Samyang 85

[photo_chick]

Anyone had their hands on a Samyang 85 f/1.4? I'm looking for a new prime and figured some of you guys don't shy away from the non-mainstream lens brands so you may have used it. Right now my debate is whether or not the image quality is worth the all manual controls. Thoughts?

 

[Daisy14'sDH]

It looks great on paper, at the price its probably worth the risk to just buy it and try it, for the Pentax mount they are reasonable, its a hack of a lot cheaper than the Pentax FA 85mm!

 

[JoeDif]

I've seen images on an Olympus forum of the Rokinon 85 F1.4 which is basically the same lens just rebranded with a different name. Those samples of a play in stage light looked pretty good for an inexpensive all manual lens.

 

[GrumpyGoat]

I had a very bad experience with a Samyang zoom lens about 12 years ago and, while it's entirely possible their quality has improved in the interim, I wouldn't touch another one. Just keep in mind you get what you pay for...

There are other, better third-party lenses available. I've gotten very good service out of the three Tamron lenses I have and others have had very good things to say about Sigma and Tokina.

 

[Daisy14'sDH]

The newer Samyangs actually get very good reviews, I am sure their QC isnt as high as other manufacturers, but at the price point its pretty tough to overlook...

 

[photo_chick]

I hear you Grumpy Goat... I actually felt that way about Sigma lenses. I've got some that I got about twenty years ago, when I first got my 35mm Rebel and really resisted buying another one until someone put a Sigma 30mm in my hands a few months ago.

I have the Samyang 8mm fisheye. I got it more to play with than anything and have been totally surprised by it. It's a sweet little lens that's proven to be sharp as a tack and has great contrast and color reproduction. Which is why I was looking at the 85.

I had a chance to play with the 85 yesterday. I wouldn't put it even with L series glass like a lot of reviewers seem to do, but I'd rate it higher than the Canon 85mm f/1.8 as far as image quality goes, which is my bottom line really. One caveat though, you're not going to focus it well with the standard focusing screen on your camera. I was using it on a friends 1D with a split focusing screen, which is an item I'd already planned to get for my 50D.

 

[GrumpyGoat]

It's possible they've inproved in 12 years, but once bitten, twice shy... I have gotten stellar service from the three Tamron lenses I have, so that's where my comfort zone is.

 

[Groucho]

I had a very bad experience with a Samyang zoom lens about 12 years ago and, while it's entirely possible their quality has improved in the interim, I wouldn't touch another one. Just keep in mind you get what you pay for...

There are other, better third-party lenses available. I've gotten very good service out of the three Tamron lenses I have and others have had very good things to say about Sigma and Tokina.

I'd be happy to hear your list of competing third-party 85mm F1.4s. The only one I'm aware of is Sigma's, which costs a cool grand, more than three times the price of the Samyang. Samyang has become very popular lately for offering unique, manual-focus lenses for bargain prices. They really aren't competing with Sigma or Tamron - heck, it would be appropriate to call them a bargain-basement Zeiss or Voigtlander! I am looking forward to their upcoming 24mm F1.4.

Back to the original question - I don't have one but I keep looking at them. I hear that it's a bit soft at 85mm... which might be fine for portraits but I think I'd like a little more sharpness. The Sigma 85mm is "sort of" on the list but it's awfully pricey. I will probably give up a half-stop and go for the legendary Pentax 77mm F1.8 when I am ready to buy another pricey lens, which is a fair bit cheaper than the Sigma!

Really, though, the ~$300 Samyang 85mm F1.4 is quite a bargain; it's hard to be disappointed at that price, and you probably won't lose much money on it if you decide to turn around and resell it.

 

[cpbjgc]

The burning question Danielle - did you buy it?

 

[GrumpyGoat]

I'd be happy to hear your list of competing third-party 85mm F1.4s. The only one I'm aware of is Sigma's, which costs a cool grand, more than three times the price of the Samyang. Samyang has become very popular lately for offering unique, manual-focus lenses for bargain prices. They really aren't competing with Sigma or Tamron - heck, it would be appropriate to call them a bargain-basement Zeiss or Voigtlander! I am looking forward to their upcoming 24mm F1.4.

Back to the original question - I don't have one but I keep looking at them. I hear that it's a bit soft at 85mm... which might be fine for portraits but I think I'd like a little more sharpness. The Sigma 85mm is "sort of" on the list but it's awfully pricey. I will probably give up a half-stop and go for the legendary Pentax 77mm F1.8 when I am ready to buy another pricey lens, which is a fair bit cheaper than the Sigma!

Really, though, the ~$300 Samyang 85mm F1.4 is quite a bargain; it's hard to be disappointed at that price, and you probably won't lose much money on it if you decide to turn around and resell it.

Since I've never felt the need for an 85mm lens, I haven't researched them. What I meant was there are better lens manufacturers than Samyang out there.

The Samyang I had was a manual focus Minolta MD mount lens. It worked fine on my Minolta X-700 film cameras until the zoom mechanism unwound and the lens separated.

I had the camera store send it in for a warranty repair and it worked for about a week after I got it back, then fell apart again. A different store sent it in to the same repair center and this time it came back unrepaired with a note saying the lens had been dropped and was ineligible for warranty repair. It had NEVER been dropped!

I hung on to it for a while and then decided to see if I could get it repaired, even if I paid for it. I boxed it up and sent it off to the repair center listed in the paperwork included with the lens. This time the box was returned to me UNOPENED! After that, it sat around until I finally threw it out without ever opening the box again.

Nope, no matter what anyone says about Samyang, I will never own another one, nor will I ever buy a lens from their alter ego Phoenix. Today I only use Canon or Tamron lenses...

 

[WDWFigment]

Samyang lenses are produced excellently and have great build quality. I would highly recommend them, and highly recommend not listening to anyone's 12 year prior one-time experience with ANY product.

 

[photo_chick]

The burning question Danielle - did you buy it?

I have to wait until payday. My spending money got spent repairing the air conditioner and a busted water pipe in my yard. The kids kept complaining like 107 is unbearably hot or something and they would have gotten really stinky with no water in the house to take a shower with. But now that I've had my hands on the lens, I can't wait to get it. And really, for the price you really can't go wrong. I'll post when I have some shots to share.

Thanks for all the opinions from both points of view. You guys, as always, are awesome.