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If you’re looking for a wide lens on a budget, you should definitely consider the Samyang 14mm f/2.8 lens. As seen in the photos below, it's quite a good match for the diminutive Canon EOS RP camera that we tested it with. It would be even more at home on the larger EOS R body, or the upcoming EOS R5 / R6 cameras. As long as the depth of field is adequate, f/2.8 stops the blur without ultra-high ISO settings being resorted to. Bokeh is a word used for the out-of-focus areas of a photograph, and is usually described in qualitative terms, such as smooth / creamy / harsh etc. In the Samyang AF 14mm f/2.8 EF lens, Samyang employed an iris diaphragm with 7 rounded blades, which has resulted in quite nice bokeh in our view. We do realise, however, that bokeh evaluation is subjective, so we've included several 100% crops shot at the various aperture settings below.
In the end, any of these lenses can be justified for certain needs, but the Samyang is by far the easiest to justify on a cost basis. I do not find DSLR focus confirmation lights to be accurate enough during manual focusing to count on, but ... some versions of this lens have this option. The Samyang AF 14mm F2.8 RF is capable of producing quite nice sunstars when stopped-down to f/16 and f/22, as shown below, although it is quite prone to flare even with the fixed lens hood. BokehAlthough many detailed scenes will hide the Samyang 14's distortion, you will often want to correct it in post processing. A favorite option is PTLens, though the standalone version of this tool accepts and outputs only JPG files, assuring at least a second generation
The 14mm focal length finds frequent use in architecture, real estate, landscape, and nightscape photography. I like to compose (for the brighter viewfinder) and focus (better precision with a shallower DOF) with the aperture set to f/2.8, then adjust the aperture as desired prior to photographing. Ultra-wide angle allows to capture the creative space beyond what meets the eye and portray an expanded sense of dimension.Wide aperture lenses tend to have an advantage in this regard, and this lens is capable of producing a decent star shape, as illustrated below.
With the lens set to its maximum aperture of f/2.8, there is significant light fall-off in the corners. Stopping-down to f/8 virtually eliminates this. The Samyang AF 14mm f/2.8 EF lens has a wide focus ring. There are no hard stops at the ends of the range, making it more difficult to set focus at infinity. If photographing these subjects is on my to-do list, this focal length is very frequently part of my kit. Also, remember that a person closer to the camera can appear much larger than a person farther away. While not completely protecting the front element from scratches and other concerns, it is a good compromise between coverage and overall size.
It has a minimum focusing distance of 0.20m (0.66ft) and a maximum reproduction ratio of 0.12x. It uses a rear filter holder at the lens mount. To generalize, image sharpness improvements made by stopping down are not as abrupt in the periphery of the image circle. Ultra-wide-angle lenses with a convex front lens element and built-in hood get a 3-dimensional cap that surrounds the lens's end. Yes, this lens has an f/2.8 aperture, but with approximately 5 stops of vignetting in the corners, the entire frame is not benefiting from this feature. Coma performance is excellent and we are getting nice sharp round stars. Being a wide fast f2.8 lens with virtually no coma and excellent image quality this lens will be very popular with wide field astrophotographers, at the right price point this could be the most popular 14mm astrophotography lens for Canon dslrs.
As previously mentioned, Samyang is the manufacturer of this lens, and it is available in Samyang or Rokinon brands. Looking at apertures overall, f/2.8 is considered "fast", but keeping perspective, it is two stops slower than the f/1.4 aperture commonly found in fast prime lenses.
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Because of this perspective issue, 14mm is usually not a great choice for people framed tighter than very loosely-framed full bodies. This lens is fully weather-sealed to help protect it against dust, light rain and snow, a commendable design decision given the low price tag that it commands. The Canon RF mount version of the Rokinon AF 14mm F2.8 Lens is compatible with all Canon EOS R-series cameras. With shading falling under 1 stop at f/4, stopped-down images captured with these cameras will have no noticeable shading issues in most scenarios.
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