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Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO: One-minute review
If you follow my camera coverage at TechRadar, you’ll need no introduction to Viltrox, a Chinese lens manufacturer who’s rapidly becoming a major player by delivering high-quality and particularly affordable optics.
Viltrox’s most recent efforts are the 75mm f/1.8 and 90mm f/2.2: a twin-like pair of lightweight primes for APS-C cameras from its mid-range ‘EVO’ series, available in Sony E, Nikon Z and Fujifilm X-mount versions.
Viltrox offered to send me a lens to test, and I strategically asked for the Fujifilm X-mount version of the 90mm f/2.2, because it was the only option with a proprietary alternative for me to pit it against: Fujifilm’s XF 90mm f/2 R LM WR. A ‘character rich’ XF 90mm f/2 APD was also listed in a public poll earlier this year among lenses that Fujifilm would love to make — but we don’t know if it will be made.
Could the Viltrox 90mm do the unthinkable — beat Fujifilm’s legendary portraiture lens? I called in the Fujifilm lens, and tested the pair using a Fujifilm X-T5, and much of my test focuses on how viable an alternative the Viltrox lens is.
For context, a fast aperture 90mm lens for APS-C has a 135mm equivalent focal length in full-frame terms, meaning it’s a mid-telephoto focal length, delivering a highly compressed background and dreamy bokeh — the hallmarks of high-end portraits. At this focal length, you’ll need the freedom of moving a decent distance away from your subject, so it’s not necessarily one for tight studio spaces.
I shot self portraits controlling the camera remotely from my phone using the Fujifilm X app, and various closeups with low-lying sunlight involved, plus a range of other shots just with the Viltrox lens. Overall, I’ve come away majorly impressed, especially when you consider just how small, lightweight and affordable the Viltrox 90mm f/2.2 is.
The bulkier Fujifilm lens wins for the dreamiest bokeh and will be worth the extra outlay for portrait specialists. If I had the choice, I’d probably still go for this lens. However, for most people, the Viltrox is a stellar alternative, and furthermore the only one of its kind for Sony and Nikon crop-sensor mirrorless cameras, and I highly recommend it for both — after all, Nikon especially has so few options for its crop-sensor cameras such as the Z50 II.
Once again, Viltrox has delivered an excellent value autofocus prime lens.
Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO: Price and availability
- Costs $369 / £359 / Australia price TBC
- Available in Sony E, Fujifilm X and Nikon Z-mount versions
The Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO is available in Sony E, Fujifilm X and Nikon Z-mount versions, and I tested the Fujifilm version, not least of which because Fujifilm has its own legendary 90mm lens and I was keen to see how the two compared. Sony and Nikon have no such lens for APS-C — and the closest alternative would be a full-frame optic.
Viltrox’s EVO lenses are almost always way more affordable when compared to the closest proprietary alternatives. Costing $369 / £359, that’s certainly the case with the Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO, when you consider how the Fujifilm 90mm lens costs between 2-3x the price. It’s the small, light, and affordable choice.
Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO: specs
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Type: |
Mid-telephoto prime |
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Mount: |
Sony E, Fujifilm X, Nikon Z |
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Sensor: |
APS-C |
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Focal length: |
90mm (135mm effective) |
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Max aperture: |
f/2.2 |
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Minimum focus: |
0.74m |
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Max reproduction |
0.14x |
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Filter size: |
58mm |
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Dimensions: |
2.7 x 3.0in / 69 x 76mm |
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Weight: |
11.3oz / 320g (bare lens without hood) |
Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO: Design
- Just 11.3oz / 320g — lightweight and compact for a lens of this type
- Modest 0.74m minimum focus distance — not one for closeup photography
- Very well-made, with rubber sealed mount
As an APS-C lens, the 90mm focal length is equivalent to 135mm in full-frame terms, which is a classic portraiture lens. I’ve tested my fair share of full-frame 135mm lenses, including Viltrox’s own 135mm F1.8 LAB and indeed Fujifilm’s own 90mm f/2 for APS-C, and the Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO is the smallest and lightest of the lot by some margin.
I’ve shared some comparison photos below alongside the Fujifilm 90mm f/2 to illustrate the difference — at 11.3oz / 320g, the Viltrox lens is not far off being half the weight. When paired with an X-T5, I thought both lenses balanced well, but with a rangefinder-style camera such as the X-E5, the Viltrox would win for balance.
Don’t let its size and price fool you, though — the Viltrox 90mm is very well made, with an all metal body, rubber-sealed lens mount, while both control rings handle beautifully: the focus ring is smooth and light, the knurled aperture ring precise. No doubt it would be a bigger and heavier lens if it had a larger maximum f/2 aperture like the Fujifilm.
The metal barrel of some of the previous Viltrox lenses that I’ve tested has scratched easily. I didn’t thrash the 90mm lens around particularly, so it remains mint. I’ll update this review if I discover it also scratches easily.
Curiously, the X-mount version of the Viltrox 90mm f/2.2 EVO has no buttons or switches, whereas the Nikon Z and Sony E-mount versions (which I didn’t ask to test) have three; an AF/MF switch, customizable function button and a click switch for the aperture ring.
Omitting the click switch especially is an oddity given that Fujifilm cameras also shoot video — Fujifilm X users here are stuck with a clicked aperture ring. As a result, despite being excellent value, it feels like Fujifilm users are shortchanged. That being said, however, the Fujifilm 90mm f/2 lens also has zero buttons or switches.
Image 1 of 2
The STM stepping motor makes light work of the 10 lens elements in 8 groups, for snappy and quiet autofocus. Of course autofocus performance accuracy and speed are affected by which camera system and autofocus mode is in use, but I never felt like the lens was slowing down the X-T5 camera’s autofocus.
Minimum focus is 0.74m, which delivers a maximum 0.14x magnification. Put simply, this is not a lens for closeup photography, though neither is the 75mm f/1.8 EVO which has a 0.12x magnification, nor most 135mm lenses I’ve used.
Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO: Performance
- Optically very sharp
- Smooth bokeh, but with cats-eye shaping. Minor chromatic aberration and vignetting
- Snappy and quiet autofocus
I’ve included a range of photos taken with the Viltrox and Fujifilm 90mm lenses below, matching the lens settings where possible (though the Fujifilm lens has an extra photo at f/2), and you can read on for my analysis of the images.
Viltrox
Fujifilm
Viltrox’s lens portfolio is split into various series, being topped by the LAB series of full-frame lenses, which is followed by its Pro series, and then below that the Evo series. Evo lenses are mid-range; small, lightweight, excellent value, with one or two concessions.
For me, all of the Evo lenses I’ve tested are an easy recommendation for enthusiast photographers, including the AF 90mm F2.2. Optically its sharp. Not the sharpest lens I’ve ever seen, but in a similar league as the pricier Fujifilm 90mm nonetheless.
Where sharp detail is top concern, stopping the aperture down to f/4 yields better results than wide open at f/2.2. You’ll see a reduction in vignetting and chromatic aberration by doing so, too. Those lens distortions are only minor at f/2.2, but they are present.
The main topic for a wide aperture 135mm equivalent lens is bokeh — the quality of out of focus areas — and I have good news, with two caveats.
Viltrox
Fujifilm
Bokeh is deliciously smooth. You can see the smooth edges in the dappled light in my self portraits and the series of photos of a fern (above). This is the most important attribute of bokeh, and the Viltrox 90mm nails it.
Bokeh is clearly cats-eye shaped, mind you, not fully round like you might find in the very best portrait lenses, such as the Nikon Plena. Personally, I don’t mind cats-eye shaping in bokeh at all, while you might think it’s ugly — it’s subjective. What’s not subjective, is bokeh smoothness, and like I say, the Viltrox lens scores highly.
The other caveat is the maximum f/2.2 aperture, which is slightly smaller than the f/2 of the Fujifilm lens I was comparing the Viltrox lens with. While this minor difference doesn’t particularly affect depth of field, I did find the Fujifilm lens’ bokeh to be even bigger and rounder at f/2 compared to the Viltrox lens at f/2.2.
If bokeh is a top concern, money is no object and you don’t mind a larger lens, then the Fujifilm XF 90mm f/2 is the better pick (see comparisons, above).
I’ve included a general sample gallery and included notes with further comments on the lens quality.
Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO sample images
Should you buy the Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
How I tested the Viltrox AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO
- Viltrox sent me the X-mount version of the AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO lens
- I paired it with a Fujifilm X-T5 camera
- Fujifilm loaned me the XF 90mm f/2 R LM WR lens at my request, to make comparisons
Viltrox sent me the X-mount version of the AF 90mm f/2.2 EVO lens and I paired it with a Fujifilm X-T5 camera. It’s also available for Sony E and Nikon Z-mount cameras.
I tested the lens over the course of two weeks, alongside the Fujifilm XF 90mm f/2 R LM WR lens, which Fujifilm loaned to me at my request, and I have shot like-for-like images with both lenses to make comparisons.
As with all of my lens reviews, I have put the Viltrox 90mm through a number of real world tests, including a series of the same image at the various aperture settings, and situations where strong light could induce lens distortions such as flare and chromatic aberration.
I always shoot in both RAW & JPEG format, and turn off in-camera lens corrections, checking the unprocessed RAW files. I also use each lens for the situations that it is designed for, in this case portraiture and for isolating subjects.
First reviewed: July 2026
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