7Artisans 50mm F1.05

Testing found the centre surprisingly crisp at f/1.05 and contrast at portrait distances close to slower f/1.4 designs, with low vignetting for such a fast lens and pleasant bokeh at close range. Close-up performance is also better than most ultra-fast budget fifties.

The weaknesses are clear at infinity: corners stay soft even stopped down, the midframe needs about f/4, and longitudinal colour fringing, purple fringing and coma are strong wide open. Flare with the sun in or near the frame is poor, and no hood is supplied. It is a portrait and low-light lens rather than a landscape tool.

Owners buy it for the look: thin focus planes, creamy close-range backgrounds and a dreamy glow wide open that sharpens up quickly by f/2. Many use it for video, where the clickless aperture ring and smooth focus ring are welcome, and value the solid metal build at the price.

Common complaints are the weight (around 600g), the lack of electronic contacts and EXIF data, the clickless aperture being easy to knock, some slack in the focus ring and purple fringing on bright edges. Some listings now sell it as an "APO" version with the same optical description.