Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB Review: Another Budget Winner

Apr 16, 2025

Chris Niccolls

The Nikkor 35mm f/1.2 changed my mind about the 35mm focal length. You may already know that I am quite vocal about my disdain for this particularly popular prime but the unique look that an f/1.2 aperture can provide finally won me over.

But the Nikkor is an expensive lens and photographers are clamoring for an affordable alternative. Meet the new $1,000 Viltrox LAB 35mm f/1.2 which promises to answer everyone’s prayers.

The Viltrox LAB lenses are making quite the storm in the affordable lens market. These premium optics provide the best image quality that Viltrox can offer while also keeping the costs down. The LAB series are not “cheap” but they’re definitely more affordable than the first-party alternatives and I was particularly impressed by the 135mm f/1.8 which offered excellent value for the dollar. With the 35mm f/1.2 in hand, I wanted to see if the awesome value was still there and if this lens could further change my mind about the 35mm focal length.

Buy the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB new on Amazon.com Buy the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB used on KEH.com

Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB Review: How It Feels

Make no mistake, a 35mm f/1.2 lens is going to be a bulky lens no matter who makes it. However, the Viltrox does weigh slightly less than Nikon’s does at a manageable 32.45 ounces (920 grams). The lens has some girth to it and requires a 77mm filter thread to cover the front element but I was pleasantly surprised to find some room for my fingers in between the camera grip and lens frame. The Viltrox is solidly built with a strong metal frame and weather seals to keep the elements out.

Close-up of a person holding a black camera lens with their hand. The lens features various controls and markings, including a pink "LAB" sticker. The background is solid black. — Any 35mm f/1.2 lens is going to be bulky but the Viltrox isn’t overly heavy.

Close-up of hands holding a camera with a Viltrox lens. The camera is being adjusted for focus, and a blurred cityscape is visible in the background. — The Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 feels quite professional in the hand.

A person with gray hair and a beard is crouching in tall, dry grass, holding a camera to their face as they focus on taking a photo. They are wearing a blue jacket and appear deeply concentrated on their subject. — People will notice this lens from a distance because there is no denying its larger proportions.

The manual focus ring turns smoothly enough and there is a selector switch to quickly go between manual focus or autofocus. Right below this switch are two customizable buttons with grippy rubber covers that were quite nice to use. The aperture ring, however, is still a serious source of frustration for me. It can be set to both clickable or smooth functionality but the click-stops are obnoxiously noisy and do not line up properly with third or half-stop increments.

Close-up of a camera lens with a pink "LAB" sticker. It features a switch labeled "AF" for autofocus and "MF" for manual focus, and buttons labeled "Fn1" and "TP" below. The lens is resting on a grid-patterned surface. — The Viltrox lens rings are smooth-turning and grippy.

Close-up of a black Viltrox camera lens with detailed focus on the click switch, labeled "ON" and "OFF." The lens features textured grip details on a light grid-patterned background. — You can change the aperture to a non-clicking interface for video work.

Close-up of a camera lens resting on a grid-patterned surface. The lens has clear markings indicating it is a 35mm with specifications like 1:1.2, VCM, and others. The background is dark, emphasizing the lens's intricate design. — I like the use of commonly found 77mm filters.

Furthermore, Viltrox opts to use a digital LCD on top of the lens which certainly adds an air of prestige but is hard to view in practice. The focusing distance is nice to see but the aperture values are small and awkward to view. This same issue is shared by the 135mm LAB lens and I feel is a real misstep. I would far prefer traditional engraved and painted values right on the lens housing which might also subsequently have brought the price down even more.

Close-up of a black Viltrox camera lens with textured grip and a square adjustment knob on its side. The lens features sleek, smooth surfaces and a compact design, set against a dark background. — The LCD screen is added to modernize the lens design but I would have been okay with classic engraved numbers.

Close-up of a black camera lens with a metallic mount, featuring a red ring and electronic contacts. The lens is placed on a dark surface with a soft-focus background. — The lens is fully sealed and you can see the USB-C port within the lens mount.

A black camera lens with "AF 35/1.4 Z" labeled on it, featuring a small screen and red ring. It rests on a grid-patterned surface, with the label "LAB" visible near the middle. — The LAB series are the best optics Viltrox offers.

The Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 uses a voice-coil motor to push the lens elements quickly and quietly. Focus is blazing fast and seems to be able to handle any street photography or action situations adroitly. The manual focus has a fairly long throw but is smooth enough to facilitate accurate focusing, too.

Close-up of a camera lens with visible focus modes labeled "AF" and "MF." Two round buttons labeled "Fn1" and "Fn2" are prominently displayed. The lens surface features textured grip rings and a small red dot for alignment. — There are two custom function buttons that you can set to your liking.

Close-up of a Viltrox camera lens with "AF 35/1.2 FE" markings. The lens features a black finish and a petal-shaped lens hood, set against a dark background. — The hood is basic but it works just fine to block light from the front of the lens.

Viltrox LAB 35mm f/1.2 Full Review: How it Shoots

The sun came out in full force for our day of testing so let’s start with the flare and sunstar results. Given that the Viltrox is substantially less money than first party alternatives, we can expect to see some compromises to the image quality and lens coatings could be one of those areas. Despite this expectation, the Viltrox lens handles flare quite well and maintains excellent contrast when shooting towards bright light sources.

Two tall office buildings with numerous windows stand against a blue sky. The sun is shining brightly near the top left, creating lens flare effects. The building on the right has "MNP" written near the top. — The ghosting at f/16 isn’t too obnoxious and contrast is well maintained.

Black and white photo of a chain-link fence in the foreground with a large puddle on a concrete surface behind it. The puddle reflects sunlight and nearby trees, creating a striking shape and texture contrast. Branches are visible near the puddle.

There is some ghosting present even at the widest apertures although I wouldn’t consider it egregious. When stopping the lens down to the tightest f/16 aperture, the ghosting is somewhat more pronounced although still fairly well controlled. I’m glad to see that we are avoiding the “characterful” flare results that we often see on third-party optics.

A deserted tennis court with puddles reflecting nearby trees and Calgary's skyline. Snow surrounds the court, contrasting with the clear blue sky. The city's skyscrapers are visible in the background. — A bright and sunny day is finally melting the winter chill in Alberta.

Two people walk past a snow-covered sidewalk in front of a blue "Exit Only" garage door. They wear winter jackets, reflecting the bright sunlight casting shadows from above. A car is partially visible on the left.

Sunstars are not really a major concern on a 35mm focal length but I was still curious to see what we could get out of it. Unfortunately, the results are very bland with no definition to the points. Again, this probably won’t bother many users but I personally like having a lens with a bit of flair for cityscapes and some landscape work.

Black and white image of a person standing outside a gated entrance of a parking garage. Shadows of trees create patterns on the ground and building facade. The word "Entrance" is visible above the gate. — I love looking for bounced light off of the buildings.

Ornate, colorful ceiling with intricate geometric and floral patterns in green, blue, red, and gold hues. The ceiling has circular layers decorated with traditional Asian motifs, creating a dome-like appearance.

What appeals to me on a 35mm lens with such a fast aperture is the ability to make a subject stand out against a soft background. It is easy to achieve a fairly dramatic-looking backdrop with the Viltrox 35mm but how does the bokeh render?

Close-up of a terracotta warrior statue, showing detailed facial features and armor. In the background, other figures are blurred. The image captures the intricacy and artistry of these ancient sculptures. — An f/1.2 aperture on a 35mm can achieve a stark separation of the subject from the background.

A man wearing a beanie and holding an object stands by a wooden fence on a sidewalk. The background shows a street and a brick building with signs and windows. The image is in black and white.

Specular highlights give a pleasing cat’s-eye effect at f/1.2 which I always enjoy when shooting portraits. The 11-bladed aperture provides circular bokeh when stopping the lens down and the overall look is pleasant. There is a bit of busyness going on in the highlights, however, and more importantly, a bright soap-bubble ring around the highlights which often leads to a harsh look.

Black and white image of a wooden sign with hand-painted arrows. One points left to “Toronto 3410 km,” the other right to “Ottawa 37 km.” The background features a blurred cityscape under a clear sky. — Transitions from the foreground to background look nice and the softer areas aren’t too harsh looking.

A person in a white hooded jacket and red pants walks past a glass structure. They carry an Adidas bag. Sunlight and shadows create patterns on the sidewalk.

I would say that the bokeh results are “fine” overall but not outstanding in any way. Out-of-focus backgrounds have a slightly busy look but still provide a pleasingly-soft shallow depth of field. Transitions from areas of sharp focus to areas of blur are fairly smooth-looking and most photographers will find the results to be satisfactory. However, there is no doubt that the sublime look of the bokeh on the Nikkor 35mm lens is due to the extra cost involved in producing it and that is not replicated here.

A man in a black puffer jacket stands on a sidewalk looking across an empty street. In the background, there's a red brick building with Asian signage and a white SUV parked on the street. — A 35mm is a classic street lens but I especially love the shallower depth of field that the Viltrox offers.

A wooden mannequin wrapped in plastic sits on a small red swing with pink ropes. The swing is set against a blurred outdoor background with a clear blue sky and indistinct buildings in the distance.

What Viltrox seems to excel at is wringing out maximum sharpness throughout the aperture range. The center of the image at f/1.2 lacks a slight bit of contrast but the detail is exceptional. Stopping down the lens to f/2.8 brings back stunning contrast to the otherwise already sharp detail.

Test chart with two columns labeled f/1.2 and f/2.8. Features banknote images, gradient squares, color bars (cyan, magenta), and circular patterns. Text describes percentages and font sizes. Used for camera comparison or calibration. — Center detail is excellent with a loss of contrast wide open but plenty of detail to work with.

A comparison chart displays image sharpness at two different camera settings, f/1.2 on the left and f/2.8 on the right. A Canadian one-dollar bill and test patterns are included, with focal points showing varying clarity. — The corners aren’t bad, even at f/1.2 and only get better as you close the aperture.

Clear turquoise water with visible rocks of various sizes beneath the surface. The rocks closer to the shore are covered in algae, creating a mix of green and brown hues. The water becomes darker and deeper further from the rocks. — The colors in the Bow River are stunning right now so I had to take a picture.

The corners show a little bit of blurriness at f/1.2 with some slight vignetting as well but this largely goes away when the aperture is stopped down slightly. I was very impressed by the inherent sharpness of this lens and found myself shooting plenty of images at f/1.2 without any concerns.

Top view of a stainless steel rice cooker with a lid and a detached inner pot on a worn, dark surface. The handle is secured with a cord, and the inner pot shows signs of use, with stains visible on its bottom. — There is plenty of detail present in the Viltrox 35mm, even at the widest apertures.

I did notice some longitudinal chromatic aberrations (LoCA) when shooting our test chart. This type of aberration can be notoriously difficult to remove from images, so we don’t like to see it. This LoCA was quite minor though, and was not much of an issue in my photos even when shooting scenes with stark contrast and shallow depth of field. In general, this lens was quite free of any disturbing chromatic aberrations.

A weathered door marked "Garbage Room" with a red graffiti tag is set in a wall of peeling paint. A broom leans against the door, and debris litters the ground. A small bottle is on a ledge to the right.

Smiling man in a black cap and red plaid shirt stands beside a bright yellow free library box filled with books and papers. Snow is on top of the box, and a red brick wall is in the background. — Sometimes people jokingly say that I should take their picture, but they don’t expect that I’ll take them up on the offer.

Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB Review: Lab-Quality Results

So far, the Viltrox lenses I’ve reviewed have proven themselves to be excellent value while still delivering premium optical quality. The LAB lenses in particular clearly show an emphasis on providing professional-quality results without asking photographers to wield a huge budget. Let’s keep in mind that the compromises involved in making a more affordable lens are still present here even if they are minor. Still, apart from the sub-par aperture ring design, the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 gives the unique look that I loved in the Nikkor 35mm f/1.2 and doesn’t skip enjoyable handling characteristics.

A person walks through a field with dry, tall grass under a clear blue sky. In the background, a streetlight and traffic signals are visible. The individual is wearing a dark coat and appears to be in a thoughtful mood. — I really like the way this composition shows the bokeh and versatility of this lens.

Are There Alternatives?

At the time of publication, this lens isn’t available for Nikon’s mirrorless cameras. Ho2ever, since the 135mm f/1.8 LAB eventually came to Z-mount, Nikon shooters can cross their fingers for this lens to make an appearance soon to provide an alternative to the Nikkor 35mm f/1.2 S. If that were to happen in the future, the Viltrox will offer stiff competition.

Buy the Nikkor 35mm f/1.2 S new on Amazon.com Buy the Nikkor 35mm f/1.2 S used on KEH.com

Sigma has an older 35mm f/1.2 Art lens but it seems to be on the way out. The company has announced a new version on the horizon but it will probably be substantially more money than Viltrox is asking here. Otherwise, Sony E-mount photographers will have to look to the 35mm f/1.4 GM as the closest autofocus-equipped alternative.

Buy the Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 GM new on Amazon.com Buy the Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 GM used on KEH.com

Should You Buy It?

Yes. Sony E-mount users should rejoice at having an affordable, ultra-fast 35mm available to them and we hope to see it on more mounts in the near future.

Buy the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB new on Amazon.com Buy the Viltrox 35mm f/1.2 LAB used on KEH.com