There are quite a few Z-mount telephoto portrait-oriented primes to pick from now, with offerings from both Nikon themselves and 3rd-party manufacturers. Meike and TTArtisan offer budget options around $180USD, Viltrox has a mid-level option for $400USD, and Nikon sells theirs for just under $700USD (at the time of writing). It’s hard to believe that a lens going for nearly 4x less than the 1st-party option could be any good at all, but it looks like TTArtisan may have a winner!

Disclaimer: This product was bought with my own money and not loaned/provided by TTArtisan. All conclusions are drawn from my own experiences with the product. Links to purchase the product at the end of the review are Amazon Affiliate links.

Unboxing

The unboxing experience is simple but the box and packing materials feel high-quality, I’m sure the lens will be safe during shipping. Inside the box is the lens itself, a lens hood, a front cap, a combo “rear cap & firmware update dock” and USB-C cable, as well as an instruction manual and warranty info card.

Fit and Finish

The lens feels fantastic in the hand, very solid and made entirely of metal, yet still ~150g lighter than the bigger and mostly plastic Nikkor equivalent. The style of this lens (especially the lettering) is somehow modern and retro at the same time, and will pair well with any of Nikon’s contemporary or classic camera bodies.

The aperture control ring is very satisfying but does have a bit of wiggle to it, however the focus ring feels extremely smooth and works well. The mount’s connection to the camera feels secure once attached, however getting it twisted on does seem to take a bit more effort and precise lining-up than offerings from Nikkor or even Tamron.

The front cap is equally as premium feeling, however the lens hood and rear cap don’t exhibit quite the same level of quality. It was nice of TTArtisan to include a firmware update dock in the box unlike other manufacturers (notably Tamron and Sigma), but it does feel quite cheap and attaches to the lens very loosely. This wouldn’t be an issue if it was just a dock, but I’d recommend popping on an aftermarket rear cap if you’re going to be chucking it in a camera bag. As for the hood, it does it’s job, and I actually think it quite satisfyingly clicks into place. It’s not made of the highest quality plastic, but it doesn’t feel like it’ll snap or fall off, and the squared-off shape is a nice semi-vintage touch that’ll look great on a Zf or Zfc.

Image Quality

While I haven’t got the test charts or studio setup required to scientifically test this lens, I have shot many photos with it and have good news to report. It’s very sharp, especially in the center, and the optical issues traditionally associated with budget lenses are fortunately absent: chromatic aberration is almost imperceptible (which the Meike 85mm suffers from heavily) and contrast is excellent even at f/2.

A true standout of this lens is the bokeh quality. There’s no onion-ringing or gross looking intrusions, and it’s very round with only minor cats-eyeing at the edge of the frame. If you’re looking for the best bokeh on Z-mount at less than $200USD, I don’t think anything will compare, even including used F-mount options.

Somewhat related to that however is the minimum focusing distance. This was never going to be a macro lens, and it’s never advertised as such, however even for a normal lens I found the ~75cm MFD to be quite limiting. I was still able to get excellent background separation with its 75mm focal length and bright f/2 aperture, but I always had to take 1-2 steps further back than expected for the AF to lock on. However in most situations this lens will be used for, especially portraiture, this really doesn’t matter, but it’s still important to know before purchasing. Below is as close as I could get to a standard 2x2 lego brick:

Vignetting is decently strong at f/2, but with Nikon’s 85mm showing a similar performance, it’s not a huge concern. I found that in most situations it either enhanced the image (especially in portraits) or didn’t have much of an effect, and on particularly tonally flat images where you don’t want it creeping in, it can be all but eliminated in Lightroom.

It does flare a bit, but just put the hood on!

Overall, considering the price, it’s fantastic. It definitely beats the budget Meike 85mm, it matches the mid-range Viltrox 85mm, and while the Nikkor 85mm will be sharper and more optically perfect, it’s also nearly 4x the price while also being larger and heavier.

Autofocus Performance

Although not blazing fast, it’s definitely respectable considering that TTArtisan are quite new to AF lenses and that this is a particularly budget offering. There’s no AF-MF switch, but personally I rarely switch to MF because Nikon’s automatic manual focus override works so well. The GIF below shows this performance in AF-S, it was similar in AF-C:

It also doesn’t hunt like some other 3rd-party lenses I’ve tried, with the average focusing speed seemingly used to its advantage. It’s slow and sure in its focus, rather than quickly bouncing around and missing, which I find even some 1st-party Nikkor lenses can do sometimes. This might make it a decent option for video, but it rules out a lot of fast action situations, and definitely works best on stationary subjects.

Overall, very decent and absolutely perfect for adult human portraiture, but don’t expect to have a good time taking pictures of your constantly-in-motion pets or kids.

Verdict

A brilliant lens that’s made very well and produces beautiful images. The few small quibbles I have with its build and AF speed are easily overlooked when considering this lens costs just under $180USD (it even manages to squeeze in under $300 Australian Rubles!)

Buy this product on Amazon:
TTArtisan 75mm f/2 Z-Mount
TTArtisan 75mm f/2 E-Mount

The Good:

• Solid, metal build yet surprisingly light
• IQ is excellent, minimal CA and very sharp
• Bokeh is beautiful and clean
• Autofocus is accurate and reliable
• Aperture ring is clicky and satisfying
• Manual focus ring is smooth and precise
• Incredibly low price!

The Bad:

• Minimum focus distance is quite limiting
• Aperture ring and lens mount tolerances are a bit off
• Autofocus could be faster
• Mild flaring issues

It’s also an excellent showing from TTArtisan, who seem to defy the rest of the market by producing lenses that are nearly as good as 1st-party offerings, for a fraction of the price. Their previous lack of AF offerings did limit their appeal, but now that they’ve shown they can compete on the autofocus playing field, I can’t wait to see what they put out next.

Rating: 9/10