I have owned 5 Rokinon lenses and all were sharp, good lenses. As I could afford a higher quality lens I sold them on Ebay for about 80% of the purchase price. At their price range you will never get the quality of a Sony GMaster, Canon L or Zeiss lens. There isn't any lens maker that can compete with their quality to price ratio, not even Sigma. I am amazed at people who pixel peep with these budget lenses and then complaining about their findings. Buy one in a focal range you don't already own, go out and enjoy it. Where else can you get a ultra-wide 12mm at an f/2 for less than $300. Better yet, they're quite sharp and can make some amazing images.
Have both the 85 1.4 and 14 2.8 and both are excellent IMO. The 14mm 2.8 is a great lens to get into astrophotography with, without spending an arm and a leg for a lens.
Yes my 12mm f2 has this focus issue but not as bad as the 14mm.. You can adjust the 14mm easily anyway.. I found my 14mm to be sharper without stopping down.
I also bought the 12 mm f/2 for astrophotography and I don't think it has the infinity focus issue per se. But what it (and other Rokinon lenses?) does have is focus past infinity. On the lens there's a short line coming from the infinity symbol with a right angle hook on it - that hook marks the infinity focus, not the physical end of focus ring, as was the case with traditional manual focus lenses. The instructions don't draw your attention to this fact. I suppose it's just possible that, depending on the lens mount, the true infinity focus could be ever-so-slightly biased one side or the other of this mark.
I have the 12mm, bought for astrophotography. One counter to his points is that this lens is light, under 9oz I believe (Fuji X mount). Great for backpacking.
Great video! I enjoy my rokinon and samyang lenses. I recently shot a skateboarding event using mostly my 14mm f2.8, and the 50mm f1.4 AF. No major issues although it's worth noting that this was the third time using the 50mm and it performed well, however right when I began testing it out of the box on my sony a7r, it kept hunting for focus, then just stopped focusing completely! I was uncertain of its performance, but I haven't had any problems since. Aside from that, I appreciate these lenses, especially for the price one could pick these up for!
Honestly when it comes to manual focus speed, the more you use manual focus lenses the faster you get at it. I can focus manually pretty fast by now when using my Samyang lenses on my Nikon D810. To help out I have installed a split prism focus screen in my camera, and also a magnifying eye cup, they do help a ton.
I have used Rokinon for 3 years now. I did my homework before buying them. I can say without any hesitation, they are fantastic. I use both the 14mm f2.8 and the 24mm f1.4 (my 1st choice) specifically for astro work. Results are sensational. Credit also goes to my amazing a7s too. I am now considering the 50mm as well for astro work but still doing research on that one.
Hey Mike, I am an amature photographer and planning to start astrophotography. I have a Canon 6d mark ii as my body. I wanted to purchase a lens but got confused between 24mm f/1.4 and 14mm f/2.8 Rokinon lenses. Are there any specific pros and cons to each of these lenses? Regards, Satwik.
Since the 24mm is a 1.4 it lets in 2 stops more light than the 14mm which is a big plus for astrophotography. The only "downside" being that it has a more narrow field of view. You probably have accessilibty to a 24mm lens, maybe a zoom lens like the Canon Kit lens. Have a look at the field of view it gives your decide for yourself, if that's wide enough. If you like it, get the 24 f/1.4 . If you want to super wide field of view the 14mm gives, go for that one. It let's in less light but I took a descent (quite noisy though) astro shot with my Canon 60D (crop sensor camera form 2010) with a 2.8 apeture lens, so it should be enough. If money is not an issue get the Sigma 14mm 1.8 :D
Thank you for the video - I didn’t know that point about ‘older vs newer’ versions. I have the Samyang 85mm f1.4 (Samyang is the brand we find in Europe & Rokinson is Samyang’s partner in the Americas). It is a touch soft at f1.4 and at 2.0 it’s pretty crisp. I also have the 50mm f1.2 (for APS-C sensors) equally a touch soft at f1.2, and it makes awesome shots wide open on the Sony A7S in low light with beautiful bokeh and some ‘natural’ vignette do to the smaller size. The Samyang / Ronkinson lenses offer a great experience at a fraction of the price of other lenses and are a great place to start for new photographers who are looking to find their preferred style.
I just got a rokinon 35mm 1.4 and I really like it. The manual focus actually makes the camera feel more artistic especially with the 1.4. It is funny how many videos like this one are out there recommending Rokinon. It's heavy but that's not that big of a deal for me.
There are some classic sports photos out there that were shot on manual focus. In fact, there are plenty that were pure manual. The trick is to preset your exposure settings and get the lens focused to about the distance you need. You can fine tune from there as needed. At least that's how it worked with film.
I've found that I prefer manual focus for concert photography... I can basically trap focus my subjects as they move erratically (rock n roll... you get it.) I've rented full frame cameras and $1500 lenses to try to rely on the auto focus and I've found that I miss focus more often, and ultimately miss as many moments waiting on focus or losing the shot due to missed focus. It's all in the strategy of the shooter. Cheers!
Manual is very often the way to go, IMO. I've been enjoying my Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 lens. It can take some very cool shots! Pixel peaking shows it to be a pretty good lens too.
I would newer do it fully autofocus!! it just sucks, I get mutch better results, when i use the manual focus and then set back to auto, then it stays focused where I wanted, Importantly if set back to AF, it also refocuses for the other shots, but Only when focused MF and then set back to AF ! But most of my pics are manual focus only.
I shoot Sony E mount and I love my Samyang lens. I have the 16mm F2 and It is tack sharp wide open to the corners. Looking to get the AF 35mm F2.8 next. Really hope they will made a 16mm F1.8 or wider.
The only thing I would add is that if you`re a Sony E-mount shooter, it`s stupid to buy the E-mount Rokinon lenses. They are simply EF-mount lenses with a permanent E-mount adaptor added on. It makes more sense to just buy a single EF-E adaptor and EF-mount lenses. They are cheaper, smaller, and easier to resell.
My 14mm F2.8 Rokinon for my D800e gets me a 28mp score in Dxo, a score that is pretty hard to beat. Im buying a AF 35mm F1.4 for my A7iii today. Ive never had issues with Samyang/Rokinon.
Most of the Samyang-built lenses are sold under several brand names, with varying prices. Seems the more expensive brands might represent units that were found to be a bit better under final inspection before the brand label was applied. Just a guess...
One other thing to know, they are manual aperture as well - adding to the clumsiness of using a manual lens. The exception being Pentax K-mount - that version includes an 'A' position in the aperture ring and it works reasonably well.
I have the Samyang 14mm and I love it. I admit I'm more likely to use it an an analogue camera when I could have up to a couple of minutes to get my focus right, but my experience, and I have used it on my 5DIII, have all been positive. I'll also admit I wouldn't dream of using it for wildlife, I use a Canon 7DII and although 10fps may sound slow now, I do want to take full advantage of it. Despite its price, I wouldn't call it a "beginners lens" although I, and millions of others like me, only had manual focus at one time. Strange to think AF has only been around 30 years and for the first 10 it was only on high end cameras and even then it was nothing like today's. But there again look at mobile phones.
I like manual focusing with the help of peaking..plus I am use to manually focus because of film camera's and you have more control instead of relying on sensor guessing. Thank specifically making this video for photography stills context.
Bought a 35mm f/2.8 because I needed a walk-around lens for my A7III. It has yet to leave my camera except when 35mm just isn't long enough. Does it get confused in low light sometimes? Sure. Does the AF motor sound like a Geiger counter in AF-C? Little bit. But is it smaller than even the Zeiss 35 f/2.8, sharper wide open than a Tamron 24-70 (than my copy at 35, anyway), and cheaper than its nearest competitor? Damn right it is.
Dave, I just purchases a 10mm f 2.8 for Sony E Mount. From both the live view and the range finder is a photo area defined by the lens hood - left and right rectangles , paired arches in the center. The lens hood is non detachable. Was this Rokinon’s plan? Perhaps you can “fix it” in post. Thanks. Jim
Marin Cardenas I tend to use the 35 more especially for indoor projects as the 24 can slightly distort your footage around the edges when close to objects. So can the 35 at times but the 35 seems more of a flat picture and frame wise it seems to have that more 'film look'. Don't get me wrong the 24 is also a good lens to use though, they're both actually similar, just the 24 gives a little more of a wider shot.
HARIZ MANSOR VISUAL I can't say that i've noticed chromatic aberration, i'll have to look into it more. As for soft edges i suppose it all depends on what T stop you use. I tend to never go below 2.8. If the scene is too dark i'll try add more light. Also maybe the distance of the lens from the subject. If i needed a close up of someones face i wouldn't use the 24mm i would change to a 50mm prime or something.
I also have the Samyang (who make Rokinon branded lenses) 135mm f2.0 lens that you mentioned and its just as good, if not better, than some of my "professional" Nikon lenses. Some of their newer lenses now have auto-focus.
Worst thing related to lack of electronics is not lack of EXIF info, but no automatic working aperture, fundamental since 1950's. For many people is no problem to manually focus, but distraction to close aperture, lossing time and concentration to picture. between living systems only Nikon F has aperture in mechanical style (except G lenses)
If I buy the 14mm lens for a Canon 6D2 can you use the camera’s live view and magnifying with live view to get precise manual focus? The sluggish manual adjustment of the aperture and focus will not be a problem. I’m also well aware of a degree of perspective distortion that wide angles have at the edges.
I have the 135, a very fine lens for a low price. But this is a lens you don't want to drop on either end, the focus guides inside the lens are the weak point. If you drop it and the focus ring seems sticky and doesn't focus travel is shortened, then the focus guide studs are damaged.
My 85mm Samyang has gotten more usage than almost any other lens I use, and nearly every one of my award winning photos was taken with that lens. My newly acquired 135? I'm anticipating that will replace the 85 in both respects. It's exquisite.
I would be using these if they made them for L mount. I have the Micro Four Thirds 85mm t1.5. The thing about the L mount is it's so close to the Micro Four Thirds flange distance, I thought of using a C-mount to L mount adapter and modifying it to fit. Still debating on how to do that... But the adapter recedes a bit into the L mount body slightly, so it might be a close fit.
I only have experience with their 12mm f2, Samyang branded, and it is an awesome lens. The nice thing about shooting so wide is no need to worry about focus, and combined with focus-peaking makes it easy to shoot.
I own the 35mm and 50mm of the Cine DS versions of these (Samyang version). They are not sharp wide-open so you have to stop down to T2. But the consistency of their output is amazing for video work.
I own a Nikon F3 film camera, and noticed that Rokinon recently released a 50mm f/1.4, would you recommend I do that? Or stick with the vintage Nikkor lenses? I’m still learning about my F3 and I heard as long as it’s a F mount, it’ll fit! Any feedback will help, thanks
35 t 1.5 during lightning storm because its what i had.... Loved the de clicked aperture ring.focus was sharp. I know, not a photo specific lens..but build is solid, pictures razor sharp so can imagine the photo lenses will be as good
Hello. Is there any problems with the chromatic aberrations on Rokinon 135? And there is a rumors, that to buy Rokinon better see it face to face, even if the lens is new, just out off the box. Se it fits perfect and so on. And finally, i use a Sony a 6000 wich is is a APS_C... how do You think will, Rokinon 135, work with APS_C cfvtra on its full capabilities? Thank You for answer and review
Thanks for your video.. Is there an updated newer version of the 14mm f2.8 and if so how can I tell it apart from the older ones you speak of? Is it the ones with the AE chip that helps you focus? Thank you!
I shoot with Pentax cameras all my Rokinon, Samyang lenses are chipped so I set the Apature through the camera. I have the Rokinon 8mm 3.5, 14mm2.8, Rokinon 20mm1.8, and the Samyang 85mm 1.4 all great lenses. I also have a number of Takumar and Pentax manuel focus lenses so manuel focus is not a problem my cameras give me focus confirmation in the viewfinder so I do not need to use live view or focus peaking
I bought a 14mm / 2.8 Samyang ( same thing) recently to take wide angle mountain views. Love the lens but using on a d5600 focusing takes practice. You have to depend on the little green focus light in the camera if your focusing on something close. But for landscapes it’s not an issue.
Great video. I too agree that the Rokinon lenses are a great deal but one should always be on the lookout for decentering, especially in their wide angles.
Thanks David for a very helpful vid. I placed an order for their 12 mm f2 wide angle Fuji x mount with BH. Will be shooting still - landscape, architecture. I will share my experience here.
I used to vouch for these lenses but I think I’m out growing them. I love the price point and the focus gear on the cine line. But I’m starting to notice the flaws a lot more. My 24mm and 85mm are pretty soft. But my 35mm is excellent.
I've had the following lenses by samyang 85mm 1.4 and 1.5 cine (twice) 35mm 1.5 cine 24mm 1.4 21mm 1.4 (for apsc) 12mm 2 (for apsc) Still have the two cine lenses in Canon EF and use them with a Speedbooster on my Fuji cameras. And depending on how much you are willing to shoot with manual focus and If it's suitable for the things you want to shoot, they are all a brilliant option to get certain kind of styles for cheap. The exception would be the 24mm 1.4 which is a style that i love but it was by far the worst in image quality and also the most expensive. I wouldn't recommend it at all, though there is a Mark 2 version i didnt had my hands on yet and i would hope it's better, but i don't want to ditch the cash again.
In regards to "older" compared to "newer", what year or models mark this dividing line? As the months go buy such relative terms will be even harder to parse. So if you could add an overly with a more specific year or models, that would be super-helpful.
Another good video. Thanks David. I own the 14mm 2.8 and I can confirm that I've got the same issues with the focusing distance indication being way out. My copy also has some softness in the lower right corner - at first I thought I was just missing focus at F2.8 but later I set it to F11 and found the entire frame sharp except for that area. Do you have any sharpness problems with your copy? That being said, it's a small enough flaw that I'm still 100% happy with my 14mm and I'm considering looking into getting the 135mm F2. It's been getting stellar reviews and it's good to hear you saying the same thing. One worry I have though is nailing perfect focus at f2. I'm not a fan of live view for focusing and sometimes I find the focus confirmation dot on my Nikon d610 is too vague - meaning it is tough to get the focus just right. This is on my 85mm 1.8G from Nikon which is not intended as a manual focus lens - so I wonder if it'll be any different with the 135mm f2.
I don't have any sharpness problems with my current copy, but I had another copy before that with a clear de-centering issue, so I returned it for a new copy, which doesn't exhibit this problem. If you just got your's recently, I would see if you can get it exchanged. I can't speak to the 135mm f/2 with an optical viewfinder, but I will say that I find the 135/2 much easier to focus than the 85mm 1.4 I have from Rokinon. The virtually perfect wide-open sharpness also helps with this. With my 85, I find that the areas where something is just barely out of focus are soft wide open. It's hard to explain, but the transition from sharp areas to out of focus area is very rapid, so missing the focus just a little bit has big consequences. I haven't found this to be the case with the 135.
wich rokinon lens is most all around the best focal length to use? the 50mm? and does rokinon cine lenses zoom in and out or do they stay at one specific fixed focal length.
All the Rokinon/Samyang cine lenses are fixed focal length to my knowledge. Personally if I could only have one lens it would probably be a 35 1.4, but it really depends what you’re shooting.
Hi i have a Canon eos rebel sl3 and i wanted to Buy a rokinon 14mm lens for astrophotografy i'm just worried that if i Buy it it could damage My camera or You think it wouldnt? The rokinon lens is ef mount so i think it is compatible. But i was reading that sometimes give error on the camera and it worries me. Thank You.
I just ordered Rokinon 14mm F2.8 with Z mount to use on my newly bought Nikon Z6. I'm looking to use it for astrophotography. Anyone have experience with this on a Nikon Z6 or Z7. I just got it a couple weeks ago which is my first full-frame camera.
is the Rokinon 135mm F/2 the same as the samyang variant? Cause it states on Rokinon box that glass is samyang so to me its just a name change and they would be identical.
john pederson: Samyang lenses are also branded as Falcon, Rokinon, Walimex, Bower, Opteka, Bell and Howell, Polar, and Pro-Optic but they are all made by Samyang in South Korea.
Hello....I have acquired some photography equipment from a relative. One of the items is: ROKINON AUTO ZOOM MACRO 1:3.5/4.5 F=28-85MM 67 NO. 210667 I am having a little difficulty finding out any info. All of this equipment seems unused or mint....thx!
It's easy to adjust the 14mm f2.8 to make infinity focus at the infinity stop. All you need is a tiny flat blade screwdriver.. There's a couple how to's on TH-cam.
David Vogt I recently purchased a used one and did the adjustment. I basically want to be able to head out at night, put it at the infinity stop and get sharp stars.
+Gustavo Ibarra The ones with the line in the middle are the „old“ style. In terms of sharpness both the 100 and 135 are basically perfect, but the 135 will let you compress the background a bit more and get a shallower DOF. However, the 100 is a true macro lens, so depending on your shooting it could mean two birds with one stone.
I have often read comments about inconsistent image quality between the same lens models. Purportedly the same lens designs are sold under the Samyang, Rokinon, Bower (possibly Meike and other) brands. Does anyone have solid data showing whether one of these brands tends to have the better (or worse) copies of a given lens?
+Sagan Android I have no data, but my first copy of the 14mm was terrible. The second copy was excellent. That’s one of the older designs though, so I’m wondering if quality control has since improved.
i am looking for a good portrait lens with nice blurry background to maximum isolate the person, i hear great things about the 135 mm 2.0 as you said in the comment as one of the best lenses optically, despite the MF. i have a panasonic g85, can you recommend this lens?
The G85 has a 2x crop factor, so you’d end up with a 270mm f/4. You can certainly get nice photos with that, but your working distance would be quite large. Sigma just announced a 56mm f/1.4 - that’s probably what I would aim for. It’s WAY smaller and lighter, has autofocus, and a more versatile field of view. Maybe something to consider instead. :)
I use the 50mm samyang (rokinon) f1.4 AF and it's very sharp with amazing separation between background and subject. I use this with my sony, and I dont think they have a version adaptable for the gx85, however they do have a 50mm f1.2 manual that should give just as good of a result (if not better)! These run $399 on amazon. For my micro four thirds body (panasonic g7) I'd recommend looking into a yashica 135mm f2.8 (around $30 on Ebay). I love using this and I find it razor sharp with smooth focus, however it's a vintage lense so I'm sure it varies copy to copy. Lastly maybe consider a helios 50mm f2. This is my favorite lens to use with my micro body and with the crop factor, youd be close to your mentioned reach :) I hope this helps and sorry for the long response haha.
It's not way past infinity, but some modern lenses do allow for the focus mechanism to turn past infinity due to manufacturing defects, temperature changes, autofocus mechanism, etc...
i shoot with sony, canon and nikon bodies and they are all great cameras that give excellent results, however my sony SLT A mount camera bodies have two major features that lead the pack, first the Electronic viewfinder that allows you to see the finished product before you actually shoot the image which opens the door for many many other features and second is the body stabilization...........i shoot for pleasure....
I just bought a 14mm 2.8 with the AE chip. Has anybody noticed the focus infinity issue on this lens that he mentioned in the video? Also, does the AE chip work, as in, when you see the light come on in the camera, is it really in sharp focus?
The AE chip has absolutely nothing to do with focus. It allows the camera to recognize and change the aperture setting only. You still need to focus manually.
if anyone is here looking for info because they want rokinon/samyang lens for astrophotography, they are fantastic. the 135mm umc is a must have. I personally own the 14mm 50mm and 135mm. Just make sure you dont get the Cine lenses
My experience with Rokinon/Samyang isn't very good. The lenses have hideous green/yellow chromatic aberration at all apertures, and the manual focus was a nightmare. The focus ring got stuck and wasn't smooth... I was using the 16mm f/2 in EF mount.
You missed out the most important point about the rokinon and samyang lenses. Inconsistent quality control. About half of the lenses I have tried out have been smeary and terrible. (Even when comparing examples of the same model, same year.) The other half were fine. (Not super sharp, but sharp enough.)
David Vogt I've owned the 50mm t1.5 and 35mm t1.5. And still own the 14mm and a 7.5. Tried 2 others. I'm sure the newer ones are better. But it's not that they are bad. Just inconsistent. It seems like U have to check the lens when it arrives and send it back if it's a bad egg. But good ones are good value.
Hmm - I''ve got the 135mm, 85mm, 35mm, 24mm and have used the 14mm. The 35 and 24mm are sharp and crisp but give off some noticable CA, especially the 24mm. (I honestly don''t care though as you can remove it in post.), the 85''s as I''ve had both the samyang and rokinon, one of them gave off severe lens flaring whilst the other is sharp . Then finally, the 135mm is my favorite lens I''ve ever owned and is EXTREMELY SHARP. Out of the 6, 5 have been perfect and the final 1 was pretty meh, it was sharp but had horrible flaring for whatever reason, so I''d say it''s the same as any other lens brand when it comes to quality control. Buuuuuut that''s just my experience.. maybe I''m lucky.
Jonathon Newton I have owned 4 and used about 6 different ones now. And the 35 and 50 were soft wider than f2.8 and unusable wide open. It seems the 85 is the best of the bunch. But honestly I gave up on rokinon/samyang cines a while ago now. I get much much better quality using sigma and canon photography lenses.
I bought a Rokinon 85 1.4 and honestly it had terrible chromatic aberration and a pretty severe color shift toward green. I wouldn't personally say that the major difference for me was auto focus or not, for me it was stale lifeless images with almost zero "dreamlike artistic magic". Is it inexpensive? Yes. Is it a lens? Yes. Is it made of metal? Yes. But in my opinion it felt like shooting through a pair of those $15 drugstore eyeglasses that you can buy off of the shelf. A bit harsh? Yes, but if "inexpensive" is something you'd like you can pick up an old nikkor AI-S lens for less money on ebay and adapt it to most companies bodies and have a really great quality manual focus lens.
+Fly Guy The 85mm f1.4 indeed suffers from severe color fringing and poor sharpness. I’m working on a comparison between it and the Sony FE 85mm f/1.8.
David Vogt awesome, can't wait to see the comparison. Truth be told I hate being harsh on inexpensive gear because I know not everyone can afford a Voigtlander or an L series or Zeiss. (And even some of those have issues here and there) but I can't in good conscious recommend a friend to the 85mm. You said the 135mm is sweet, I'll have to check that one out.
The cry-out that Rokinon is manual focus and not Auto-focus is such a minor detail, for this to be a high priority. What you still have your mother wipe your ass.
I have bought two samyang 14mm lenses from Ebay, both absolute duds, could not be focussed sharply to infinity. Both vendors declared that these lenses were perfect. In despair then bought a sigma 15 to 30mm f2,8, used, absolutely great images, but heavy to use, and twice the cost of the samyang. Wish I could have found a Samyang that was perfect but I have lost faith in them.
I have owned 5 Rokinon lenses and all were sharp, good lenses. As I could afford a higher quality lens I sold them on Ebay for about 80% of the purchase price. At their price range you will never get the quality of a Sony GMaster, Canon L or Zeiss lens. There isn't any lens maker that can compete with their quality to price ratio, not even Sigma. I am amazed at people who pixel peep with these budget lenses and then complaining about their findings. Buy one in a focal range you don't already own, go out and enjoy it. Where else can you get a ultra-wide 12mm at an f/2 for less than $300. Better yet, they're quite sharp and can make some amazing images.
Have both the 85 1.4 and 14 2.8 and both are excellent IMO. The 14mm 2.8 is a great lens to get into astrophotography with, without spending an arm and a leg for a lens.
I got myself the samyang(rokinon) 12mm f/2 for astrophotography. Amazing lens. Super happy with image and build quality. Highly recommend.
Did you have the focus issue that he had?
Yes my 12mm f2 has this focus issue but not as bad as the 14mm.. You can adjust the 14mm easily anyway.. I found my 14mm to be sharper without stopping down.
I also bought the 12 mm f/2 for astrophotography and I don't think it has the infinity focus issue per se. But what it (and other Rokinon lenses?) does have is focus past infinity. On the lens there's a short line coming from the infinity symbol with a right angle hook on it - that hook marks the infinity focus, not the physical end of focus ring, as was the case with traditional manual focus lenses. The instructions don't draw your attention to this fact.
I suppose it's just possible that, depending on the lens mount, the true infinity focus could be ever-so-slightly biased one side or the other of this mark.
I have the 12mm, bought for astrophotography. One counter to his points is that this lens is light, under 9oz I believe (Fuji X mount). Great for backpacking.
Great video! I enjoy my rokinon and samyang lenses. I recently shot a skateboarding event using mostly my 14mm f2.8, and the 50mm f1.4 AF.
No major issues although it's worth noting that this was the third time using the 50mm and it performed well, however right when I began testing it out of the box on my sony a7r, it kept hunting for focus, then just stopped focusing completely! I was uncertain of its performance, but I haven't had any problems since. Aside from that, I appreciate these lenses, especially for the price one could pick these up for!
I absolutely love the Rokinon lenses that I own. I would absolutely recommend them to anyone looking for a good lens at a reasonable price.
Honestly when it comes to manual focus speed, the more you use manual focus lenses the faster you get at it. I can focus manually pretty fast by now when using my Samyang lenses on my Nikon D810.
To help out I have installed a split prism focus screen in my camera, and also a magnifying eye cup, they do help a ton.
I have used Rokinon for 3 years now. I did my homework before buying them. I can say without any hesitation, they are fantastic. I use both the 14mm f2.8 and the 24mm f1.4 (my 1st choice) specifically for astro work. Results are sensational. Credit also goes to my amazing a7s too. I am now considering the 50mm as well for astro work but still doing research on that one.
Do they make APS-C versions, or only fullframe glass?
They also make APS-C specific lenses.
Sagan Android 16mm f 2.0 is apsc
Hey Mike,
I am an amature photographer and planning to start astrophotography. I have a Canon 6d mark ii as my body. I wanted to purchase a lens but got confused between 24mm f/1.4 and 14mm f/2.8 Rokinon lenses. Are there any specific pros and cons to each of these lenses?
Regards,
Satwik.
Since the 24mm is a 1.4 it lets in 2 stops more light than the 14mm which is a big plus for astrophotography. The only "downside" being that it has a more narrow field of view. You probably have accessilibty to a 24mm lens, maybe a zoom lens like the Canon Kit lens. Have a look at the field of view it gives your decide for yourself, if that's wide enough. If you like it, get the 24 f/1.4 . If you want to super wide field of view the 14mm gives, go for that one. It let's in less light but I took a descent (quite noisy though) astro shot with my Canon 60D (crop sensor camera form 2010) with a 2.8 apeture lens, so it should be enough.
If money is not an issue get the Sigma 14mm 1.8 :D
Thank you for the video - I didn’t know that point about ‘older vs newer’ versions. I have the Samyang 85mm f1.4 (Samyang is the brand we find in Europe & Rokinson is Samyang’s partner in the Americas). It is a touch soft at f1.4 and at 2.0 it’s pretty crisp. I also have the 50mm f1.2 (for APS-C sensors) equally a touch soft at f1.2, and it makes awesome shots wide open on the Sony A7S in low light with beautiful bokeh and some ‘natural’ vignette do to the smaller size. The Samyang / Ronkinson lenses offer a great experience at a fraction of the price of other lenses and are a great place to start for new photographers who are looking to find their preferred style.
Brought Samyang 14mm..one of the best lens I've used...Fantastic,
I just got a rokinon 35mm 1.4 and I really like it. The manual focus actually makes the camera feel more artistic especially with the 1.4. It is funny how many videos like this one are out there recommending Rokinon. It's heavy but that's not that big of a deal for me.
My 85 and 135 Rokinons arrived yesterday. 750 dollar combined price. That's nearly 500 dollars less than a sigma 85 Art! Who needs auto focus, right?
Awesome! Let me know how you like the 135, it’s definitely one of my favorites!
Especially for mirrorless, manual is no issue
@@jrae_ ... MF isn't an issue with a DSLR either, thanks to split prisms.
Im planning to buy rokinon lenses ? who did they both perform ?
I have the 85 and 14mm. The 85 is a bit soft at 1.4 but from f2 it's sharp and from f4 it is tack sharp across the frame. Great for landscapes
There are some classic sports photos out there that were shot on manual focus. In fact, there are plenty that were pure manual. The trick is to preset your exposure settings and get the lens focused to about the distance you need. You can fine tune from there as needed. At least that's how it worked with film.
I've found that I prefer manual focus for concert photography... I can basically trap focus my subjects as they move erratically (rock n roll... you get it.) I've rented full frame cameras and $1500 lenses to try to rely on the auto focus and I've found that I miss focus more often, and ultimately miss as many moments waiting on focus or losing the shot due to missed focus. It's all in the strategy of the shooter. Cheers!
Manual is very often the way to go, IMO. I've been enjoying my Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 lens. It can take some very cool shots! Pixel peaking shows it to be a pretty good lens too.
"trap focus"? What is this?
I would newer do it fully autofocus!! it just sucks, I get mutch better results, when i use the manual focus and then set back to auto, then it stays focused where I wanted, Importantly if set back to AF, it also refocuses for the other shots, but Only when focused MF and then set back to AF ! But most of my pics are manual focus only.
Awesome tips about the old vs new versions. Super super helpful for me! Thanks so much.
+Jack Stolz Glad I could help!
I shoot Sony E mount and I love my Samyang lens. I have the 16mm F2 and It is tack sharp wide open to the corners. Looking to get the AF 35mm F2.8 next. Really hope they will made a 16mm F1.8 or wider.
The only thing I would add is that if you`re a Sony E-mount shooter, it`s stupid to buy the E-mount Rokinon lenses. They are simply EF-mount lenses with a permanent E-mount adaptor added on. It makes more sense to just buy a single EF-E adaptor and EF-mount lenses. They are cheaper, smaller, and easier to resell.
My 14mm F2.8 Rokinon for my D800e gets me a 28mp score in Dxo, a score that is pretty hard to beat. Im buying a AF 35mm F1.4 for my A7iii today. Ive never had issues with Samyang/Rokinon.
They also have manual aperture rings which wasn't mentioned, which may or may not be a deciding factor.
Most of the Samyang-built lenses are sold under several brand names, with varying prices. Seems the more expensive brands might represent units that were found to be a bit better under final inspection before the brand label was applied. Just a guess...
As a film maker I love manual focus instead of auto focus. I’d like to use a follow focus rig most of the time on set. Your thoughts
I honestly enjoy rokinon lenses for shooting shorts, everything is manual so changing the aperture is super quick and easy.
One other thing to know, they are manual aperture as well - adding to the clumsiness of using a manual lens. The exception being Pentax K-mount - that version includes an 'A' position in the aperture ring and it works reasonably well.
I have the Samyang 14mm and I love it. I admit I'm more likely to use it an an analogue camera when I could have up to a couple of minutes to get my focus right, but my experience, and I have used it on my 5DIII, have all been positive. I'll also admit I wouldn't dream of using it for wildlife, I use a Canon 7DII and although 10fps may sound slow now, I do want to take full advantage of it. Despite its price, I wouldn't call it a "beginners lens" although I, and millions of others like me, only had manual focus at one time. Strange to think AF has only been around 30 years and for the first 10 it was only on high end cameras and even then it was nothing like today's. But there again look at mobile phones.
I like manual focusing with the help of peaking..plus I am use to manually focus because of film camera's and you have more control instead of relying on sensor guessing. Thank specifically making this video for photography stills context.
Bought a 35mm f/2.8 because I needed a walk-around lens for my A7III. It has yet to leave my camera except when 35mm just isn't long enough. Does it get confused in low light sometimes? Sure. Does the AF motor sound like a Geiger counter in AF-C? Little bit.
But is it smaller than even the Zeiss 35 f/2.8, sharper wide open than a Tamron 24-70 (than my copy at 35, anyway), and cheaper than its nearest competitor? Damn right it is.
Dave, I just purchases a 10mm f 2.8 for Sony E Mount. From both the live view and the range finder is a photo area defined by the lens hood - left and right rectangles , paired arches in the center. The lens hood is non detachable. Was this Rokinon’s plan? Perhaps you can “fix it” in post. Thanks. Jim
I have the 24mm and the 35mm version and the're completely fine. Good Quality, for movie making anyway.
Marin Cardenas I tend to use the 35 more especially for indoor projects as the 24 can slightly distort your footage around the edges when close to objects. So can the 35 at times but the 35 seems more of a flat picture and frame wise it seems to have that more 'film look'. Don't get me wrong the 24 is also a good lens to use though, they're both actually similar, just the 24 gives a little more of a wider shot.
I just bought 24mm t1.5, do you have the same copy?
HARIZ MANSOR VISUAL Yea.
does samyang / rokinon has soft edges? and chromatic aberration?
HARIZ MANSOR VISUAL I can't say that i've noticed chromatic aberration, i'll have to look into it more. As for soft edges i suppose it all depends on what T stop you use. I tend to never go below 2.8. If the scene is too dark i'll try add more light. Also maybe the distance of the lens from the subject. If i needed a close up of someones face i wouldn't use the 24mm i would change to a 50mm prime or something.
This is really helpful. I've wondered about Rokinon lenses and you've covered the important details. Thanks for making this video.
I also have the Samyang (who make Rokinon branded lenses) 135mm f2.0 lens that you mentioned and its just as good, if not better, than some of my "professional" Nikon lenses. Some of their newer lenses now have auto-focus.
Worst thing related to lack of electronics is not lack of EXIF info, but no automatic working aperture, fundamental since 1950's. For many people is no problem to manually focus, but distraction to close aperture, lossing time and concentration to picture. between living systems only Nikon F has aperture in mechanical style (except G lenses)
If I buy the 14mm lens for a Canon 6D2 can you use the camera’s live view and magnifying with live view to get precise manual focus? The sluggish manual adjustment of the aperture and focus will not be a problem. I’m also well aware of a degree of perspective distortion that wide angles have at the edges.
I have the 135, a very fine lens for a low price. But this is a lens you don't want to drop on either end, the focus guides inside the lens are the weak point. If you drop it and the focus ring seems sticky and doesn't focus travel is shortened, then the focus guide studs are damaged.
My 85mm Samyang has gotten more usage than almost any other lens I use, and nearly every one of my award winning photos was taken with that lens.
My newly acquired 135? I'm anticipating that will replace the 85 in both respects. It's exquisite.
Vielen Dank für das wie immer perfekt geschnittene und informative Video.Könntest du auch die neueren AF Linsen von Rokinon in den Fokus nehmen?
Sir Can You Explain Infinity on 14 mm wide and also sharp focus with 2.8 aperture i am using this lens in sony a7s ii
This is perfect. I film video and I've been looking for a cheap/good quality/a little heavy.
This is going to be a perfect lens for shooting B-Roll.
I would be using these if they made them for L mount. I have the Micro Four Thirds 85mm t1.5. The thing about the L mount is it's so close to the Micro Four Thirds flange distance, I thought of using a C-mount to L mount adapter and modifying it to fit. Still debating on how to do that... But the adapter recedes a bit into the L mount body slightly, so it might be a close fit.
I only have experience with their 12mm f2, Samyang branded, and it is an awesome lens.
The nice thing about shooting so wide is no need to worry about focus, and combined with focus-peaking makes it easy to shoot.
How do you find infinity on your 12mm? My 14mm is hard to find.
I own the 35mm and 50mm of the Cine DS versions of these (Samyang version). They are not sharp wide-open so you have to stop down to T2. But the consistency of their output is amazing for video work.
I own a Nikon F3 film camera, and noticed that Rokinon recently released a 50mm f/1.4, would you recommend I do that? Or stick with the vintage Nikkor lenses? I’m still learning about my F3 and I heard as long as it’s a F mount, it’ll fit! Any feedback will help, thanks
35 t 1.5 during lightning storm because its what i had....
Loved the de clicked aperture ring.focus was sharp.
I know, not a photo specific lens..but build is solid, pictures razor sharp so can imagine the photo lenses will be as good
Hello. Is there any problems with the chromatic aberrations on Rokinon 135? And there is a rumors, that to buy Rokinon better see it face to face, even if the lens is new, just out off the box. Se it fits perfect and so on. And finally, i use a Sony a 6000 wich is is a APS_C... how do You think will, Rokinon 135, work with APS_C cfvtra on its full capabilities? Thank You for answer and review
Thanks for your video.. Is there an updated newer version of the 14mm f2.8 and if so how can I tell it apart from the older ones you speak of? Is it the ones with the AE chip that helps you focus? Thank you!
I shoot with Pentax cameras all my Rokinon, Samyang lenses are chipped so I set the Apature through the camera. I have the Rokinon 8mm 3.5, 14mm2.8, Rokinon 20mm1.8, and the Samyang 85mm 1.4 all great lenses. I also have a number of Takumar and Pentax manuel focus lenses so manuel focus is not a problem my cameras give me focus confirmation in the viewfinder so I do not need to use live view or focus peaking
One thing I can say for sure is that Rokinon is an exсellent lense for astrophotographers.
정만근 agreed
what lens & camera settings do you use
I bought a 14mm / 2.8 Samyang ( same thing) recently to take wide angle mountain views. Love the lens but using on a d5600 focusing takes practice. You have to depend on the little green focus light in the camera if your focusing on something close. But for landscapes it’s not an issue.
The only thing cheap are the lens hoods. Otherwise, it’s tops. I own the 14mm, 85mm and the 135mm. It takes awesome photos!
Great video. I too agree that the Rokinon lenses are a great deal but one should always be on the lookout for decentering, especially in their wide angles.
Absolutely, my first copy of the 14mm f/2.8 was terrible, the second copy was great.
A great video, thanks David. Btw what camera did u use for this video cause very good auto focus?
+Fred Miu Shot this with an a7R II. :)
Thanks David for a very helpful vid. I placed an order for their 12 mm f2 wide angle Fuji x mount with BH. Will be shooting still - landscape, architecture. I will share my experience here.
Great! Keep us updated. :)
I hear the Sigma 135 f2 art is an excellent lens too. But how does it compare with the Robinson ? Thanx
Thanks for the video dude! Any experience with Rokinon 24mm F1.4?
I used to vouch for these lenses but I think I’m out growing them. I love the price point and the focus gear on the cine line. But I’m starting to notice the flaws a lot more. My 24mm and 85mm are pretty soft. But my 35mm is excellent.
I've had the following lenses by samyang
85mm 1.4 and 1.5 cine (twice)
35mm 1.5 cine
24mm 1.4
21mm 1.4 (for apsc)
12mm 2 (for apsc)
Still have the two cine lenses in Canon EF and use them with a Speedbooster on my Fuji cameras.
And depending on how much you are willing to shoot with manual focus and If it's suitable for the things you want to shoot, they are all a brilliant option to get certain kind of styles for cheap.
The exception would be the 24mm 1.4 which is a style that i love but it was by far the worst in image quality and also the most expensive. I wouldn't recommend it at all, though there is a Mark 2 version i didnt had my hands on yet and i would hope it's better, but i don't want to ditch the cash again.
In regards to "older" compared to "newer", what year or models mark this dividing line? As the months go buy such relative terms will be even harder to parse. So if you could add an overly with a more specific year or models, that would be super-helpful.
Hi. Is the 35mm 1.5, new design or old design?
I 'be read somewhere that you can descrid the old than the newest ones by the color of the ring, whether it is red or gold. Is this true?
What about their fisheye lens, the 8mm Ultra wide f/3.5, I have been thinking about purchasing this lens for a crop sensor Nikon camera.
Another good video. Thanks David. I own the 14mm 2.8 and I can confirm that I've got the same issues with the focusing distance indication being way out.
My copy also has some softness in the lower right corner - at first I thought I was just missing focus at F2.8 but later I set it to F11 and found the entire frame sharp except for that area. Do you have any sharpness problems with your copy?
That being said, it's a small enough flaw that I'm still 100% happy with my 14mm and I'm considering looking into getting the 135mm F2. It's been getting stellar reviews and it's good to hear you saying the same thing. One worry I have though is nailing perfect focus at f2. I'm not a fan of live view for focusing and sometimes I find the focus confirmation dot on my Nikon d610 is too vague - meaning it is tough to get the focus just right. This is on my 85mm 1.8G from Nikon which is not intended as a manual focus lens - so I wonder if it'll be any different with the 135mm f2.
I don't have any sharpness problems with my current copy, but I had another copy before that with a clear de-centering issue, so I returned it for a new copy, which doesn't exhibit this problem. If you just got your's recently, I would see if you can get it exchanged.
I can't speak to the 135mm f/2 with an optical viewfinder, but I will say that I find the 135/2 much easier to focus than the 85mm 1.4 I have from Rokinon. The virtually perfect wide-open sharpness also helps with this. With my 85, I find that the areas where something is just barely out of focus are soft wide open. It's hard to explain, but the transition from sharp areas to out of focus area is very rapid, so missing the focus just a little bit has big consequences. I haven't found this to be the case with the 135.
Thanks for the feedback David
They are inexpensive because they employ very little in quality control.
May I know what lens you used for the talking head shot?
+Joshua Se Zeiss 35mm 1.4 :)
wich rokinon lens is most all around the best focal length to use? the 50mm? and does rokinon cine lenses zoom in and out or do they stay at one specific fixed focal length.
All the Rokinon/Samyang cine lenses are fixed focal length to my knowledge. Personally if I could only have one lens it would probably be a 35 1.4, but it really depends what you’re shooting.
The focus grip rib style has no correlation with release date: 12/2.8 - 2015 split ribs, 35/1.4 - 2010 single ribs.
Hi i have a Canon eos rebel sl3 and i wanted to Buy a rokinon 14mm lens for astrophotografy i'm just worried that if i Buy it it could damage My camera or You think it wouldnt? The rokinon lens is ef mount so i think it is compatible. But i was reading that sometimes give error on the camera and it worries me. Thank You.
Hi Davin, I don’t think it’s possible for a third party lens to damage your camera.
I mostly shoot music video? how do you recommend them for music video look? I mostly shoot pop and R&B?
Manual focus for my type of work. I have a Samyang 8mm T/3.8 fish eye. It is exactly the same as the Rokonon equivalent. Are these companies the same?
Yes, they are the same. Samyang lenses are rebadged as Rokinon for the North American market.
I just ordered Rokinon 14mm F2.8 with Z mount to use on my newly bought Nikon Z6. I'm looking to use it for astrophotography. Anyone have experience with this on a Nikon Z6 or Z7. I just got it a couple weeks ago which is my first full-frame camera.
Excellent and perceptive overview of Rokinon lenses.
+Art Altman Thank you!
is the Rokinon 135mm F/2 the same as the samyang variant?
Cause it states on Rokinon box that glass is samyang so to me its just a name change and they would be identical.
Yes, same lens with a different badge!
john pederson: Samyang lenses are also branded as Falcon, Rokinon, Walimex, Bower, Opteka, Bell and Howell, Polar, and Pro-Optic but they are all made by Samyang in South Korea.
Hello....I have acquired some photography equipment from a relative. One of the items is: ROKINON AUTO ZOOM MACRO 1:3.5/4.5 F=28-85MM 67 NO. 210667
I am having a little difficulty finding out any info. All of this equipment seems unused or mint....thx!
+Prescott Kane Hmm interesting. Sounds like quite an old lens from the analogue era. Perhaps a rebadge of a Vivitar lens. What camera mount is it for?
David Vogt
I also have a Minolta X-700 with flash & a Samyang Interchangeable Lenses 75-300mm F4.5-5.6
Thx for responding...
It's easy to adjust the 14mm f2.8 to make infinity focus at the infinity stop. All you need is a tiny flat blade screwdriver..
There's a couple how to's on TH-cam.
Whaaaaat? I’ll have to check that out. Thanks!
David Vogt I recently purchased a used one and did the adjustment. I basically want to be able to head out at night, put it at the infinity stop and get sharp stars.
Sorry, with line in the middle are old or new? and, how is the 100 compare with the 135 as a portrait lens?
+Gustavo Ibarra The ones with the line in the middle are the „old“ style. In terms of sharpness both the 100 and 135 are basically perfect, but the 135 will let you compress the background a bit more and get a shallower DOF. However, the 100 is a true macro lens, so depending on your shooting it could mean two birds with one stone.
I have often read comments about inconsistent image quality between the same lens models. Purportedly the same lens designs are sold under the Samyang, Rokinon, Bower (possibly Meike and other) brands. Does anyone have solid data showing whether one of these brands tends to have the better (or worse) copies of a given lens?
+Sagan Android I have no data, but my first copy of the 14mm was terrible. The second copy was excellent. That’s one of the older designs though, so I’m wondering if quality control has since improved.
In regards to "older" compared to "newer", what year or models mark this dividing line?
I'm not sure there is a clear dividing line, but as far as I can tell it's around 2012 or 2013. Really hard to say, though.
Is the 12mm F2 considered a newer design?
Have you checked the cine lenses? Regards
Love my 12mm f/2 Rokinon on my APSC A6500 camera...
Nice video..
Wich one of the 85 or 135 can i take.
I use now a 35mm 1.8G on a Dx body.. but i miss doing headshot ?
Joulio Photographe 85 is preferable but DX body will make it around 100 mm so go for cheaper 50mm
Just purchased 135mm for astrophotography and @ f2 it's Sharpe corner to corner.
i am looking for a good portrait lens with nice blurry background to maximum isolate the person, i hear great things about the 135 mm 2.0 as you said in the comment as one of the best lenses optically, despite the MF. i have a panasonic g85, can you recommend this lens?
The G85 has a 2x crop factor, so you’d end up with a 270mm f/4. You can certainly get nice photos with that, but your working distance would be quite large.
Sigma just announced a 56mm f/1.4 - that’s probably what I would aim for. It’s WAY smaller and lighter, has autofocus, and a more versatile field of view. Maybe something to consider instead. :)
I use the 50mm samyang (rokinon) f1.4 AF and it's very sharp with amazing separation between background and subject. I use this with my sony, and I dont think they have a version adaptable for the gx85, however they do have a 50mm f1.2 manual that should give just as good of a result (if not better)! These run $399 on amazon.
For my micro four thirds body (panasonic g7) I'd recommend looking into a yashica 135mm f2.8 (around $30 on Ebay). I love using this and I find it razor sharp with smooth focus, however it's a vintage lense so I'm sure it varies copy to copy.
Lastly maybe consider a helios 50mm f2. This is my favorite lens to use with my micro body and with the crop factor, youd be close to your mentioned reach :) I hope this helps and sorry for the long response haha.
You have my subscribe in the first 30 seconds, well done!
Thanks for sharing. Great quality info.
Samyang are the best budget lenses out there once you’ve got used to manual focus
Short and sweet. Thank you for this video!
+Alen Stojanac Thank you! Much appreciated
good and helpful video, thanks!
What's way past infinity? Enlighten me please
It's not way past infinity, but some modern lenses do allow for the focus mechanism to turn past infinity due to manufacturing defects, temperature changes, autofocus mechanism, etc...
He is incredibly dumb.
@Adindam. Buzz Lightyear has the answer!
It's a BBuzz Lightyear away
If you didn’t get it from the context, I’m afraid the enlightenment ship has sailed. 😉
i shoot with sony, canon and nikon bodies and they are all great cameras that give excellent results, however my sony SLT A mount camera bodies have two major features that lead the pack, first the Electronic viewfinder that allows you to see the finished product before you actually shoot the image which opens the door for many many other features and second is the body stabilization...........i shoot for pleasure....
I just bought a 14mm 2.8 with the AE chip. Has anybody noticed the focus infinity issue on this lens that he mentioned in the video? Also, does the AE chip work, as in, when you see the light come on in the camera, is it really in sharp focus?
What's the brand and model# of your lens with the AE chip?
It's a Robkinon 14 2.8 AE chip for NIkon mount
The AE chip has absolutely nothing to do with focus. It allows the camera to recognize and change the aperture setting only. You still need to focus manually.
David...Is the 14mm 2.8 useful for shooting astrophtograpy????
Yes, I believe it’s highly regarded for astrophotography.
if anyone is here looking for info because they want rokinon/samyang lens for astrophotography, they are fantastic. the 135mm umc is a must have. I personally own the 14mm 50mm and 135mm. Just make sure you dont get the Cine lenses
Good practical buyers advice! Thankyou. Subbed.
Samyang 12mm f2.8 is a fantastic lens and the samyang 135mm f2 is super sharp
what about the rokinon cine lens?
My experience with Rokinon/Samyang isn't very good. The lenses have hideous green/yellow chromatic aberration at all apertures, and the manual focus was a nightmare. The focus ring got stuck and wasn't smooth... I was using the 16mm f/2 in EF mount.
but i've heard that the 16mm f2 has tremendous sharpness and is a fantastic lens for an aps-c body, thinking about getting it for a while now??
You missed out the most important point about the rokinon and samyang lenses.
Inconsistent quality control.
About half of the lenses I have tried out have been smeary and terrible. (Even when comparing examples of the same model, same year.)
The other half were fine. (Not super sharp, but sharp enough.)
+biscuitsalive Which particular lenses did you try? I’m curious if the newer models are better in terms of quality control.
David Vogt I've owned the 50mm t1.5 and 35mm t1.5. And still own the 14mm and a 7.5.
Tried 2 others.
I'm sure the newer ones are better.
But it's not that they are bad. Just inconsistent.
It seems like U have to check the lens when it arrives and send it back if it's a bad egg.
But good ones are good value.
Hmm - I''ve got the 135mm, 85mm, 35mm, 24mm and have used the 14mm.
The 35 and 24mm are sharp and crisp but give off some noticable CA, especially the 24mm. (I honestly don''t care though as you can remove it in post.), the 85''s as I''ve had both the samyang and rokinon, one of them gave off severe lens flaring whilst the other is sharp . Then finally, the 135mm is my favorite lens I''ve ever owned and is EXTREMELY SHARP.
Out of the 6, 5 have been perfect and the final 1 was pretty meh, it was sharp but had horrible flaring for whatever reason, so I''d say it''s the same as any other lens brand when it comes to quality control. Buuuuuut that''s just my experience.. maybe I''m lucky.
Jonathon Newton I have owned 4 and used about 6 different ones now. And the 35 and 50 were soft wider than f2.8 and unusable wide open.
It seems the 85 is the best of the bunch.
But honestly I gave up on rokinon/samyang cines a while ago now. I get much much better quality using sigma and canon photography lenses.
I had the 12, 16, 35, 50 and 85mm. The 16 and 12mm were the best ones. The Rest was super soft and had lots of ca. The bokeh looked awfull as well.
I bought a Rokinon 85 1.4 and honestly it had terrible chromatic aberration and a pretty severe color shift toward green. I wouldn't personally say that the major difference for me was auto focus or not, for me it was stale lifeless images with almost zero "dreamlike artistic magic". Is it inexpensive? Yes. Is it a lens? Yes. Is it made of metal? Yes. But in my opinion it felt like shooting through a pair of those $15 drugstore eyeglasses that you can buy off of the shelf. A bit harsh? Yes, but if "inexpensive" is something you'd like you can pick up an old nikkor AI-S lens for less money on ebay and adapt it to most companies bodies and have a really great quality manual focus lens.
+Fly Guy The 85mm f1.4 indeed suffers from severe color fringing and poor sharpness. I’m working on a comparison between it and the Sony FE 85mm f/1.8.
David Vogt awesome, can't wait to see the comparison. Truth be told I hate being harsh on inexpensive gear because I know not everyone can afford a Voigtlander or an L series or Zeiss. (And even some of those have issues here and there) but I can't in good conscious recommend a friend to the 85mm. You said the 135mm is sweet, I'll have to check that one out.
Carl Ryan I'm sorry, is photography and videography not an art where you come from? If not perhaps a smartphone camera would suit you best.
Fly Guy sell it to me
The cry-out that Rokinon is manual focus and not Auto-focus is such a minor detail, for this to be a high priority. What you still have your mother wipe your ass.
Samyang 35mm f1.4 AF on the sony a7riii is the nuts !!!
Is the autofocus good?
For those of us who come from the manual focus roll of film camera days.its no big deal.
I have bought two samyang 14mm lenses from Ebay, both absolute duds, could not be focussed sharply to infinity. Both vendors declared that these lenses were perfect. In despair then bought a sigma 15 to 30mm f2,8, used, absolutely great images, but heavy to use, and twice the cost of the samyang. Wish I could have found a Samyang that was perfect but I have lost faith in them.
Really helpful video, thanks!
That opening line had me rolling on the floor!
Good review. Thanks.