TTArtisan’s Tiny $99 Pancake Lens Weighs Less Than a Camera Battery
TTArtisan has announced a new ultra-compact pancake prime lens, the AF 24mm f/3.8 Mini, for full-frame Sony E-mount cameras.
The new $99 lens is 16 millimeters (0.63 inches) long and 60 millimeters (2.36 inches) in diameter. It accepts 52mm front filters. Beyond its compact form factor, the lens is also very lightweight, weighing just 57 grams (about two ounces). It weighs less than a standard Sony NP-FZ100 battery.
As expected, the lens has a pretty straightforward optical formula. It has just six lens elements arranged across as many groups. It has two extra-low dispersion (ED) elements and two aspherical lenses.
It has a nine-bladed aperture diaphragm. Like some other similar pancake lenses on the market, the TTArtisan AF 24mm f/3.8 Mini has a fixed aperture, meaning photographers can only use it at its maximum aperture of f/3.8. The autofocus-equipped lens focuses as close as 0.3 meters (0.98 feet).
“Ultra-thin, lightweight and easy to carry, the AF 24mm f/3.8 mini makes full-frame shooting feel effortless wherever you go,” TTArtisan says. In many ways, this lens is more like a camera body cap that lets users take photos than a traditional lens. The lens cannot even use manual focus; it’s autofocus only. On the topic of a camera body cap, the lens has a neat lens cap design. A lever on the front lets users cover the small front opening.
The 24mm focal length is a popular one, useful for a wide range of photographic scenarios. 24mm is good for landscapes, street photography, some travel, and even environmental portraits. However, with its relatively slow f/3.8 aperture, photographers may struggle to get much background blur unless they get very close to their subject. With a 0.3-meter close-focusing distance, that is possible.
The lens includes a built-in USB Type-C port for firmware updates. It supports eye- and face-detect autofocus. It is fully compatible with a wide range of Sony cameras, both APS-C and full-frame. However, TTArtisan lists only partial compatibility with a select group of cameras, including the original Sony a7S and the a5000 and a5100 APS-C bodies.
TTArtisan’s new AF 24mm f/3.8 Mini pancake prime is available now for just $99.
Image creditsTTArtisan
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