Overview of 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Many thanks for the provided 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS lens 7Artisans.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Navigation

  1. In short
  2. All 7artisans Photoelectric Lenses
  3. Main Specifications
  4. Assembly
  5. Focusing
  6. Image quality
  7. Sample Photos
  8. My experience
  9. Alternatives
  10. Video review
  11. Price
  12. Results
  13. User Comments
  14. Add your review or question on the lens

In this review, 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS will be abbreviated as '7Artisans 12 / 2.8'.

In short

The 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 is a modern manual ultra wide angle lens for cropped mirrorless cameras. One of the most compact of its kind for cameras with an APS-C sensor. It is interesting for its fairly low price and good image quality.

On cameras with an APS-C sensor, the viewing angle is / should be 102 degrees diagonally.

The lens comes with different mounts for cameras with an APS-C sensor, such as a Canon mount Ef-m, Fujifilm X-mount, Sony E-mount and Micro 4/3 cameras such as Olympus / Panasonic / JVC / Blackmagic / Kodak / Xiaomi.

This review shows the 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 variant for Sony cropped mirrorless cameras with Sony E-Mount mount.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

All 7Artisans lenses:

For mirrorless cameras with APS-C or Micro 4/3 sensor:

  1. 7Artisans 4 mm F/2.8 (announcement) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3]
  2. 7Artisans 7.5 mm F/2.8 Fish-Eye (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, versions 2017 и 2019]
  3. 7Artisans 7.5 mm F / 2.8 Fish-Eye II (announcement) [EF-M, E, X, Z, M4 / 3]
  4. 7Artisans 12 mm F/2.8 (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3]
  5. 7Artisans 12 mm F / 2.8 II (announcement) [EF-M, RF, E, X, Z, M4/3]
  6. 7Artisans 18 mm F/6.3 (announcement) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3]
  7. 7Artisans 18 mm F/6.3 NEW (announcement) [E, X, Z]
  8. 7Artisans 24 mm 1:1.4 (announcement) [EF-M, RF, E, X, Z, M4/3]
  9. 7Artisans 25 mm F/1.8 (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, black / silver]
  10. 7Artisans 25 mm F/0.95 (overview) [EF-M, Z, E, X, M4 / 3, RF, L]
  11. 7Artisans 35 mm F/0.95 (overview) [EF-M, Z, E, X, RF, M4 / 3]
  12. 7Artisans 35 mm F/1.2 (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, black / silver]
  13. 7Artisans 35 mm F/1.2 II (overview) [Z, EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, other optical design]
  14. 7Artisans 35 mm F/1.4 (overview) [Z, EF-M, E, X, RF, M4/3, black/silver]
  15. 7Artisans 50 mm F/1.8 (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, versions with 10 and 12 petals]
  16. 7Artisans 50 mm F/0.95 (overview) [EF-M, Z, E, X, RF, M4 / 3]
  17. 7Artisans 55 mm F/1.4 (overview) [EF-M, E, X, M4 / 3, Leica L, black/silver]
  18. 7Artisans 55 mm F / 1.4 II (announcement) [EF-M, E, X, Z, M4 / 3]
  19. 7Artisans 60 mm F/2.8 Macro (overview) [EF-M, Z, E, X, RF, M4 / 3]
  20. 7Artisans 60 mm F / 2.8 Macro II (overview) [EF-M, Z, E, X, RF, L, M4/3]

For mirrorless full frame cameras (Full Frame):

  1. 7Artisans 9 mm F5.6 (overview) [RF, Z, E, L]
  2. 7Artisans 10 mm F / 2.8 Fisheye ED [RF, Z, E, L]
  3. 7Artisans 15 mm F/4 ASPH [RF, Z, E, L]
  4. 7Artisans 28 mm F/1.4 (overview) [Leica M only, two versions]
  5. 7Artisans 28 mm F / 5.6 wen [Leica M only]
  6. 7Artisans 35 mm F / 1.4 [IS]
  7. 7Artisans 35 mm F / 1.4 wen [Leica M only, different optical design]
  8. 7Artisans 35 mm F/2 (overview) [E, X, black / silver]
  9. 7Artisans 35 mm F/2 (overview) [Leica M only, different body design]
  10. 7Artisans 35 mm F/2 MARK II (announcement) [Leica M only, different body design]
  11. 7Artisans 35 mm F/5.6wen (overview) [Leica M + E, Z, L, RF, black, black & gold, silver & black, silver & gold]
  12. 7Artisans 50 mm F/1.05 APO (overview) [RF, Z, E, L]
  13. 7Artisans 50 mm F/1.1 (overview) [Leica M only, black / silver + 'Limited Gold'+'RED DRAGON SPECIAL EDITION']
  14. 7Artisans 50 mm F / 1.8 AF STM FE (announcement) [E/FE]
  15. 7Artisans 75 mm F/1.25 [Leica M only]

For SLR cameras with APS-C sensor:

  1. 7Artisans 7.5mm 1:3.5 FISH-EYE (announcement) [only for EF/EFS]

Cinema lenses [E, L, Z, RF, X, M4/3]:

  1. APS-C: 12mm T2.9, 25mm T1.05, 35mm T1.05, 50mm T1.05
  2. S35: 24-96mm T2.9 (EF/PL)
  3. Full Frame: 14mm T2.9, 35mm T2, 50mm T2, 85mm T2

Drone Lenses:

These lenses are the easiest to find on Aliexpress from the official dealer 7Artisans.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Main technical specifications of 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Review Instance Name On the body: 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS. 'E-Mount' side.
Basic properties
  • The lens uses a Sony E mount and is suitable for Sony mirrorless cameras with an APS-C sensor
  • Manual focus only
  • Internal focus
  • Metal mount, metal case, metal front cover
  • Built-in hood
  • Use an optional adapter to use filters.
  • Multi-Enlightened Optics
Front Filter Diameter in normal condition, the lens does not use filters. For filters, use an additional adapter with which you need filters with a diameter of 77 mm
Focal length 12 mm

  • EGF for Sony cameras, Fujifilm with APS-C sensor is 18mm
  • EGF for cameras Canon EOS M is 19.2 mm
  • EGF for cameras of the Micro 4/3 system is 24 mm
Zoom ratio 1 X (this is a fixed lens, it does not have a zoom)
Designed by for cropped Sony mirrorless cameras. Also, this lens exists with bayonets of other systems.
Number of aperture blades 7 rounded petals
Tags
  • bayonet mount mark
  • focus distance scale in meters and feet
  • depth of field scale for f / 4, 8, 16
  • aperture scale on aperture ring
Diaphragm F / 2.8 to F / 16, controlled by the iris control ring. There are marks for F / 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 16. The ring rotates without clicks, smoothly. You can set any intermediate value.
MDF 0.2 m, maximum magnification unknown
The weight
  • 292 g (according to the official website)
  • 265 g (according to the instructions)

According to my measurements:

  • lens without caps: 294.4 g
  • lens with caps: 331.6 g
Optical design 10 elements in 8 groups, modernized Distagon

Optical design 7artisans 12mm F2.8

Optical design clickable

Lens hood Metal, fixed, flap type
Manufacturer country Made in China
Period Announced December 11, 2017
Instructions View my scan (only English)
Price
  1. View on Aliexpress
  2. View in the official VK group
  3. View on ebay

The instructions indicate that if the user first uses a manual lens, then he must read it :)

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Assembly

The lens came to the review completely new. The lens comes in a stylish black box.

The box contains a very small instruction booklet in Chinese and English, a pass for passing quality control, a soft foam insert under the lens and the lens itself with a front and rear cover.

The front cover is metal, without latches. The lid is just tightly attached on the lens body. On the inside, the lid has fabric seal. The lid does not spontaneously slide, pleasant to handle.

It's important: The first batches of lenses had a plastic front cover of a different shape and on latches. And also the first batches of lenses had a red dot-mark for the focusing distance. There are different combinations in these minor differences.

In general, the lens is well assembled. 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 has bayonet mount metal and the lens case itself is completely made of metal, anodized aluminum is used.

The weight of the 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 lens is almost 300 grams. In the hands of the lens feels like a good thing.

The design is nice, and the lens itself is very compact, ideal for small Sony cameras with an APS-C sensor, for example, Sony Alpha NEX-3N, with which I used this lens.

Diaphragm consists of 7 petals and form a hole in the shape of an almost regular heptagon, while in the photographs in the blur zone rather round discs of blur appear in the range F / 2.8-F / 4. The diaphragm can only be controlled manually using a special ring. The aperture ring rotates smoothly, no clicks and fixed values, you can set any intermediate value in the range of F / 2.8-F / 16, which is very useful during movie shooting.

If you look closely at the lens, you can see that the aperture blades are slightly covered already at f / 2.8 (at full aperture). If you take apart the lens, you can expand the aperture to about f / 2.0. Most likely, a deliberate decrease in the relative aperture was made to increase the optical performance at the 'maximum open aperture'.

7Artisans 12 / 2.8 uses built-in metal petal hood.

Important: the lens does not support classic filters, which are screwed into the thread near the front lens.

Important: stated that the lens supports a special adapter for use conventional threaded filters with a diameter of 77 mm... But what it looks like, how much it costs and where it can be bought is not yet known.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Focusing

The focus ring is not very wide, metal, ribbed. The ring rotates on 135 degrees (3/8 of a full turn). Focusing is smooth and pleasant. You can focus with just one finger.

Lens has internal focus, the front lens remains stationary during focusing. During focusing, only the rear group of lenses moves (the so-called 'rear-focusing' principle, focusing using the rear elements).

On the ring there is a scale with a focusing distance in meters and feet and a depth of field scale. The distance scale is not very detailed, it has labels for only six values ​​(0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.6, 1, 2 meters) and an infinity label.

The minimum focusing distance is only 20 centimeters.

7Artisans 12 / 2.8 has a very pronounced 'Focus Breathing' effect (changing the viewing angle during focusing). During focusing towards the MDF, the viewing angle decreases significantly.

  • Focus Shift (focus shift, changing focus distance due to iris)
  • There is a hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop) for quick and accurate focusing under any temperature operating conditions

While working 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 on camera Sony Alpha NEX-3N problems with focusing or metering exposure did not have. Focus peaking (highlighting sharp contours), a quick increase in the central area of ​​​​the image and a rotary display significantly simplified the work with the lens.

 

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Image quality

7Artisans 12 / 2.8 shows the expected image quality for such a lens. The quality was greatly influenced by a rather old optical design, most likely a modernized / optimized Zeiss Distagon type design, which, without aspherical elements, could not provide high-quality images at open apertures at the edges and corners of the frame.

Sharpness

  1. in the center of the frame at F / 2.8, the lens shows confident sharpness
  2. there is a very strong drop in sharpness at the corners of the frame at f / 2.8
  3. palpable coma at the corners and edges
  4. sharp drop in sharpness at the edges of the frame at F / 2.8
  5. excellent resolution in the center of the frame at closed apertures after f / 4
  6. resolution at the edges of the frame returns to normal on covered apertures after F / 8
  7. good contrast

Distortion

  1. very weak barrel-shaped distortion
  2. the overall level of distortion is at a level typical for such high-quality lenses

Vignetting

  1. noticeable vignetting observed most strongly at F / 2.8-4
  2. vignetting decreases with focus towards MDF. Most noticeable when focusing on infinity
  3. vignetting almost disappears at f / 5.6
  4. vignetting easily fixable in the editor

Aberration

  1. low chromatic aberration
  2. general level HA is at the level inherent for high quality lenses

Rest

  1. on covered diaphragms you can achieve a beautiful effect of a 14-ray star
  2. from bright light sources you can get small glare. There are no criticisms for working in the backlight

Important: at the time of the creation of this review, there was no 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 profile for popular RAW converters. You can create a profile yourself or wait for its release.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Sample Photos

All photos in the review are shown without processing. Camera used Sony Alpha NEX-3N... Most of the photos are converted from the original RAW files using the original Sony Imaging Edge Viewer utility, the smaller part is on-camera JPEG or JPEG + RAW.

RAW source images can be downloaded at this link (67 files, 1 GB), JPEG at this link (102 files, 1.4 GB). Several photos in processing: 1, 2, 3.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

My experience

7Artisans 12 / 2.8 is a very cheap replacement for the original similar autofocus ZEISS Distagon Touit 2.8 / 12 T * и SONY E 4 / 10-18 OSS.

Aperture super wide is interesting, but you need to get used to it. I liked the very compact set that came out of 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 and Sony Alpha NEX-3N... Shooting with this lens is quite easy, it is difficult only to select the scenes to be filmed, since when working with an ultra wide-angle lens, you need to 'think broadly' about the future shot.

For a long time I could not understand what is wrong with this lens? Everything turned out to be very simple - I expected a real 12 mm, but during the shooting, the angle of view still did not correspond to the declared focal length.

After several months of working with this lens, I can safely recommend 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 as an inexpensive width.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Alternatives

There are very few such inexpensive manual focus lenses for mirrorless cropped cameras with an APS-C sensor. As alternatives, I only know:

  1. Samyang / Rokinon 12mm 1: 2.0 NCS CS E (black or silver) and its version Vdslr for video
  2. Samyang / Rokinon 2.8 / 10 ED AS NCS CS and his version Vdslr for video
  3. Meike and many of the same lenses under other names: Opteka / KaxindaMcoplusVoking / 'NO NAME' 2.8 / 12 MULTI COATED
  4. laowa C-Dreamer 9mm F2.8 (Venus Optics Zero-D)

Other similar lenses with a focal length less than or equal to 12 mm are either of the FISH-EYE class, or are designed only for Micro 4/3 and less.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Video review

You can watch the video review on my Youtube channel by this link, or below:


Price

7Artisans 12 / 2.8 costs around $ 180. The easiest way buy 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 at Aliexpress.comfor example, from an authorized seller 7artisans Official Store here at this link. Also, 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 can be found at representatives in this group VK.

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

Results

7Artisans 12/2.8 is a good option as a budget wide for mirrorless crop cameras with Kf=1.5-1.6. On a micro 4/3 system, the lens will just be a nice wide-angle (EGF 24 mm).

10 main advantages

  1. good build quality, body and front covers are made of metal
  2. nice and smooth focus ring
  3. compact sizes
  4. the diaphragm rotates smoothly, without intermediate values
  5. depth of field and focus distance
  6. compact size, integrated hood
  7. focus type internal
  8. small MDF
  9. there is an original adapter for filters
  10. good sharpness in the center of the frame is already at f / 2.8 and excellent at covered apertures

10 main disadvantages

  1. no CPU pins to form the correct EXIF
  2. there is no thread for classic filters, an additional adapter for filters supports large-diameter filters of 77 mm, there is no information where to get it
  3. little information on 7Artisans certified service centers
  4. strong 'Focus Breathing' effect
  5. only 7 aperture blades. Petals are poorly rounded
  6. lack of data about the lens in modern cameras, which makes it difficult to automatically correct some types of optical distortion (distortionvignetting etc.)
  7. no lens profile for popular RAW converters
  8. optical design without special optical elements
  9. very poor image quality at the corners and edges of the frame at f / 2.8
  10. focal length 7Artisans 12 / 2.8 is actually about 13-14 mm (EGF about 20 mm), while focusing towards the MDF, the focal length is approximately 16-17 mm (EGF about 24 mm)

Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram

Add a comment: anonym

 

 

Comments: 24, on the topic: Review 7Artisans 12mm F2.8 WIDE-LENS

  • Aldar

    I wonder why Nikon offended? even on xiaomi, but not on the F mount? Is it because of the working segment?

    • Michael

      Yes, if you pay attention, all compatible systems are mirrorless

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Fixed
      It is only for the cropped mirrorless. Nikon does not have such (except for the Nikon 1 system, on which this lens will have a 33 mm EGF)

  • anonym

    The Chinese do not sleep! A good option on the BZK!

  • Paul

    In winter I bought this lens for Sony E, here are a few observations:
    1. I checked it on a full-frame A7, it almost covers the full frame, there is a rather small vignette in the corners, so you can use it on the full frame, if it becomes 18 mm on the crop, then on the full frame after cropping the vignette it will be about 14
    2. I bought a used one inexpensively, changed the mount for Fuji, everything works fine, maybe it will come in handy for someone
    3. in the review it is written that the new lenses do not have a red mark and the cap is an even cylinder, my red mark does not, but the cap has cutouts for the hood
    4. in my copy, between the petals of the hood, an increasing ring for a 62-67mm filter is perfectly inserted, and it is not visible when shooting! (Fuji). I screwed a ray filter and a polaric into this ring, everything works, but on some filter it gives a small vignette. Cokin filters can also be used if you want to experiment - ring 62-67 is inexpensive. The only caveat is that the ring is inserted quite tightly and shrinks a little, so the filter is hardly screwed on. perhaps it is better to immediately insert not a ring, but some kind of protective filter for 62
    5. The quality of workmanship and shooting is pleasant. small, comfortable, lightweight. since it’s about a meter on the tightened aperture of the MDF, for me it is an indispensable assistant when shooting banquets and close reporting, autofocus when shooting from a meter or two is not needed at all

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Thanks for the feedback. Updated label information. I don’t have 62-67 on hand, only 58 mm. But definitely worth a try.

    • 111

      The MDF of the lens does not change from the aperture value, you meant the depth of field most likely.

  • Valentine

    For micro 4/3, I would not take this. The Panasonic 14mm F2.5 is much better. Yes, the viewing angle will be slightly smaller, but more compact, with autofocus, profiles, the best picture, that is, with a full range of amenities for normal shooting.

    • Igor

      Why autofocus on such FRs?

      • Novel

        Well, not only to shoot landscapes on hyperfocal.

      • Michael

        Landscape with foreground e.g.

  • Sergei

    Great review of an interesting lens. We are waiting for the representative office to give the test relatively inexpensive and, IMHO, fixes 25 / 1.8 and 35 / 1.2 that are interesting for the UPC

  • Evgen

    all of the following was on my lens (the quality of the kit lens may vary)
    of the main claims:
    1. strong artifacts with a strong kontrovichka

    minor claims
    1. soap in the corners on any diaphragm
    2. fake 12mm
    3. the hole is not 2.8, approximately 3.3-3.5 (determined in practice, there is no stop of light between 2.8 and 4 aperture. Also, when the “hole” is fully open, the diaphragm is not fully open, you can mechanically modify it, but it will be soft)

    pros:
    1. inexpensive, took for 7k rubles in China
    2. compact

  • anonym

    Surprisingly, Sonya gives a pleasant and peculiar color.

  • Sergei

    This lens has a Chinese competitor - Meike 12mm / 2,8
    In the optical scheme, there is one more lens, the dimensions and weight are also larger, one plus - there is already room for a 72 mm light filter. And it costs one thousand rubles more.
    The main drawback of these two bros from China is the price.
    Now you can take a used Samyang 12mm / 2 in good condition for 13-14 thousand rubles (and the aperture is one stop higher).
    Which is only 1-2 thousand more expensive than these Chinese.
    Here for 8 thousand it would be an interesting proposal.
    PS
    Anyone with tight money can use the Zenitar 16mm / 2,8 fisheye.
    The distortion is great, but the angle is over 90 ° on the crop.
    Used costs about 5000 rubles.

  • Photobooster

    For myself, I have already listed this manufacturer as undesirable.
    A pure "collective farm", just look at its negative qualities ...
    And without them car manufacturers! )

    • anonym

      Railway carriage? Well, well, show at least one similar lens cheaper than this or at the same price? This artisans is 100 times better than any Soviet merchandise

      • anonym

        What kind of "consumer goods"?

        • Ruslan

          Consumer goods - short for “widespread consumption”, consumer goods are consumer goods that are produced in large quantities and are generally of low quality.

  • anonym

    Something the angles seemed to me quite bad (or rather, not even the angles, but everything except the center itself), it’s better to add a little and still take the proven Samyang 12mm f / 2.

  • Sergei

    On Ebay, the new Samyang 12mm / 2 is now at 18000 rubles with free shipping.

  • Misha

    Strong points of this lens: very compact size, low price, decent all metal build, smooth focusing, great image performance in the central area. It's good and relatively inexpensive choice to get involved into the worls of ultra-wide angle shots.

  • Eugene

    Thank you!!

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