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Matt Granger Best 70–200mm f/2.8 Lens — Canon | Nikon | Sony | Sigma | Leica

In this video, photographer Matt Granger conducts a shootout between five professional 70-200mm f/2.8 lenses from top manufacturers. Tested on their respective high-resolution camera bodies in Hong Kong, the lenses are evaluated on handling, build quality, autofocus performance, image stabilization, and overall image quality.

The Five Contenders

Canon RF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM Z (tested on Canon R5 Mark II)
Nikon NIKKOR Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S II (tested on Nikon Z8)
Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS II (tested on Sony A7R V)
Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG DN OS Sports (tested on Leica SL3)
Leica Vario-Elmarit-SL 70-200mm f/2.8 ASPH(tested on Leica SL3)

Matt concludes that if you are using a Sony, Nikon, or Canon system, their respective 70-200mm lenses are absolute top-tier choices that will not disappoint. The Sony takes a slight edge for its incredibly lightweight and ergonomic design.
Conversely, the Leica acts more like a luxury item—it looks and feels premium but is too heavy and slow for demanding professional workflows. The Sigma, while optically sound, struggled massively with autofocus tracking, making it hard to recommend in this highly competitive class.

New Japanese sales rankings:

Here are the latest Japanese May sales rankings:

Mapcamera ranking:

Yodobashi ranking:

Surprising to see the expensive Hassleblad on top of the Yodobashi ranking!

Get Sharper, Cleaner Results with Aiarty: New VILTROX 90mm F2.2 EVO Review Workflow

 

Get Sharper, Cleaner Results with Aiarty: New VILTROX 90mm F2.2 EVO Review Workflow

Professional DP and videographer Mauro has shared an review of the new VILTROX 90mm F2.2 EVO, a compact APS-C telephoto lens with a classic 135mm-equivalent portrait perspective, testing it across outdoor portraits, autofocus tracking, low-light samples, and handheld video.

But the review is not only about lens performance. It also shows a practical finishing workflow for the kind of files many photographers and video creators know well: strong captures that still need a little cleanup before publishing.

Even with good optics and careful shooting, some photos and clips may still show minor softness, low-light noise, or details that need extra polish.

How Aiarty Fits into the Review Workflow

For these almost-there files, Mauro integrates Aiarty into his post-production workflow to reduce softness, improve clarity, recover detail, and prepare files for publishing.

The fit makes sense: much like VILTROX, Aiarty offers strong performance at an accessible price, runs locally without cloud uploads, and offers a Lifetime License with free future updates and no recurring subscription.

Fine-Tuning Stills: Polishing “Almost Perfect” Captures

For still images, Aiarty Image Enhancer helps clean up strong captures that need a little extra clarity, detail recovery, or noise reduction before publishing. It is especially useful for portraits, low-light shots, cropped frames, and images that are already good but need a cleaner final polish.

More-Detail GAN v3: Mauro uses Aiarty Image Enhancer‘s More-Detail GAN v3 to recover cleaner edges and usable detail from a slightly soft frame. It is best suited for fixing minor softness, restoring fine textures, reducing noise, and upscaling images while keeping skin, hair, fabric, fur, and other natural details believable.

Aiarty Image Enhancer’s More-Detail GAN v3 helps recover cleaner edges and usable detail from a slightly soft frame.

Real Photo Model: Aiarty Image Enhancer’s Real Photo model is better suited when the goal is a realistic, less processed look. It helps enhance high-resolution photos with improved clarity and fidelity, making it useful for portraits, product shots, family photos, landscapes, and other images where authenticity matters.

Aiarty Image Enhancer can improve real-world photos with cleaner detail, better clarity, and a more usable output size.

Cleanup for Video Content

For video, Aiarty Video Enhancer works as a final cleanup step for handheld, low-light, or compressed clips. It can help with denoising, detail recovery, upscaling to Full HD or 4K, frame interpolation, HDR enhancement, and audio denoise, keeping useful footage cleaner and easier to edit.

Aiarty Video Enhancer helps clean up low-light footage with denoising, detail recovery, upscaling, and adjustable enhancement strength before export.

Add Aiarty to Your Toolkit (Now with Big Savings)

Aiarty has extended its Anniversary promotion until June 12, 2026. Current offers include:

For creators who want a reliable offline tool in their editing setup, the Lifetime License keeps Aiarty available long term with free future updates and no recurring subscription.

Full specs of the upcoming Viltrox 75mm and 90mm APS-C lenses

Here are the full specs of the lenses coming on June 9th:

Viltrox AF 75mm / 1.8 E/XF/Z EVO

  • Perfect for APS-C: Designed for Sony E, Nikon Z, and Fujifilm X-mount cameras
  • Precise Sharpness: High level of detail from the center to the edges of the frame
  • Smooth Background Blur: Pleasing bokeh for professional portrait looks
  • Lightweight & Compact: Ideal for mobile photo and video setups
  • Minimum Focus Distance of 0.74 m: Flexible composition options for portraits and close-
    up shots
  • Video-Ready: Silent STM motor for smooth focus transitions during video recording

Viltrox AF 90mm / 1.8 E/XF/Z EVO

  • Perfect for APS-C: Designed for Sony E, Nikon Z, and Fujifilm X-mount cameras
  • Precise Sharpness: High level of detail from the center to the edges of the frame
  • Smooth Background Blur: Pleasing bokeh for professional portrait looks
  • Lightweight & Compact: Ideal for mobile photo and video setups
  • Minimum Focus Distance of 0.74 m: Flexible composition options for portraits and close-up shots
  • Video-Ready: Silent STM motor for smooth focus transitions during video recording