Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens (An ALMOST Amazing Lens) | Round Glass Review

The KamLan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C lens, man, there is so much right with it. The aperture markings are accurate, the infinity focus is properly calibrated, the blurry areas can be photographically life-changing, and it’s highly usable on full frame. And then KamLan went and made the front element a stadium. And, yeah, that’s a huge bummer. But taken for what it is, a lovely manual focus lens with a single, if sometimes bothersome, compromise, for the price, which as of this video’s recording is around USD $170 new, the value is incredible. The images that this lens delivers can be absolutely captivating and stunning. There is a whole boatload that this lens does so well and for portrait photographers on any system for which this lens is made, well, it could be an inexpensive way to create standout images that few other people can match the look of.
KamLan is one of those badges that seems to move in fits and spurts, but, more so lately, not at all. I don’t know if there will be more KamLan lenses. I do know that the ones I’ve tried - this lens, the first version of the 50mm f/1.1, the 28mm f/1.4, and the 32mm f/1.1, have been, with the exception of the 50mm, very good. The APS-C or MFT shooter who likes manual focus lenses can do no better than KamLan. The full frame shooter who can crop their images and likes manual focus lenses will be hard-pressed to do better than KamLan.
I said, back in 2023, that I expected KamLan was no longer an active badge and then, not two weeks later, this and the 32mm were announced. Once again, out of hope that I’m about to be proved wrong, I’m going to say that the lack of new lenses from KamLan makes me guess it’s probably a defunct badge. Looking at the other third-party lenses from the optical plants in China, 7Artisans, TTArtisan, Viltrox, Venus Optics, Sirui, Neewer, Lightdow, Laowa, AstrHori, Roadfisher, Meike, Yongnuo, and others seem to be dropping new lenses at a rate of more than one a month across all the names. But from KamLan: silence. And that’s too bad because there’s something great about a bonkers-fast lens that feels absolutely lovely to use.
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Video Index:
0:00 - Intro
0:11 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Round Glass Review
1:48 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Specifications
3:07 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Tips & Tricks
7:17 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Aberration & Bokeh Analysis
9:50 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Lens Diagram
10:29 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Video Use
11:52 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Strengths & Weaknesses
16:19 - Kamlan 70mm f/1.1 APS-C Portrait Lens Review
References:
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[@pnolan180]

Would love to hear your thoughts on the 21mm f1.8 and 50mm f1.1 mark ii if you could get ahold of them.

[@DavidHancock]

If I get them, definitely. The 21mm has been on my radar a long time. I just have a huge queue of lenses to review still.

[@androoy.p]

Looking at the front of the lens I always thought that the plastic bits are just a simple mask that can be peeled off. It is baffling to me that they went to the trouble of actually cutting off parts of the lens. I can't think of any possible performance benefits that can't be achieved by a simple mask. With that said, I kind of like the squarish bokeh, but it would be nice to have it as an option and not a permanent feature.

[@DavidHancock]

I was shocked as well and really thought they were just removable lens hoods. I can see the squarish blurs having some use in some settings, but it's gonna be limited until the lens stops down a bit. Either that, or I don't think creatively enough when it comes to blur. :D

[@androoy.p]

The more accurate title would be "An ALMOST Round Glass Review" 😆 Sorry, I couldn't help myself 😬