Tamron has announced its 11-20mm F2.8 Di III-A RXD ultra-wide angle zoom will be made available for Fujifilm X-mount. I have found myself shooting wide open almost all the time. (purchased for $900), reviewed August 22nd, 2008 My Rokinon 135F2 on my crop body is fun to play with.. a budget lens with budget construction on a discontinued camera system.. but hey im just a ham and egger https://flic.kr/p/21nj82V, I had a Canon 135/2 for a while, but I decided I preferred the 100 L used not as a Macro but a normal lens (which my non-L USM 100 Macro was quite poor for). But in the rush to make hybrids why are aren't we giving video shooters the tools they need? This lens has the Pentax K bayonet mount, and requires the K-EOS adapter for attachment to Canon EOS cameras. Chromatic aberration is almost eliminated in narrowband, so lenses with that problem may be fine performers. The other one is the inevitable and persistent regret that, because of chromatic aberration, the full 75mm aperture of this beautiful lens can not be used in full visible spectrum photography. The Andromeda Galaxy using the Rokinon 135mm F/2.0 ED UMC lens. Focal length is great. Micael Widell is a photography enthusiast based in Stockholm, Sweden. This is great news if you like to photograph small things up close. So.. its like there is one F stop not being used by the lens..how do you know what click is for what F stop?? You may need to stop down to control star bloat, and thats exactly what Ive done with this 135. Andysea, those are great images on your website. Otherwise this lens is absolutely incredible. This lens is available on Amazon for most camera bodies. All content, design, and layout are Copyright 19982023 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved. I hope that this post has provided some practical insight into a popular camera lens for astrophotography. Just place your subject against a distant background, and half of the job is done. After several years off, the venerable magazine has held a public open call photo contest and selected nine finalists and one winning image for its 'Photos of the Year.'. I typically shoot with Canon lenses, but the potential for low light photography (whether thats astrophotography or the ability to film at dusk) caught my interest. Thanks, Chris, hi Trevor my name is sagar i have same lens but i have one question why lot of stars are appearing in my image which is taken thru rokinon 135mm, Your email address will not be published. I really like how they augment my longer focal length scopes. All lenses mentioned below are adaptable to Canon EOS cameras with slim EOS adapters which allow the lenses to focus just slightly past infinity. Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Rokinon 135mm F2.0 ED UMC Telephoto Lens I am a complete amateur at photography in general and this is all new to me so thank you for all the information and videos. Focus throw. Yes, she's isolated. There are times that making no comment at all is far more telling than posting negative - and sometimes offensive - ad hominem attacks on the author for daring to show some enthusiasm. Colour and contrast is great. Seems to me that with your gallery and website of images you should refrain from passing judgment on who is and isn't a photography master. Also, when used as recommended, and properly guided at full camera resolution, they are all comparable to a field-corrected APO, producing perfect images from edge to edge which can be easily cropped 25% with no evidence of aberrations. Canon 135mm f/2 L Review - Ken Rockwell Orion's Belt : r/astrophotography - reddit.com Together they still weight less than any modern 135mm :>. I think they are an outstanding value for any wide-field astrophotographer, and are particularly suitable for newcomers. Simple fact is the Samyang 135/2 is a remarkably good lens for the price, and it offers a set of optical characteristics that typically cost 2-4x more. At least not in my camera (Sony A6000), the focal length in a crop sensor does not make it very suitable for portrait, the photo detail is something else, but without AF that type of photography with that focal distance and at least 80 cm of the subject it requires too much dedication, with how comfortable the DMF approach mode is for that type of photography Also in my mount it does not have any communication with the camera (it does not have a chip, it only has it for Nikon). A promising start, no doubt, but not a master yet! Not heavy like the white tele-zooms. Definetely the most sharpest lens which I have ever seen. One very popular lens for bokeh fiends is the Canon 85mm F1.2it can produce extremely creamy out of focus backgrounds. I seems many people he are confused about the meaning of the word. I got my first 400 around 50 years ago, and I must say that each step forward feels like a revolution, for a while. Trully sharp accross whole frame from f2 on 5d. The lens hood is removable (and reversible), which makes packing the Rokinon 135mm away into the included lens pouch possible. The flat lens hood design allows you to easily take flat frames with the Rokinon 135mm using the white t-shirt method or using a flat panel. What I am trying to avoid is spending another $1,100 on a quality APO, and instead using my existing Nikkor 180mm ED lens with a Baader-modified Canon 450D that I just obtained. Another drawback is the focal length. The Canon 135mm f/2 is no less impressive on a full-frame camera. Thus the enthusiasm has a valid basis but may not be suitable for all shooting conditions. Sure, not all 135mm lenses are lightweightSigma's new 135mm F1.8 is rather heavy at 1130gbut if you look at the Samyang 135mm F2, which is pretty much flawless optically, it weighs only 830g. So so far the best that I have used are the 200f2.8L and the 400f5.6L. (For Nikon users there's the new 105mm too.). I think the bokeh won me over with the cat, as well as the fact that I like animals; the case for the duck was the same. Another thing that makes people go "wow" over the 135mm F2 lens design is the bokeh, which can be so creamy that distant backgrounds almost render as gradients. Fast continuous shooting, reliable autofocus and great battery life are just three of the most important factors. I'm enjoying the Sigma Art 135mm - it's notably sharper than the Canon (which I owned at the same time), and it's f/1.8 instead of f/2. Great for portraits. It is really thanks to another commentator pointing out something that finally makes sense out of this mess: This article is by someone who just got his first first telephoto ever, and is writing about how he feels when he is trying it out. Available in other Styles, Configurations & Kits. At the other end of the aperture range though, the 5D's larger pixels actually help matters, as the softening starts later (it's very sharp even at f/16), and is noticeably lower at f/32. Aperture ring. If you can afford it buy this lens, you will love it. However, they can be perfectly corrected with narrow band H-alpha or OIII filters. The optical design includes one extra-low dispersion (ED) lens element to control chromatic aberration, and ultra multi-coatings (UMC) to both improve light transmission and reduce flare. Using a Canon EF 24-105mm Lens for Astrophotography - AstroBackyard My goal for this article was to show some great example photos and share some ideas for projects this lens is a good fit for. Samyang 135 f/2 astrophotography gallery Below some pictures I made using Samyang 135 lens with QHY163 mono camera and iOptron Smart EQ Pro mount. I just got the Samyang version of this lens and used it with my Canon 3ti on a Skywatcher Star Adventurer. I bought this lens after reading your great review for my Nikon D5300. That's a cheap, fun date for AP. Samyang 135mm f2, 100mm f2.8, and asperical 16mm f2.8. That is the story.#7: Leaves.That doesn't work. Material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted or otherwise used without the prior written consent of The Imaging Resource. You are entitled to your opinions, and I respect that! I have compared many times my 135/2 against my 100/2.8 and there is a big difference. never mind.. confirmed from others that F19 is indeed the one that is excluded on this lens! But do some experimenting before you decide. It disagrees completely with the definition that you give! Finally, to prevent image shift during exposure, all telephoto lenses must be supported at two points: at the camera end, and at the far end with a large retaining ring. (on a full frame camera)Wonderful lens for some portraiture applications, sporting events and candids at a party or event. The thing is, on my APS-C body the 100mm is challenging enough. My point is that we must never lose the joy of photography. Begun in 1975, the Pentax K-mount legacy continues to this day. I already did some trials with the Samyang 12mm lens. As such, it applies most directly here to areas of an image that are out of focus. Asahi Optical's Pentax KX was one of the first cameras with this lens mount, acting as a midrange model in the lineup. The flawless image quality is only half the story though. The interest of a f/1.4 is to be able to be perfect at f/2.8, while a f/1.8 or f/2 might need to be on f/4 to have the same sharpeness and overall IQ.They are not meant to be used wide open, except in rare moments. So there - it is not a perfect object. (And cost less too). "If you are a Nikon user, of course have a look at the Nikon AF Nikkor 135mm f/2D DC and compare it to the other lenses mentioned in this article. Also Nikon DC 135mm f/2 is a great lens, a little better than 135mm Canon Selecting between it and the 200mm Takumar was not an easy choice but, in the end, I chose the Takumar because it seemed to have slightly better contrast. But even better BOKEH is the SAL-135F2.8F4.5 STF (Smooth Trans Focus ) which has even better BOKEH, albeit a manual focus lens. If so, which one? Also, the newer and much more expensive 200mm F4 SMC Pentax with the K mount is decisively inferior, showing small but annoying red chromatic aberration. With the high megapixel cameras, most people are going to ideally want to shoot at 1/200 or faster. Can I assume that this article applies only to full frame & not to micro four thirds? At around $900 US very good price for quality no IS. Widefield Astrophotography with the Samyang 135mm f/2 Lens It's Film Friday, so let's take a look back at the film format that gave APS-C sensors their name! The presentation and hands-on look and feel of the 135mm F/2 lens is impressive considering the reasonable price of this lens. The RedCat is deeper at 250mm, and after that, youre into 300-400mm territory which pulls galaxies and nebulae even closer. You currently have javascript disabled. This looks to be an excellent lens with fantastic results. The 135L is half the weight of the 70-200 2.8IS. PRICE. Used on a crop body the results are still splendid but you gain on DOF, making it a great combination for wedding/event and ambient/available light. IQ will rival any other lens. for sample photos and video tour, This is simply the best Canon prime lens that I have tested. I would! (Dpreview), Use the 500 Rule to find the Perfect Exposure Length for Astrophotography, Use a DSLR Ha Filter for Astrophotography, AstroBackyard | Astrophotography Tips and Tutorials2023, Optical Construction: 11 Glass elements in 7 Groups. To achieve creamy bokeh, a lens should have a wide maximum aperture and a long focal length. If you must have autofocus, and care about weight, buy the Canon. 135mm F2.0 The optical design includes one extra-low dispersion lens element to control chromatic aberration, contributing to sharp, color-accurate imaging, and each of its lens elements features Ultra Multi-Coating to improve light transmission and reduce ghosting and flare. In fact, it might be fun to try! That whole rig comes to about $1200, minus the mount. (purchased for $845), reviewed November 16th, 2005 Over the years, Ive shot deep-sky targets at varying focal lengths from 50mm to over 1000mm. You can also find him as @mwroll on Instagram and 500px. You will see why. +1 for the 135mm lens. But I hardly used it in the 30+ years. SharpStar Askar ACL200 200-mm f/4 astrographic telephoto lens, Astrotrac 360 tracking platform first impression, FIELD TEST: CARL ZEISS APOCHROMATIC & SHARPEST (CZAS) BINOVIEWER, Deus_Ex_Mamiya and Michael Covington like this. For example, a friend recently recommended Pentax 6x7 prime lenses which were designed for a large format flat field, and are also adaptable to the EOS system. The background blur is amazingly creamy with this lens. The image is a 90-second exposure at ISO 400 using a Canon EOS 60Da. Over the last ten to fifteen years excellent apochromatic telescopes have become available for visual use and photography. Yes, there is some sharpness added when stopping down to f4 or f5.6 but after that it doesn't get better. http://www.radiantlite.com/2009/01/canon-135mm-f2l-usm-mini-review.html Why take a step back from 250 to sit between the RedCat and the 24-105? Hey! Everyone assumes their definition is the "true" one. I just love the lightning fast & accurate focus of this lens. How well do Fujifilm's film simulations match up to their film counterparts? Only con I can think of, and that may be a big one depending on how you plan to use the lens is the lack of weather sealing. If this was used to shoot video you would think that the first image was using a green screen. For my purposes, this is a spectacular lens. Yes the Samyang is good and yes there are lenses with bad bokeh. Check out some of the photos he took. If anything the argument in favor of even smaller and lighter 85/1.4s (like the 600g Sigma DN) is stronger than ever, and I say that as someone that loves shooting at 135-150mm. The inset picture is a magnified view of the bottom right corner of the frame. A Canon 70-200L IS II at 200mm at f2.8 has all the same characteristics of the Canon 135L. One difference worth pointing out is for those who image using narrowband filters. Often need f2.2 to f2.8 to gain sufficient DOF for human subjects. Samyang/Rokinon 135mm F2 for Astrophotography: Review & Imaging Tests Technical Specifications Looking for specific info? If experience has taught me anything, its that the practical, pain-free equipment that gets the most use under the stars. (37% is difference, so you get little more, about 15.5Mpix). http://johncarnessali.com/camera-lens-tests/5109, After reading too many long, and arduous threads pertaining to the new Zeiss 135, I felt compelled to share my perspective on the wonderful Canon 135. I used this lens quite a bit years ago as my main working lens. Several days ago another member posted a stunning telephoto image of the Snake Nebula, Barnard 72, taken with a Canon lens which costs $12,000. I owned this lens for a long time, then traded it for the 70-200 2.8IS II. Do I wish it were manufactured with metal? Here is a short list of great astrophotography targets to shoot at 135mm with this lens: Below, is an incredible example of the types of projects possible with the Rokinon 135mm F/2.0 lens. What next, an article extolling the virtues of 43mm, or 70mm? But I would argue that a 135mm F2 lens produces even greater bokeh, thanks to the long focal length that compresses the background far more than the 85mm lens. You will never be able to beat this lense, believe me, i have tried them all. Samyang 135mm F/2 ED UMC Review (Camera Labs), Does a F/2.0 lens become F/2.8 when used on a crop sensor camera? A lot of lenses today are better than anything money could buy in 1980. Samyang 135 f/2 ED astrophotography modifications - astrojolo A higher-res Blackmagic Studio Camera just dropped. The 135mm focal length is absolutely perfect for the Heart and Soul Nebulae if youre using a crop sensor DSLR camera. The Olympus Zuiko 180/2.8 and 100/2.8 impressed me in the 1980s, but in the digital era they are not so sharp. I'm not a fan of the large hood. Perhaps you have seen the photos of masterful Russian portrait photographers such as Elena Shumilova or Anka Zhuravleva. The 135 L handles this well. lol, nice images, and i nearly bought this lens myself a few years ago. i also have the 300mm f4.5 non ED nikkor which is quite nice . The Canon is about as sharp as the Samyang, but it has some very slight chromatic aberration. In excellent condition, this lens retails for around $200. A Bargain, very competively priced Contrasty but not harsh. Fast. I've recently started using 135 and 200mm lenses from the 1970s with my mono CCD and they've proven very useful for imaging large emission nebulae. OM System's latest lens is a whopper of a macro, featuring optical stabilization, full weather sealing, up to 2x magnification and a whole lot more. The Rokinon 135mm F/2.0 ED UMC lens is a fantastic companion for the Canon 60Da, as it offers a useful "mid-range" focal length for a variety of deep-sky projects. Its a trade-off, and one that seems to surface time and time again in this hobby. http://www.flickr.com/photos/tbrigham/284303834/. Images that sing. Litepanels Studio X2 Bi-Color LED Fresnel Light. This has several advantages from less demanding tracking accuracy, to being able to use a lower ISO setting. Especially for beginning astrophotographers, who should first invest most of their finances into a good telescope mount, telephoto lenses are an excellent and affordable solution. I really don't want to count all the pores - and the hairs coming out of them (eeeew!) Really, just an amazing lens, easily worth the $800-900 it commands on the street. One of my very best lenses! From the moment I reviewed the first sub-exposure on the display screen of my camera, I feel in love with the mid-range magnification of a 135mm lens. We were surprised by just how much difference there was between these AI-powered image enlargers. Meanwhile the ol' Canon 135/2 is still commanding a higher than average price on the used market (70%+ of MSRP isn't common), I guess the low weight and super easy resale have almost made it a high end commodity. Is this Nikon already, Astro modified, without need for H alpha filters or any further modifications? We have come to accept that most lenses are strong in only one or two of these three factors, that I personally focus on when researching lenses to buy. Im so new to all of this so thank you for your insightful and educational posts. Why so salty? The Samyang 135mm F/2 easily lives up to its hype and should be near the top of your list of purchases if you are new or experienced in the field of astrophotography. (purchased for $900), reviewed December 14th, 2006 Thanks, I own Samyang 135 f2 for Nikon Mount and indeed it is incredible value lens. I had of course heard that this lens is supposed to be very sharp, but I had never before had such a full blown "wow" experience when reviewing the sharpness of a lens. I've missed shots at wide apertures because the DOF is so extremely thin. The 135mm f/2.0 ED UMC Lens for Canon EF Mount from Rokinon is a manual focus telephoto prime lens useful for portraiture and all medium telephoto applications. This is a fully manual lens, meaning that it does not have autofocus, and you must manually select the f-stop . f2, very sharp, virtually without CAs, contrast, colour, lightwight, buildings. No, Mr. Because of some residual chromatic aberration even with the aperture stop, the best focus lies not where the star image is the smallest, but rather just slightly away from infinity, at the point where the star image barely begins to enlarge. Adam007,"a headshot is exactly where I want to see all those megapixels"No thanks. Include the Carl Zeiss in your research though, it might be an interesting lens for you, even if it is a bit pricey for what you get. The North America Nebula captured using the 135mm lens with a clip-in Ha filter. I have been following your work both on YT and here from Japan for a while. But for many of us, somewhere in between, are plenty of short to mid-tele lenses that will deliver solid service (in terms of subject separation) without carrying around still another kilo for the sake of more blur. If you are a Nikon user, of course have a look at the Nikon AF Nikkor 135mm f/2D DC and compare it to the other lenses mentioned in this article. Of my last 3500 shots only 62 were made with the 135 f/2. Its a joy to work with every time. It's not a bad lens, probably a great one, even if it doesn't seems really as sharp as a basic 85mm f/1.8 (used at f/2.8) , but it's a bad idea to work wide open if you don't need to. You just panned the subject for his photos and then turn around and needle thematic for looking into Ericsson. And with our first long lenses we were all impressed were we not? Today I want to talk about another such lens design: The 135mm F2 lens. Nikon 300/4 ED IF, Sigma 50/2.8 DG Macro (not a telephoto, but good). The moment I tried the Samyang 135mm F2 for the first time after purchasing it, I immediately felt that it was a very special lens. The main problem with the old lenses is spherical aberration and colour error, especially pronounced on digital sensors. Not only does it let you travel light, but impressive wide field projects are often more successful when captured under a dark sky. The Legendary Canon 60Da | Astrophotography DSLR (Image Examples) Do you have a link to Yuri's photo stream? Best lens for portraiture I've ever tried. To shoot indoors under typical gymnasium lighting, you often need f/2.0 or wider to get a shutter speed high enough to stop the action. And because you can shoot between F/2 and F/4, plenty of light reaches the sensor in a relatively short exposure. He loves photography, and runs a YouTube channel with tutorials, lens reviews and photography inspiration. How good this lens overall and how sharp and color-free? Lots of wet blankets around here. Have not used a 70-200 since. Add To Cart. :). AstroBin And it's not the one problem from my L lenses very sad =(, My favourite lens, hands down. See the full-size version on Astrobin. This criticism refers to rare cases when your main subject matter is flat and completely inside the limited DOF range while the rest of the image is outside. As in all arts the client's likes influence the result up to a point. Family moments are precious and sometimes you want to capture that time spent with loved ones or friends in better quality than your phone can manage. It is a heavy lens. If I got this lens, would it make more sense long term to get the Canon mount with a E mount adaptor so I could fit it more easily to a dedicated astro camera later? I am still very proud of some of the photos I shoot with a Pentax O450 15 years ago - a good smartphone camera today is at least as capable. FULL FRAME TELEPHOTO 135mm F2.0 In general, prime telephotos should outperform zooms. Focusing a wide open F/2 lens is demanding of the optics, especially on a field of stars in the night sky. I would recommend buying it used if you want to save some money, with the added benefit that you can re-sell it at the same price as you bought it for, effectively giving you the opportunity to "rent it" for free.