$29.95!!! This is the cheapest Nikon Z lens on Amazon – and I think you'd be crazy not to buy it

Sometimes you come across a product at a price that's so good, you have to wonder what's going on. And that's exactly the case with the Koah Artisans Series 55mm f/1.8, which at $29.95 is the cheapest Nikon Z lens on Amazon!

So, is there something going on? Yes – but it's not that this is a crappy lens. In fact, it's a pretty dang great lens. So how come it's less than 30 bucks? Because it's apparently a rebrand of a much pricier lens that's a few years old.

This appears to be the exact same lens as the Brightin Star 55mm f/1.8, which launched in 2019 for around $100 – and was a very good lens!

Koah Artisans Series 55mm f/1.8: $29.95 at Amazon

Don't let the price fool you! This is an all-metal full-frame lens with a fast f/1.8 aperture and 12 diaphragm blades for smooth, rounded bokeh. It boasts an aperture and focus ring, along with a distance scale for zone focusing on the street. This is a very capable lens!

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So, while it might be on sale for just $29.95, the Koah Artisans Series 55mm f/1.8 isn't a cheap and nasty lens: it's actually a far more expensive lens in disguise.

How do we know it's the same as the $100 Brightin Star 55mm f/1.8? Well, aside from the fact that owners of the lens have said as much on Reddit, you only need to look at the two side-by-side below.

If that's not enough, they share identical specs: a 37° angle of view, optical construction featuring 7 elements in 5 groups, 12 aperture blades with an f/1.8 - f/16 range, 49mm filter thread…

And, you know, just look at them:

This is a classic nifty fifty, with an ever-so-slightly longer focal length for a touch more reach. While it's 55mm on a full frame camera, if you mount it on an APS-C body like the Nikon Z fc it becomes an effective 82.5mm lens – making it ideal for portraiture, especially with the fast f/1.8 aperture to create subject separation and blurry backgrounds.

I love the fact that it has a distance scale, making this a great option for intuitive street photography for those who've mastered zone focusing. It also adds to the awesome vintage look.

I love using the Nikon Zf for manual shooting and I think this Koah Artisans lens would be an incredible pairing. And heck, for just $29.95, it's an absolute no-brainer pairing for whatever Z camera you happen to own!

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