In this blog, I will be giving you a quick overview and first impressions of the TTArtisan 40mm f2 prime lens for Sony EF-mount cameras. This isn’t a detailed review; it’s a first impressions based on a few days’ use. For full transparency, TTArtisan did send me this lens to keep. No money changed hands, they don’t have any input in this blog, and they will not see it before it’s published. There are no affiliate links here and I do not make any money if you decide to purchase it. All my thoughts are my own based on my personal experience with this lens. For testing this lens, I used a Sony A7RV and a Sony A7CII.

Purpose

Before going into the details, I would like to state the price of this lens, which is currently sitting at $168. This is an important factor and one to keep in mind as you go through the rest of the blog. A 40mm pancake-style lens is one of the most useful pieces of kit one can get. It’s perfect for documenting days out, it’s great for street photography, and it makes for an ideal backup travel lens. I personally have a 40mm as a backup with me at all times, so should I drop and damage the zoom, the 40mm prime will save the day.

What I Like

All-metal build including the lens hood.
Aperture ring with a solid click.
Build quality feel of a more expensive lens.
Focus ring smooth.
Very compact and light.
Wide f2 aperture.
Rear lens cap doubling as a dock to update firmware.

What I Don’t Like

AF is noticeably slower than a similar lens from Sony.
Image quality is good for the price, and for most people, it will be sufficient. However, pixel peepers might not be over the moon.
Can flare a fair bit.
No weather sealing of any kind (not a surprise given the price).
No AF/MF switch.
Not very close focusing.

Image Quality & Sample Photos

Overall, the image quality is good, and you can get some great shots with this lens. I am not one for pixel peeping, and from a normal viewing angle, the images look great. You do get quite heavy flaring, especially when stopped down; however, this can be mitigated with the lens hood or changing the aperture. Sharpness and detail are acceptable even on a higher-resolution sensor. I am very happy with how my shots turned out.

AF Performance

For me, this was the biggest negative about this lens. The AF felt noticeably slower compared to my 40mm from Sony. Of course, this is to be expected given the TTArtisan uses stepper motors, and the Sony has linear ones. Also, the Sony is more than four times the price. By no means is the AF slow. When fitted to any of my Sony bodies, the AF was still fast enough and reliable.

Summary

To summarise, this is a great little lens for the price. If you’re on a budget, you really can’t go wrong here. We are at a time where budget lenses are no longer awful and unusable. They are more than good enough for 80% of people. If I were starting again from scratch and had to get a 40mm prime on a budget, this would be my first choice.

You can find more about this lens from their website here.