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Rokinon Lens comparison | 14mm vs 35mm vs 85mm – Same Scene

In this article I’m going to compare the 14mm, 35mm, and 85mm Rokinon lenses I’ve been working with the past few weeks.  I took a bunch of photos from the same exact spot using all three lenses, so you can see specifically what each lens provides viewing angle wise, ect…
This is a pretty useful test for figuring out what kind of range you might need for a given scene and/or what each lens actually covers. I also like this test, because it shows the depth of field separation that can be achieved which each lens from a one specific location. In other words, which lens can separate the subject from the background the best??
Take a look at the pictures and I think you will clearly see which lens has the best separation capabilities in this particular test 😉
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The Three Rokinon A-Mount Lenses

14mm Ultra Wide-Angle f/2.8 IF ED UMC Lens | 35mm f/1.4 Wide-Angle US UMC Aspherical Lens | 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens

Rokinon A-Mount 14mm, 35mm, and 85mm
Rokinon A-Mount 14mm, 35mm, and 85mm – No Optional Lens Hoods
Rokinon A-Mount 14mm, 35mm, and 85mm
Rokinon A-Mount 14mm, 35mm, and 85mm – With Optional Lens Hods

Three Lenses on the Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 Lens Adapter

Rokinon 14mm Ultra Wide-Angle f/2.8 IF ED UMC Lens

Rokinon A-Mount 14mm f/2.8 Lens on Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 lens adapter
Rokinon A-Mount 14mm f/2.8 Lens on Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 lens adapter

Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 Wide-Angle US UMC Aspherical Lens

Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Aspherical lens mounted to Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 Lens Adapter
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Aspherical lens mounted to Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 Lens Adapter

Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens

Rokinon A-Mount 85mm f/1.4 Lens on Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 lens adapter
Rokinon A-Mount 85mm f/1.4 Lens on Nex-6 w/ LA-EA1 lens adapter

Same Scene, Three Different Lenses

Lets start wide with the 14mm lens first, so you can see the what the whole scene looks like. I was also using my Oben Tri-pod!!

Rokinon A-Mount 14mm Ultra Wide-Angle f/2.8 IF ED UMC Lens

Shot Wide-Open @ f/2.8 and be sure to Click the Images for the High res version!!

Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8 – 100% Crop
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8 – 100% Crop Top Left
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8
Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Wide-angle Lens @ f/2.8 – 100% Crop

Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 Wide-Angle US UMC Aspherical Lens

Remember, I had the tripod in the same exact location as the 14mm lens!! I marked it with quarters 😉

Shot Wide-Open @ f/1.4 and be sure to Click the Images for the High res version!!

Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4 - 100% Crop - Top Left
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4 – 100% Crop – Top Left
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4 - 100% Crop
Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 UMC Lens @ f/1.4 – 100% Crop

Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 Aspherical Lens

Shot Wide-Open @ f/1.4 and be sure to Click the Images for the High res version!!

Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4
Rokinon 85mm f/1.4 lens @ f/1.4

Closing Remarks

As you can clearly see, the three Rokinon A-Mount lenses produce drastically different results, which makes perfect sense. However, it’s nice to see the three focal lengths compared in the same exact scene from the same exact location!!

Note: the 85mm lens separation and bokeh from this distance compared to the 35mm lens. The 35mm has a very similar bokeh rendering, but not in this particular situation. The 85mm lens was www.ruletsiteleri.info much closer to the minimum focus distance, so the background really went out of focus nicely. The 35mm lens would need to be much closer to the sign in order to render a similar result as far as background de-focus/ bokeh is concerned.

Full reviews of each Rokinon lens coming soon. Some sample photo links are just below the BH ad and sign-off box.

I hope you guys got something out of this article and have a great day!! Please feel free to ask questions or make requests while I still have these lenses in hand!!
Jay

Rokinon Lenses for Sony @ BHPhoto >>

  1. Got My 85mm Monday (04-22-2013). First impression are as follows:
    1) Mount is a tad loose; Not wobbly, but loose at locked-in point. Will have to check with others (such as the retailer) if this is normal.
    2) Definitely full of glass and metal. Heavy is relation to plastic(?) lenses, but easily manageable.
    3) Good separation between subject and out-of-focus foreground and background in the few photos that I have had time to take.
    4) Focusing is very smooth. I am using peaking to assist (for like cameras of old, there is no focusing screen). For whatever reason I was expecting what I recalled while using a manual lens, but the optical viewfinder is different; I’m using it as an assist to remind Myself to set the proper exposure:-)
    5) My Figlia, a Canon user, is enjoying Her new Tamron 24-70. First day She had it, right after mounting it to Her camera body and taking a few trial shots, She turned to Me and said, “I’m going out to play!” She then gleefully departed with camera and lens. Post first day, to say the least, She likes it allot:-)

    1. Hi Gerard and thanks of comments,
      The 85mm I have is incredible tight on the LA-EA1 Lens mount. Not even slightly loose. Not sure if the LA-EA1 lens adapter has a tighter tolerance though honestly. The focus ring on the one I have is smooth but still pretty tight in comparison to the 35mm f/1.4 and 14mm lenses.
      Thanks again for the info and sharing your personal experience with us all 🙂
      Jay

  2. Hi Jay, I’m thinking of getting this 85mm lense to use on my Nex6. I already have the LA-EA2 adapter and assume I can use it with that.
    I am however struggling to understand the difference between this lense and the The Rokinon 85mm T1.5 Cine Lens for Sony E? To the novice like me it looks like it is similar lense that would natively mount on the Nex6 without the need of adapter. What am I missing?
    Thanks,
    Tim

    1. Hi Tim,
      Yes the 85mm lens will work with the LA-EA2 lens adapter, but It may clip the specular highlights when shooting wide open, like the LA-EA1 lens adapter does. If that is the case, I would go for a different passive adapter.
      The Rokinon 85mm T1.5 Cine Lens has a geared focus and aperture rings. The Aperture is also not notched at each stop like a regular lens. See below:
      Rokinon 85mm T1.5 Cine Lens
      It’s made more for one of those movie rigs with knobs and focus wheels etc..
      Jay

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