The Viltrox 135mm f1.8 FE Lab is a lens that I transparently really don’t like all that much. It’s too long to work with in city conditions, huge, and has autofocus issues. Granted, Viltrox has worked to fix these issues with multiple firmware updates coming to this lens. And so we’ve updated our review. If you want to read the full thing, then click here. But if you’re curious about just the updated text, then click on below.
Focusing Update August 2025
Since our last review update, the company has offered a lot more firmware to the Viltrox 135mm f1.8 Lab. Here’s what you need to know:
V1.19: Fixed known issues.
V1.21
- Fixed known issues.
- Improved lens focus stability.
V1.22
- Added app-based control for customizing the focus rotation range.
- Added app support for assigning the FN button to lock the focus ring, aperture ring, and control ring.
- Fixed known issues.
V1.23
- Added APP preset object distance adjustment function.
- Optimize the APP focus rotation range function.
- Fixed known issues.
V1.25
Fixed known issues.
There’s a lot of fluff in terms of the details; and I’m very curious to know if Viltrox released this lens knowing that there would be a lot of issues. From my recolleciton of my original emails with them, it seemes like they did know that there would be issues. But during my tests, it performed pretty much just fine.
However, this is the single most difficult Viltrox lens to update the firmware for. I tried to do it via the app and my Sony a7r III, but it didn’t want to update. Then I tried three different cables connected to my computer, and the lens wasn’t recognized even though those cables worked for the other lenses. Eventually, I was able to plug it into one cable and update it through the app. This is pretty mind boggling and annoying because you need the right cable.
In real life performance, if you’re using a haze filter or shooting in low light, then the autofocus will be a bit more hit or miss than normal. That’s sad because I don’t really have this issue with Tamron or Sony glass. But you’re surely getting a tradeoff. In the day and when shooting action, I’d surely still use it for events with bright lighting (otherwise, outdoors during the daylight hours). This is with the Sony a7r III, however, and there’s a chance that it will be better with newer camera bodies that don’t have fudgetastic autofocus performance. Namely, I wouldn’t use it with the Sony a7r V or anything using that glacial 60MP sensor variant.
What I’m amazed at is that this lens’s firmware didn’t have specific improvements for AF-S and AF-C mode the way that the 85mm did.
To be very frank, this is a lens that I’m truly sure would rarely come out of my camera bag. I own the Tamron 35-150mm f2-f2.8. And at 135mm, I can’t really tell much of a major difference in the image quality unless I’m looking side by side.
But here’s the truth, my clients have never looked side by side and I’ve shot gigs with both of these lenses. Both deliver great photos, but no one will sit there on Instagram saying, “Oh that’s nice bokeh.” Instead, they’re reacting to the moments that I capture.
And that’s the truth: reliability is key in a world where things, like the news, moves fast. If that’s the case, then the Tamron will be a better choice for me and it will replace so many other lenses.
Granted, the Viltrox 135mm is under $1,000. And if you really just want a 135mm f1.8 with weather resistance and good image quality, this is insanely difficult to beat. It competes more with something that Sigma would offer instead of Tamron or Sony.