Even when I’m zooming about on my travels with my camera, I’ve still got this one prime number under my belt…

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Nobody likes to feel their creativity is being constrained into a narrow vision of what’s out there. Here’s how I supersized my view of the world

Viltrox AF 9mm f/2.8 Air product shot
(Image credit: Matthew Richards)

According to Buddha, it’s better to travel well than to arrive. Or simply, ‘It’s Better to Travel’, if you prefer the title of the 1987 Swing Out Sister album. Sure enough, I love to travel and even though I’m writing this in the early days of spring, my heart and mind are already planning ahead to summer vacations. Part of the process, for me at least, is deciding on what camera gear to take along for the ride. Decisions, decisions.

I’ve been testing and reviewing cameras, lenses and photographic accessories for a quarter of a century now, and have been a keen photographer for twice that long, so I’ve built up a sizeable arsenal of camera kit over the years. The collection includes some seriously heavyweight items but I do love to travel light. I also love the look and feel of a ‘real’ camera, and my travel companion of choice is my trusty, lightweight and delightfully retro Nikon Z fc.

When you’re confronted with an architectural interior on a grand scale, as in this Chinese bookstore,, and your back is literally against the wall, a standard zoom just won’t cut it. My ultra-wide Viltrox has shoehorned everything I wanted into the frame for this shot. (Image credit: Viltrox, 唐柏鸿)

Naturally, a camera body is a fat lot of use without lenses to go with it and my dynamic duo in this respect pair the amazingly compact yet capable Nikon Z DX 16-50mm and Nikon Z DX 50-250mm zoom lenses. Both of these are real space-savers with their retractable designs, the standard zoom even qualifying as a ‘pancake lens’ when it’s retracted.

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Although shown on the right in its non-retracted state, the tiny Nikon Z DX 16-50mm standard zoom demonstrates just how small the Viltrox 9mm Air is for an ultra-wide-angle prime. (Image credit: Matthew Richards)

So what don’t my pair of zooms bring to the party? Sure, they team up to give great versatility, with a combined zoom range of 24-375mm in full-frame terms. But even the most wide-angle extremity on offer can leave me feeling a bit blinkered.

Sometimes I feel the need for a lens that’ll let me see the bigger picture, and the widest viewing perspective of my standard zoom just won’t cut it. My 9mm prime really takes the blinkers off. (Image credit: Viltrox, 唐柏鸿)

Travel has a habit of serving up epic photo opportunities. There are sweeping landscape vistas, vast cityscapes and amazing architectural interiors, to name but a few. These often include views that are far to big to squeeze into a standard zoom lens. And when the sun goes down, the entire night sky beckons, taking on magical proportions if you’re traveling away from the pollution of urban areas.

I love that the Viltrox gives such an immense viewing angle for a really eye-catching perspective, and comes alive for cityscapes after nightfall. (Image credit: Viltrox, 唐柏鸿)

What’s needed to complete my trio of lenses is an ultra-wide-angle prime or zoom. But here’s the problem. This kind of lens is usually big, heavy, cumbersome, expensive and all of the other things that are not in the least travel-friendly. But I’ve discovered a secret weapon in the diminutive size, weight and shape of the Viltrox AF 9mm f/2.8 Air. This remarkable prime lens for APS-C format cameras comes in Fujifilm X, Nikon Z and Sony E mount flavors.

Unlike many ultra-wide-angle prime and zoom lenses, the Viltrox has a removable hood and a regular 58mm attachment thread, ideal for fitting some landscape-friendly filters. (Image credit: Matthew Richards)

The Viltrox 9mm is Air by name, Air by nature. It’s impossibly small and light for an ultra-wide prime, measuring just 65x57mm / 2.6x2.2in and weighing a mere 175g / 6.2oz. It’ll literally fit in a spare coat pocket yet offers a gigantic 113.8-degree viewing angle that can pull huge areas into view. Better still, the asking price is similarly lightweight at just $199 / £190 / AU$299. Bargain! I’m off to start packing.

The Viltrox 9mm Air can turn an ordinary street scene into a truly eye-catching image. (Image credit: Viltrox, 唐柏鸿)
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Matthew Richards
Matthew Richards

Matthew Richards is a photographer and journalist who has spent years using and reviewing all manner of photo gear. He is Digital Camera World's principal lens reviewer – and has tested more primes and zooms than most people have had hot dinners! 


His expertise with equipment doesn’t end there, though. He is also an encyclopedia  when it comes to all manner of cameras, camera holsters and bags, flashguns, tripods and heads, printers, papers and inks, and just about anything imaging-related. 


In an earlier life he was a broadcast engineer at the BBC, as well as a former editor of PC Guide.

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