Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I've owned a lot of manual lenses in my life and I have to say, to date, this is the best I've ever owned. The build quality is fantastic, knock on wood, and the image quality is fantastic AND the price is amazing! The front and back bokeh (out of focus areas) are some of the best I've seen. Love this lens. I'm going to buy some more in different focal lengths ASAP. It literally feels and acts like a Zeiss lens. I can't believe it there's gotta be a catch.

My only gripe, there has to be one, is the lens cap. It's horrible. Oh, and a chip to provide aperture info for all mounts, not just Nikon. My Mamiya film camera even does that.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

Excellent for both video and stills- this is about the brightest lens you'll find under $ anywhere! The optics are great and the build quality is fantastic.....don;t let the name fool you- this can produce stellar results.It has NO autofocus so keep that in mind......for video this isn't usually an issue but for some stills shooters this might be something to consider. True serious photographers wont care it has no af as most simply manually focus anyway.The included lens hood is very poor quality but get's the job done..that's my only gripe.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

This provides amazing sharpness wide open, with delicious bokeh and some correctable color fringing. Note that besides being manual-focus, the lens doesn't have automatic aperture or a chip. On regular DSLRs, this is means you're focusing at whatever aperture you've chosen, and you get neither focus confirmation nor anti-shake. But on Sony's SLT series, the lack of automatic aperture means nothing, and you still get focus confirmation in the viewfinder. The remaining drawback is that the body's anti-shake function doesn't activate.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

This is a big piece of glass and is very bright and clear (see the DXOMark analysis, which is partly why I bought.) Only minor quibble is you can't remove the included hood when the lens cap is on...

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

AS YOU STEP DOWN THE F-STOPS THE VIEW FINDER GETS DARKER, SO BE ADVISED. ALSO THE PLASTIC END CAPS SEEM TO COME OFF EASY.

FOCUS IS SMOOTH. NOT HEAVY. WELL MADE FOR THIS PRICE. BEST THING ABOUT THIS LENS IS THE F1.4, AND IT IS A SHARP LENS CLOSE TO INFINITY.

ONE GREAT THING IS THE F-STOP CONTROL RING. WHEN I USE MY EXTENSION RINGS WITH AUTO-FOCUS LENS I CANT USE THE F-STOP, BUT WITH THIS LENS I HAVE DEPTH CONTROL DURING MACRO SINCE MY EXTENSION TUBES ARE NOT FOR AUTO LENS.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I use this lens with Sony A77, I like the result from this lens better than the one Minolta AF 85 1.4 since the Samyang/Rokinon carries more contrast, and both lenses about on the same sharpness level. Since A77 uses a crop sensor, the bordar sharpness and light-fall of the lens might be a little different on a full-frame. Overall, this is a very good lens to have (also the Samyang/Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 is very good if not better in image quality) consider its price and performance.

Build Quality:
Yes, the lens is made of plastic, but the build quality is very good and solid.
So, how good is very good?
Compare with the Sony line plastic prime lenses, the Rokinon 85mm looks and feels like metal made. All its moving parts (focus ring and aperture ring) are tightly intact and allows precise movements. On the other hand, for example the plastic Sony SAL35F18 looks and feels soft, and when operate you can feel the space between the movements.

The Focus Ring rotates smoothly, a silky feel, with an added tension. The rotation is also very precise, which allows fine-tune the focus when needed.
Focus ring rotates about 140-degrees, not the longest out there but I find it actually work in my favor. I can change the focus from a near by object to an object in distance with just a single rotation while keeping the focus well controlled. In contrast, with the 180-degrees focus ring, I usually need to rotate the focus ring consecutively when change focus from near to far.

The Aperture Ring rotates freely and clicks firmly. Stops and half-stops are well parted on the aperture scale, so you could easily count the stops when shooting behind the camera. So, no need to worry about jumping over the stops or lost counts the aperture in action.

Image Quality of this lens is good to very good in general (including sharpness, contrast, bokeh). This lens is sharp through out its aperture range; even sharpness at wide-open f/1.4 could be very good. Contrast of this lens can achieve very high marks under f/4~f/8.
Out-of-focus-blur is a subjective thing; it relates to ones personal preferences of each individual photo image. But, according to the general rules and standards of Bokeh, the quality in Bokeh of this lens is easily acceptable if it's not very-good. The out-of-focus areas are creamy, but highlights spots may carry noticeable boundaries but generally acceptable.

Manual Focus either works for you or it doesn't. It kind like cars with auto transmissions to cars with manual shifts. One choses what works for her/him.

With Sony's Peaking ability, manual focus is easy and fast. It also gives you the full control to DOF.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

While I still ultimately want the Sony Zeiss 85mm as my go to prime for portraits, this will have to do and am not disappointed at all. The wonderful part is that when using with my Sony a77 (as others will know), the peak focusing aid is truly indispensable as it makes manual focusing a lot easier.

I'm not too worried bothered by having to manually change the aperture ring as a77's live view gives me a good idea of its effect in exposure real time.

Build quality is great and its heft is good to balance out the camera body. I ended up getting a collapsible rubber lens hood to replace the one the came with this to protect it bumps and scratches during shooting and storing.

No complaints at all for a great price and great quality lens.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

By far the smartest buy Ive made.
The colors are tight and real, the image is really sharp, the feel is incredible.

Its great to train focus as it is a manual lens with 1.4 aperture which will be a REAL challenge, but once you manage to know it and use it properly, it will be one of those lenses always want to shoot with. Great piece of glass!

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

This has quickly become one of my favorite lenses. I use it for portraits, video, and low-light event shooting, and I am extremely happy with the results. The fast 1.4 aperture has given me some of the best low-light shots I've ever taken, and I love the silky-smooth bokeh for portraits and video.

I did a lot of research on this lens before I bought it, and my one concern was how hard it might be to manual focus at 1.4. After using it a few weeks, I've found it isn't a problem for my use. Don't try it for sports or fast action, but if you have a few seconds to use the focus zoom tool, you'll be fine.

If you're buying a 1.4 lens, you're going to use it at 1.4 or just a few stops down, so setting the aperture manually is no problem either. In fact, since my a55 doesn't otherwise give me manual exposure control for video, it's a bonus.

The optics are great, with great sharpness right away at 1.4 and handles flare very well. I have noticed that in areas of extreme contrast you get some color fringing. The minimum focus distance of 1 meter or so will keep you from getting just real close, but on an aps-c sensor you won't generally want to get that close anyway.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I purchased this lens for portraiture. That was the best decision I have made in a long time.
This lens is magic! It loves the subject, blends the background out just right, handles well and is very well made. I may never take it off the camera body.lol.
Great value.
Remember, this is a manual lens, you have to set it yourself. For me, a preference, to some, a strange new world!

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I own several lenses and this would be the cheapest by far, but the quality of the pictures are much nicer than the expensive ones. If you are into photography and don't want to spend huge amounts of money but do want to have a good quality lens with superb pics, I highly recommend to get this piece, you won't be disapointed.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

Just perfect for video and portrait :)

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I buy this lens few months ago, and from there my photos goes better and better... pretty nice to learn !!!

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

This lens construction and materials remind me of my dad's 35mm film lenses. Made of Metal and Glass. A bit heavy but well made.

This is my first manual lens and I love it so much I may never buy another lens.

Manual may not be for everyone. But other lenses with Auto Focus cost 80%-90% more than this one.

This Rokinon 85mm f/1.4-22 lens is like a photo teacher in a lens. I cannot stop taking pictures.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I am 9 months with my first DSLR. I am not a pro. This Rokinon 85mm is Manual and has turned out to be a teacher in a lens.

Solid construction and materials. Full manual and Full manual aperture range of "1.4 - 22" I have the POWER!!!

The review in photography magazine was exact. I cannot stop taking pictures. Finally, something for my left hand to do while composing a shot.

$60.00 in savings from buying the Bower 85mm (exact same maker). Develop the real photographer within yourself. Go to the Manual Side.

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

i am glad

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

Shot video with this thing at a wedding a few weekends ago. All I can is wowzer. So happy I bought this and saved a $1,000 over the Zeiss. I rented the Zeiss and obviously it was fantastic also. This lens takes virtually the same images but in a manual focus body only. So if you can get over the auto stuff, you'll love every second you have this lens on!

Comments about Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens for Sony:

I have the Opteka branded version, but it's the same Samyang-built lens. Unlike most fast 85mm, this one is optimized for use wide open; it is probably the best lens I've ever seen at f/1.4, although other 85mm lenses sharpen-up better and beat it from f/2.8 on. It is fully manual, enable "shoot without lens" to use it manual focus & stop-down metering. Slow to use, but a great lens especially in its price range. Use it for bokeh, not effective for quick shots in low light.