A Review of the Impressively Affordable Samyang AF 85mm f/1.4 FE II

Samyang has long had a reputation for producing manual focus lenses that are sharp and very affordable, and recently, they have started to add autofocus options, making them viable for many more photographers and situations. One such option is the AF 85mm f/1.4 FE II, which offers photographers the popular combination of a portrait focal length and very wide maximum aperture, all at a price significantly lower than many other options. Can it compete with those more expensive options? This excellent video review takes a look at the performance and image quality you can expect. 

Coming to you from Christopher Frost, this great video review takes a look at the Samyang AF 85mm f/1.4 FE II lens for Sony E mount cameras. Like typical Samyang lenses, the first version offered very good image quality for the price, though it suffered from some autofocus issues. Autofocus performance looks much better in the second version, while image quality remains quite good, especially for the price. Considering wide-aperture 85mm lenses can easily run north of $2,000, the AF 85mm f/1.4's $799 price is positively refreshing, especially considering what you get for that cost. Check out the video above for Frost's full thoughts on the lens. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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