Rokinon/Samyang have been throwing around cryptic teasers hinting at the fact that a new lens was coming in January 2015. "3 digits and they are all odd" read one of their promos. Everyone's best guess to date was a 135mm but we really had no information about it, that is, until now.
It appears that a seller on Ebay has created a listing for a new Samyang 135mm F2 lens detailing all the specs, including plenty of images, and of course showcasing the price. Coming in at around $550 USD it is nearly half the price of the Canon equivalent. As expected it is a full manual lens just like the other primes from Samyang/Rokinon, which is a feature I imagine many will be missing with this particular lens. That said, for those willing to forego the luxury of AF, this could prove to be a fantastic bargain portrait lens. Given the performance of the other primes from Samyang/Rokinon, I would expect to see some great results from these optics!
Key Features:
- Extra low dispersion (ED)
- Glass aspherical lenses (AS)
- Ultra multi coating (UMC)
- Internal focusing (IF)
[via SLRLounge]
This lens looks VERY tempting! I've never owned a MF only lens but considering the price of this, I would definitely consider it if the reviews are positive!
Yeah, this thing looks like it has the potential to be killer. People who get hives on their backs when they don't see autofocus will be geeked, but for those who aren't fazed, this thing looks to be wicked good.
Ive got a set of Rokinon Cine primes, which are the same lenses as the Samyang and use them for some of my run & gun film work and shoots in more risky environments.....for the price...these lenses are insane quality and bang for buck..if they came in a more sturdy build with metal housings instead of plastic, they would give some of the higher end lens manufacturers a run for their money. As a filmmaker the manual focus doesn't phase me and their focus rings have a really nice smooth resistance to them. Definitely worth looking into those.
I just got a little giddy! :)
Nikon Rumors posted a Korean review that popped up with sample and test images comparing the Samyang to the Canon 135m F/2: http://lcap.tistory.com/entry/Samyang-135mm-f2-vs-Canon-EF-135mm-2-L
What's odd is when you see the first close-up test shot, the Canon blows the Samyang away, but when you see all the other shots, the Samyang totally blows the Canon away. I think it may be a typo and the lens listed as the Canon is really the Samyang. Either that, or the Samyang just falls apart in close focusing for some reason.
Very interesting lens!!! Mainly for Nikon system imho.
As a nikon shooter I always thought that Canon 135mm F2 is so good that it makes no sense for canon guys to look towards third-party brands.