Hello, I worked on another completely unscientific (I am too lazy this summer to conduct a proper test) comparison of two lenses at low f-stops. The goal was to satisfy my own curiosity on the quality of a new 85mm lens that I bought.

I have heard great things about the Korean made Samyang 85mm f1.4 lens (Which I bought as a Rokinon 85mm f1.4 lens in the Nikon mount, why Nikon... the Nikon mount version was the cheapest....). I love the Canon nFD 85mm f1.8 and used it a great deal and have always been happy with the results. It was a lens I liked to carry along. However, I am curious and like to check things out so I bought the Rokinon and a Nikon adapter.

The lenses on my E-PL2....





The simple answer is... the Rokinon is sharper and has much creamier bokeh than the Canon. The bokeh on the Rokinon is creamier at f2 than the Canon at f1.8. At f1.4, The Samyang is even better.

I took a another walk around the house like I did with my 50s the other day.

*****50s comparison from last week*********
Olympus 50mm Lens comparison

I took a series of shots with both 85mm lenses. The FD at f1.8 and the Rokinon at f2 and f1.4. The results can be seen on my photoshop page (There are a bunch of photos in there but just look for the comparison shots).

Album - 85mm Lenses | Photoshop.com

These are straight from the camera and the file name lists the lens. I also noted the lens on the comparison crops. The comparison photos show full size crops.

The Rokinon Lens is a sharp lens even wide open. I found it obviously sharper at f1.4 than the Canon at f1.8. The Bokeh is also much smoother on the Rokinon. The Canon is smaller and lighter which is nice but I have decided to lug the heavier Rokinon around when I need an 85mm and I sold the Canon.

An example photo, cut down to 1024 wide to fit here.


Other notes:
All shot with E-PL2 with ISO set at 200, hand held.

My conclusion: If you want to own a relatively cheap Korean lens that I think produces great results wide open, try the Rokinon 85mm f1.4 or any of its variants....

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currently playing with the E-PM2

is the aperature manual just like the focus?

The aperture is manual and I don't see any electrical contacts on the lens. The lens seems to be a brand new chunk of "legacy" glass.

People also seem to rave about the Samyang 35mm f1.4 lens. My understanding is that it is the same. A full manual lens.

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currently playing with the E-PM2

I've looked into the Pentax mount of this wonderful lens, and according to the info I've gotten, the Pentax K mount version has an "A" setting, meaning on a Pentax body, it would have an automatic aperture and could be used in Av mode. And yes, I've heard the same thing regarding the IQ of the 35mm!

Don't know about other mounts.

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Thanks, Rick

My Art | My Flickr | My Picasa | My Pentax

There are two versions of this lens. One has CPU contacts that allow metering with newer lower end Nikon bodies. If you have one of those, it's a good idea to buy the one with the CPU.

I mainly want one to use with my G3 which should arrive soon, so I'm looking for all manual lens. I just don't want to oreder the wrong lens, and I already have an F to micro 4/3's adaptor so a nikon fit would be nice too. thanks

I have this lens in EOS mount. I think it was a couple hundred bucks for a nice portrait/event shooter.

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EM5; 9-18, PL25, 100-300 and some others.
(also, 6D + RX100)

Either Nikon mount will work with the Panasonic, but if you get a Nikon body later for whatever reason you might want to have metering.

Good point