In 2023 Pergear surprised us with their Pergear 35mm 1.4 lens, as it turned out to be a compact and very affordable 35mm 1.4 lens with surprisingly decent image quality. In 2026 – 3 years later – Pergear released this Pergear 50mm 1.4: similar size, similar price, different focal length and a lot more competitors. Can this new lens also convince us? Let’s find out in this review!
In 2023 there are plenty of lens manufacturers originating from China speaking to various different target audiences. While some are the Primark of the lens industry – simply trying to offer cheaper alternatives to the reknown manufacturers of lower quality – others have become the actual innovators in the photography lens business.
Having used more than 80 of those lenses from 15 different manufacturers I thought it is a good time to highlight the best ones I came across.
Update November 2025: many new lenses added, many of the lenses listed here are currently discounted thanks to Black Friday Promotions, currently discounted prices are marked in red
It seems to have become a trend among Chinese lens manufacturers to produce full-frame macro lenses with 2X magnification. Here, we have one of the most affordable options: the Pergear 60mm f/2.8 MK2 Macro 2X. Let’s dive into its strengths and weaknesses!
I tested this lens on a 46 Mp Nikon Z7ii (Sample images were taken with a Nikon Zf and Nikon Zfc)
You can see this review as a YouTube video here!
Continue reading Review: Pergear 60mm f/2.8 MK2 Macro 2X – The Most Affordable 2X Macro?
It has generally been difficult to find ultra wide-angle prime lenses for any system until a few years ago. If you wanted a lens as wide as 14mm your only options were from Sony, Canon, or Zeiss for a lot of money that no ordinary man could afford. It has gradually changed and there are several affordable manual lenses available now. One of them is the Pergear 14mm f/2.8 II, which for about €240 seems to be a bargain. Let’s see if it’s any good!
If you ask all the photographers, which single prime lens they would choose if they could own only one lens in the world, the majority would say the 35mm, and most of the rest would say a fast 35mm. This is because it is one of the most versatile prime lenses. Although it’s a wide-angle lens, it is sometimes referred to as the alternative normal lens because it is so close to the standard focal length that it does not distort the subject much. With such lenses, you can also get a good background separation with a nice bokeh. They are useful in almost all kinds of photography, especially in everyday photography, street photography, environmental portraits, landscapes, weddings, events, and travel. Additionally, it works well for stitched astrophotography.
Its popularity has led to numerous 35mm lenses being produced by various manufacturers from the early days of photography to the modern era. In this article, I will compare six of them, from vintage to old to new. Let’s have a look together!
