower, noisier autofocus and plastic construction keep it from being a professional-grade lens.
The Meike 85mm F1.8 SE Mark II is a budget-friendly full-frame portrait lens offering excellent center sharpness, fast f/1.8 aperture, and quiet STM autofocus. Its lightweight build and multi-layer nano coating add value, though corner performance and weather sealing are limited.
The Irix Cine 30 mm T1.5 is a manual cinema prime with an ultra-wide T1.5 aperture, rugged MIL-STD-810 weather sealing, and standardized gearing, suited for high-resolution filmmaking in demanding environments.
The Meike 85mm f/1.8 offers a fast aperture and solid center sharpness at an affordable price, but its autofocus is noisy and slow, and edge performance suffers from chromatic aberration. It is best suited for hobbyists who prioritize cost and portability over premium optics.
The Yongnuo 35mm f/2.0 is an ultra-light, budget-friendly prime for Canon EF DSLRs offering a fast aperture and solid build, but it suffers from sluggish AF and lacks weather protection.
The Yongnuo YN35mm F2 is a budget-friendly, fast-aperture prime offering solid optics and a sturdy metal mount. It shines in portability and price but suffers from slower autofocus and a fragile filter thread.
| Attribute | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ↓ lower better | 50 mm | 50 mm | 30 mm | 135 mm | 35 mm | 15 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm | 85 mm | 35 mm | 11 mmbest | 85 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm |
50 mm | 50 mm | 30 mm | 135 mmbest | 35 mm | 15 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm | 85 mm | 35 mm | 20 mm | 85 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm | |
| ↓ lower better | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.5 f | 2 f | 2 f | 2.4 f | 1.4 fbest | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 2 f | 2.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.8 f |
| ↓ lower better | 119 gbest | 159 g | 1,130 g | 816 g | 179.9 g | 581 g | 380 g | 369 g | 430 g | 155 g | 570 g | 420 g | 162 g | 490 g |
| ↓ lower better | 83 mm | 111.3 mm | 101 mm | 122.1 mm | 59 mm | 100 mm | 45 mmbest | 74.7 mm | 110 mm | 88.9 mm | 94.3 mm | 154 mm | — | 101.6 mm |
| ↓ lower better | 45 cm | 35 cm | 34 cm | 80 cm | 25 cmbest | 28 cm | 45 cm | 65 cm | 85 cm | 25 cmbest | 28 cm | 85 cm | 35 cm | 85 cm |
0.15 x | 0.21 x | — | — | 0.23 xbest | — | 0.15 x | 0.17 x | 0.13 x | 0.23 xbest | 0.12 x | 0.11 x | — | — | |
12 months | 12 months | 24 months | — | 12 months | — | 24 months | 12 months | 12 months | 12 months | 36 monthsbest | — | — | 24 months |
Click an attribute name to sort · Green = best, red = worst (relative to this comparison)
| Attribute | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mount & Compatibility(2) | ||||||||||||||
Mount Type | Canon EF | EF | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF, Nikon F, Pentax K | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF / EF‑S | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF | Canon EF; EF‑S |
Autofocus Motor Type | DC motor | STM | None | Manual Focus | DC motor | None | Manual | STM | Manual | — | — | STM | — | Manual |
Optical(8) | ||||||||||||||
Focal Length (Min) (mm) | 50 mm | 50 mm | 30 mm | 135 mm | 35 mm | 15 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm | 85 mm | 35 mm | 11 mm | 85 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm |
Focal Length (Max) (mm) | 50 mm | 50 mm | 30 mm | 135 mm | 35 mm | 15 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm | 85 mm | 35 mm | 20 mm | 85 mm | 50 mm | 85 mm |
Maximum Aperture (f-number) (f) | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.5 f | 2.0 f | 2 f | 2.4 f | 1.4 f | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 2.0 f | 2.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.8 f | 1.8 f |
Minimum Focus Distance (cm) | 45 cm | 35 cm | 34 cm | 80 cm | 25 cm | 28 cm | 45 cm | 65 cm | 85 cm | 25 cm | 28 cm | 85 cm | 35 cm | 85 cm |
Maximum Magnification Ratio (x) | 0.15 x | 0.21 x | — | — | 0.23 x | — | 0.15 x | 0.17 x | 0.13 x | 0.23 x | 0.12 x | 0.11 x | — | — |
ED Elements | — | — | — | true | — | true | false | — | — | — | true | — | — | — |
Aspherical Elements | — | — | — | — | — | true | false | — | true | — | true | — | — | true |
Coating Type | Multi-coated | — | Neutrino | Ultra Multi Coating (UMC) | Multi-coated | Neutrino | T* anti-reflective coating | Multi-layer nano coating | Ultra Multi Coating | Multi-coated | Multi-layer with water-repellent | Multi-layer anti-reflective coating | — | Ultra Multi-Coating (UMC) |
Build & Durability(2) | ||||||||||||||
Weather Sealing | false | false | true | — | — | true | false | false | — | false | true | false | — | — |
Warranty Period (months) | 12 months | 12 months | 24 months | — | 12 months | — | 24 months | 12 months | 12 months | 12 months | 36 months | — | — | 24 months |
Physical(3) | ||||||||||||||
Weight (g) | 119 g | 159 g | 1130 g | 816 g | 179.9 g | 581 g | 380 g | 369 g | 430 g | 155 g | 570 g | 420 g | 162 g | 490 g |
Length (mm) | 83 mm | 111.3 mm | 101 mm | 122.1 mm | 59 mm | 100 mm | 45.0 mm | 74.7 mm | 110 mm | 88.9 mm | 94.3 mm | 154 mm | — | 101.6 mm |
Filter Thread Diameter (mm) | 52 mm | 49 mm | 86 mm | 77 mm | 52 mm | 95 mm | 58 mm | 62 mm | 72 mm | 52 mm | 82 mm | 67 mm | 58 mm | 55 mm |
Products in the top-left offer the best value (high score, low price).
Professional reviewers praise the Yongnuo 50mm f/1.8 for its fast aperture, solid bokeh, and surprisingly good autofocus on mirrorless mounts, noting minor distortion and the absence of weather sealing.
Everyday users highlight sharpness and value, calling it a perfect entry-level prime, with complaints about loud AF and plastic build.
“The autofocus doesn't get quite as sharp as the original Canon… and the motor is very loud.”
“For portraits, the image quality is pretty great… but for video, I would highly recommend against it.”
“Game-changer for portraits and low light.”
Professional reviewers rate the lens highly for its performance-to-price ratio, praising its sharpness, compactness, quiet STM autofocus and smooth bokeh, while noting the plasticky feel and lack of a hood as drawbacks.
Everyday users love the affordability, sharpness and video-friendly autofocus, but complain about the cheap plastic build, missing hood and the quirky focus-by-wire behavior.
Reviewers praise its clinical sharpness, durability and workflow features, while noting the short focus throw and lack of electronic aperture as minor drawbacks.
Users love the sharpness, weather sealing and UV-reactive markings, but mention the short focus throw and front-heavy balance as concerns.
Professional reviewers award the lens 4.5/5, highlighting its faultless optics, low chromatic aberration and beautiful bokeh, while noting the manual-focus only design and absence of stabilization as drawbacks.
Everyday users rate the lens around 4.8/5, praising its razor-sharp resolution, creamy bokeh and value, but complain about its weight, lack of tripod foot, and the learning curve of manual focus.
Professional reviewers acknowledge the YN35mm F2 as a surprisingly capable lens for its price, praising its optical performance, fast aperture, and sturdy metal mount, while noting that its autofocus speed and overall build fall short of native premium lenses and that it lacks stabilization.
Everyday users love the lens for its portability, low-light capability, and affordability, but complain about slow or hunting autofocus in dim conditions and a fragile filter thread.
Professional reviewers give consistent 4.5/5 scores, praising its optics, build quality and weather sealing while noting vignetting and lack of autofocus.
Everyday users rate it positively, highlighting sharpness, weather sealing and the infinity click; occasional complaints focus on vignetting and early-copy focus issues.
Professional reviewers commend the Planar 50mm for its superb build, classic optical heritage and T* coating, while noting softness at f/1.4, noticeable chromatic aberration and the lack of autofocus and weather sealing.
Everyday users love the solid metal construction and cinematic bokeh, but complain about purple fringing, inaccurate focus confirmation and the high price relative to its simple optical formula.
Professional reviewers laud the Meike 85mm f/1.8 Mark II for delivering center sharpness and transmission that rival much more expensive lenses, highlighting its lightweight build, quiet STM motor, and effective anti-chromatic aberration design.
Everyday users overwhelmingly praise the lens for its value, light weight, and beautiful bokeh, while noting soft corners at wide apertures, slow manual focus, and lack of weather sealing.
Professional reviewers note that the Lightdow 85mm f/1.8 delivers impressive bokeh and contrast thanks to its UMC coating, and its price makes it an attractive entry-level portrait lens, but the lack of autofocus and limited editorial coverage keep it a niche choice.
Everyday users appreciate the lens's sharpness, beautiful bokeh, and low price, often citing it as a solid learning tool for manual photography, while recurring complaints focus on the stiff focus ring and absence of autofocus.
Professional reviewers note its sleek, compact build, metal mount and multi-coated optics, praising value while pointing out soft wide-open performance and noisy AF.
Users love the price-to-performance ratio, lightweight feel and sharpness when stopped down, but complain about slow, noisy autofocus and a plastic barrel.
Professional reviewers highlight the lens's outstanding optical performance-sharpness, low distortion and a fast constant f/2.8 aperture-combined with a rugged, weather-sealed build. They also note its video-friendly traits such as internal focusing, minimal focus breathing and a smooth focus ring, while calling out modest vignetting and the lack of stabilization.
Everyday users consistently rate the lens 4.5 / 5 or higher, praising its corner-to-corner sharpness, solid construction and the practical water-repellent coating. Common complaints revolve around occasional autofocus hunting in dim light, slight vignetting at the widest aperture, and the absence of image stabilization.
Professional reviewers acknowledge the Meike 85mm f/1.8 delivers surprisingly good center sharpness and pleasing bokeh for its sub-$200 price, but criticize the noisy, sluggish autofocus and severe axial chromatic aberration.
Everyday users rate the lens around 4.8-4.9/5, praising its low cost, sharpness at f/4-f/5.6, and smooth bokeh, while complaining about loud AF, purple fringing, and cheap-feel plastic.
Professional reviewers praise the YN50mm F1.8 II for delivering sharp, affordable optics that rival more expensive lenses, especially when stopped down, while noting the slower, noisier AF and mild softness at the widest aperture.
Everyday users overwhelmingly commend the lens for its price-to-performance ratio, lightweight feel, and pleasing bokeh, though they note the noisy, slower autofocus and occasional softness at f/1.8.
Professional reviewers praise the JINTU 85mm f/1.8 for its sharp, low-light capable optics, attractive bokeh and solid metal construction, noting it delivers near-premium image quality at a low price. However, they point out the absence of autofocus and stabilization, which reduces its flexibility for fast-moving or handheld low-light work.
Everyday users consistently highlight the lens's impressive sharpness, beautiful bokeh and sturdy build, especially given its price. Common complaints revolve around the manual-focus workflow, lack of autofocus, no stabilization, and the lens's weight.
