cogitech wrote:
Very nice samples, Tim!
.............
Thanks, Paul. Yes, I've concluded that the lens is optimized for excellent near field performance.
If I want to shoot far field, I'll just reach for the Zeiss Sonnar. The price is amazingly low, and
this should be a wake-up call to those who think they just have to get the Canon 85/1.2L
at $1500 (!!!!) more. Sure the Canon will be easier to use, all in all, but when you are needing
this big of an aperture, you are just setting it and then focusing/shooting. Get a good focusing screen
and "go to town" as they say.
jcolwell wrote:
I (ii) I can't find a serial number on the lens. The last isn't a big problem, except if want to register the lens with customs, when you know that you'll be travelling out of the country with it.
Yep. Been there. There is no serial number on the lens, at least not one that is visible. None on the box nor warranty card either. Probably a cost saving measure.
Tariq Gibran wrote:
Yep. Been there. There is no serial number on the lens, at least not one that is visible. None on the box nor warranty card either. Probably a cost saving measure.
I really like the way the lamp post shot shows off your lens. The focus curve you mention reminds me of the shot in "what is 3-D" with the couple going between the hayfield and the corn row ... the in focus point on the corn seems significantly closer than the couple does ... that was from a $1k lens
Thanks so much for the post. I had not been aware of the lens and this thread convinced me that it was an affordable option that slots nicely between my Nikkors: 10-24, 35f/1.8 and 300 f/4. I can report that it works on a Nikon D60 in full manual mode. Camera does not recognize lens; need to switch to M-mode. Aperture control is by aperture ring ( a bit hard to see tick marks as tucked under the prism). Adjust shutter speed with command dial. Interestingly the green focus dot in screen works but at f/1.4 is not really sensitive enough. My system is to adjust exposure looking at histogram, then take 3 photos at green-blinking, solid-green, and green-blinking on the back side. Never thought I could get images like this on my lowly D60, I am truly blown-away, and again thanks so much for bringing this lens to my attention.
I am about to put the EE-S screen in, but right now I've been using a Brightscreen with splt prism and micro
prism. These were shot with focus bracketing: get close then take lots of shots while either moving
toward/away from the subject or rotating the focus ring slightly.
Guys, for those that are still on the fence and in the US. You can get one for $200 right now thru Overstock. Their price is 235, use Bing Cash Back to earn 12% back and you're looking at 2 Benjamins for this little cutie. I'm talking about the Nikon mount, the Canon mount is 10 bucks cheaper, I think. Go go go. Just bought me one
I got mine through Overstock, but also bought the filter kit, since I didn't have filters UV/Polarizer in that size. But the filter kit is weeeeeaaaaak. Filters are as cheap as can be humanly made. In a pinch, I guess at a few bucks each, I didn't get totally ripped off. But I recommend skipping the filter pack offered at Overstock. Otherwise, I am very, very pleased with my Rokinon 85.
I did some more shooting with the Rokinon. This was a bokeh torture test.
Forgive the bad lighting, but I was at ISO 3200 on the 5D with the lens wide open
at f/1.4 and I still had to bump up the brightness slider in DPP for these.
This lens shows some artifacts on out of focus highlights. See the flare
pattern on the out of focus light bulbs at the right.
ht1948 wrote:
Guys, for those that are still on the fence and in the US. You can get one for $200 right now thru Overstock. Their price is 235, use Bing Cash Back to earn 12% back and you're looking at 2 Benjamins for this little cutie. I'm talking about the Nikon mount, the Canon mount is 10 bucks cheaper, I think. Go go go. Just bought me one
I guess they heard about this thread ... they raised their prices. And strangely MS Bing cashback is listed as 15% for the purchase which would bring it down to $223 .. but when you do it, you only actually get a 7% cashback so it's more like $240. Still a good price but I'm curious as to why bing cashback would say it gets 15% and then you only get 7%.
Looks like a sweet lens ... amazing value for the price.
