Samyang 85mm 1.4

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jameshobson

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James
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Anyone used a samyang 85mm 1.4, what do you think and what camera did you use it on? I would be using this for portraits possibly on a d700 if I get one, what's the main differences between the nikkor alternative other than the mf and price tag, what's the quality like people say spend more on glass well I wouldn't be spending much here do you think there is a noticeable difference when shooting at f2.8 or f4 if not then mf is no problem for me as saving £1000 will be worth it

Thanks in advance for any comments
 
I've been using one for around 18 months, and there is no way I will ever sell it. It might be manual focus but it is sharp as ****, even at f1.4. Another plus is the bokeh is sooooo smooth.

I use it on a cropped Pentax K7, so cant even imagine how good it performs on a ff camera. It might not perform better than the Nikkor variants, but it certainly seems to be on a par with them for a fraction of the price.

I
 
Be careful... I think there are two versions of the lens for nikon.... One has a chip that enables metering, the other doesn't (I think!)
 
Still my best and sharpest lens. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend. There are a few sets on my flickr with it and the d700

I drag this pic out every time, but it still amazes me.

100% crop, at f/1.4, taken through a filthy double glazed door. Pretty much no PP. I don't think it's possible to get much sharper.


Chicken 100% crop by TCR4x4, on Flickr
 
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I have one for use on my D7000. Awesome sharpness, and focussing isn't an issue on the 7000, despite what some reports have said.
Very sharp, even wide open, and very nice bokeh too.
I have the "chipped version", and exposure is always spot on. Just set the lens to f22, and control the aperture from the camera.
The focussing arrows and dot works perfectly too.
My one very tiny niggle with the lens is that the aperture ring doesn't lock at f22, so there is a possibilty of knocking it off it's setting. If this does happen the FEE error is shown, so it's not a big problem.
And for the money, they are almost giving it away.
 
Has anybody used it on a D90? At 240 new it seems fantastic value. That hen is amazingly sharp!
 
Sir SR said:
Has anybody used it on a D90? At 240 new it seems fantastic value. That hen is amazingly sharp!
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I paid even less for mine, about £185 I recall. They bumped the price up as about 4 or 5 of us on here bought one in the same week.
 
I think I'm pretty much sold on it! Tom, have you got a link to your flickr account - can't see it on my phone.

Does anybody have any experience using the uk digital store in the above link?

Was saving for a 105mm vr micro but this looks awesome and will be less grief with the "conscience"!
 
Have ordered the last one on stock! Very excited. Interestingly saw a similar copy going for over 400 on Amazon!!!!
 
They come under various names, rockinon, opteka, falcon..

All the same lens though.

I'm sure you will love it. Look forward to the pictures!
 
Th website said out of stock for a while. I emailed them and they told me they had one in stock. Promptly ordered ten seconds later!!

support@ukdigital.co.uk

Have been practicing my mf on the old nifty fifty 1.8. Can't wait for it to arrive. Tomorrow allegedly!
 
I thought about getting one of these but decided against it because...

I use a manual lens on my Panny G1 and manual focus is pretty much a doddle as I can get a magnified view either on the screen (which I never use) or through the VF. My DSLR's however don't have live view and if they did I wouldn't use it anyway and more importantly I can't get a magnified view through the OVF.

I personally think that AF is a great help and that the best combination to have is an AF lens with USM/HSM and good manual handling so that the user can go to manual focus if and when it's an advantage.

I don't think that I personally would be happy with a non macro manual lens on a DSLR with optical VF though.

Views added for balance and are easily ignored by fans of this fine Samyang lens :D
 
Hi guy!
I'm completely new to photography. I still confuse in choosing between this lens and the Canon 85mm 1.8 one.

Could you convince me to buy this to save money :D I saw one from www.fotoxen.com ( remember to type the www, the "fotoxen.com" doesn't exist, I think) for only 189 GBP.
 
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woof woof said:
I personally think that AF is a great help and that the best combination to have is an AF lens with USM/HSM and good manual handling so that the user can go to manual focus if and when it's an advantage.

I don't think that I personally would be happy with a non macro manual lens on a DSLR with optical VF though.

Views added for balance and are easily ignored by fans of this fine Samyang lens :D
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This was my biggest concern to be honest. Once I saw the sharpness/IQ and price of this lens, it became a viable contender. Went back to MF on my nifty at 1.8 to see if it was viable. Seems ok. Looking forward to using this lens. Will report back soon!!
 
For anyone who understands and doesn't mind that manual focus may lead to you spotting a few slightly out of focus shots when pixel peeping and people who actually like manual focus this lens looks like a bit of a dark horse.
 
On the d700 manual focus is a breeze, plus the rangefinder tells you which way to turn for focus. I imagine on a crop with a smaller viewfinder it's a bit tricker, but not impossible.
Just remember at f/1.4 the DOF is tiny, so you will get more OOF than you might be used to.
 
Woohoo. Ordered at half two yesterday. Arrived at 8 this morning! Great service. Had a few errands to do but now unboxed and about to do a few test shots! My manual focussing isn't great but we'll give it a whirl!
 
My daughter eating the ipod cover as Daddy's too busy playing with his new toy!


New Toy by Sir SR, on Flickr

Need to practice with the MF! Have got lazy and relied on AF since I started photography!

Loving this lens on first impressions!
 
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Those poor girls of yours, they will at some point tell you to stick you camera somewhere painful! ;)

Looks like a cracking lens though, espacially for the money.
 
menthel said:
Those poor girls of yours, they will at some point tell you to stick you camera somewhere painful! ;)

Looks like a cracking lens though, espacially for the money.
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Jessica's taken to grabbing the ipod and snapping everything in site! It's ace this lens - that pic of Jessica had minimal processing - just corrected exposure.

Might try a few different subjects! Not anytime soon though!
 
Sir SR said:
Jessica's taken to grabbing the ipod and snapping everything in site! It's ace this lens - that pic of Jessica had minimal processing - just corrected exposure.

Might try a few different subjects! Not anytime soon though!
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Arun has an old nikon p&s that we gave him. He was taking photos with it yesterday and a couple even included heads rather than feet or table legs!
 
thanks all ! now I miss it like crazy ! :D

it's a superb lens that's for sure ! I would even swap to nikon to get the ae version.

ok. off to play with my toys ! :D
 
I feel like Clarkson driving a Muscle car rather than an evo! Will go out with it this afternoon! Thanks Tom - had no desire to get this lens until I saw the results and the price!!
 
Hi mac visual I have also been looking at samyang's 35mm have you compared it to any other 35mm branded lenses, also could you post some sample shots of what you typically use it for thanks
 
Sir SR said:
My daughter eating the ipod cover as Daddy's too busy playing with his new toy!


New Toy by Sir SR, on Flickr

Need to practice with the MF! Have got lazy and relied on AF since I started photography!

Loving this lens on first impressions!
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Good isn't it?

Although AF is nice to have, I think MF teaches you to be a little more patient and pick your shots.

It's an awesome lens on my K-7...i've fitted a retro focussing screen so as well as the camera's focus confirmation I also have a split prism and microprism for wide open shots. Added to that in-body stabilisation and catch-in-focus shooting I couldn't ask for more.....Have fun!!!!
 
Nice, just something magical about child shots and any 85mm f/1.4! They all just have this amazing look to them.
 
Thanks - have to confess it was pretty frustrating at first (being used to AF) but then started estimating distances then fine tuning - made life much easier. Also the level of satisfaction is much greater bagging a good shot at 1.4 manually focussing!
 
I've got a 550d- can you use the Nikon lens (chipped) with a chipped Nikon/canon adapter?
 
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