The Samyang 85mm f1.4 is a manual focus prime lens designed to deliver exceptional results at wide apertures. At f1.4, excellent images can be obtained, making it perfect for portrait photography and low-light shooting, particularly when mounted on a full-frame digital SLR.

The Samyang 85mm is also suitable for crop sensor cameras, including APS-C | DX sensors. When used on crop sensors, it offers an equivalent focal length of approximately 127mm, or an equivalent fixed focal length of 135mm on Canon crop sensor digital SLRs. Combined with the wide f1.4 aperture, it makes an excellent portrait lens for tighter portraits or for working at a distance with crop sensor cameras, or for shooting in various low-light conditions.

Bokeh (the character of the out-of-focus background blur) is a major concern for professionals choosing a very wide aperture lens for shallow depth of field photography. The Samyang 85mm f1.4 lens design delivers excellent bokeh quality in out-of-focus areas when used near maximum aperture, such as at f|1.4 and f|2. Independent tests and users confirm the beautiful bokeh character of the Samyang, surpassing lenses 4 times more expensive.

The optical construction of the lens comprises 9 elements arranged in 7 optical groups with one aspherical element. The Samyang 85mm is designed with internal focusing (IF), meaning the lens does not increase in size during focusing. Another positive aspect of internal focusing is that the lens presents much less risk of allowing dust to enter, unlike externally focusing (or zoom) lenses which can draw in dirt during use. The 8-blade diaphragm design contributes to the excellent bokeh character at apertures close to maximum.

The Samyang 85mm f|1.4 IF MC features multi-coated lenses that promote a very high level of light transmission and increased resistance to flare and ghosting. It has a good-sized manual focus ring and is perfectly suited to most photographic applications (except for sports or fast-moving subjects) where manual focus is not an issue. Precise focus in critical situations can be achieved through the use of Live View focusing, available on most recent camera models. In practice, users, including professional photographers, have found that manual focusing with the Samyang 85mm is not an issue, even when shooting at f1.4 with very shallow depth of field in low-light scenarios with static and slow-moving subjects — precise focus can be achieved giving excellent results on full-frame cameras.

There is also a growing number of users using DSLRs to shoot high definition (HD) film and video, and manual focus lenses allow the user to change focus during recording. Many Samyang lenses (primarily for Canon EOS mount, although other mounts are possible) can also be specially ordered with a de-clicked manual aperture if the primary use of the lens is for video | cinema where smooth aperture changes are required during recording.

For general photography, the standard clicked aperture is generally preferred to avoid accidental aperture changes during shooting or when focusing.

The Samyang 85mm f1.4 lens should be seriously considered by all professional or amateur photographers requiring a fast prime lens, regardless of budget. Given the low cost of the lens, it should not be overlooked for amateur use, or as a primary or secondary lens for professionals seeking a dedicated high-performance f|1.4 portrait lens.

Available mounts: Canon, Sony A Mount, Pentax, 4|3, Samsung NX.

Supplied with front and rear caps, lens hood and soft pouch. Filter size 72mm


Specifications