Got a mirrorless camera? Your lens options just got a bit wider. Samyang, the lens manufacturer that’s also known as Rokinon or Bower in the U.S., has just announced several manual focus wide-angle lenses for various mirrorless systems. The only really new lens among these is a 12mm f/2 designed for cameras with APS-C-sized sensors (35mm-equivalent focal length will be 18mm). As for the others, the company has overhauled the 8mm f/2.8 fisheye lens and its 8mm T3.1 cine counterpart, and added additional mounts to some of its older lenses such as the 24mm f/1.4 and 35mm f/1.4 models. Finally, the 10mm f/2.8 lens announced back in December will soon be available, alongside the other new lenses.
The new 12mm f/2 NCS CS acts as an ultra wide-angle lens on cameras with APS-C-sized sensors, and as a 24mm-equivalent super wide-angle on Micro Four Thirds cameras. It was designed specifically to deliver great sharpness, and is intended for use with 24-megapixel sensors or higher. Its optical construction consists of 12 lens elements in 10 groups, comprising three ED glass elements, one aspherical lens, and one hybrid-aspherical lens. Two of the lens elements are covered with Samyang’s nanocrystal anti-reflective coating. The Samyang 12mm f/2 NCS CS lens will be available in Canon M, Fujifilm X, Micro Four Thirds, Sony E, and Samsung NX-mounts later this month, at a retail price of $399.
The main change in the 8mm f/2.8 and T3.1 fisheye lenses is the addition of a third ED glass element and a second aspherical lens, so that the total count of lens elements is now 11, arranged into eight groups. The remaining specifications are the same as those of the old model. The two lenses will be available in Canon M, Fujifilm X, Micro Four Thirds, Sony E, and Samsung NX-mounts later this month, at retail prices of $349 (f/2.8 version) and $399 (T3.1 version).
Samyang’s older 24mm f/1.4 and 35mm f/1.4 lenses will be available in Micro Four Thirds and Sony E-mount later this month, coming in at $549 (24mm) and $499 (35mm). While they may not prove as useful to Micro Four Thirds shooters due to these cameras’ 2x crop factor, they provide a great addition to the somewhat lacking lineup of full-frame capable E-mount lenses that can be used with the Sony Alpha 7 and Alpha 7R mirrorless cameras.
The cinema counterparts of these lenses, the 24mm T1.5 and 35mm T1.5, will also be made available in Micro Four Thirds mount later this month, in addition to the 14mm T3.1 and 85mm T1.5 cine lenses. Coming in at $749 (24mm), $549 (35mm), $449 (14mm), and $349 (85mm) , these lenses will probably find a liking with videographers and cinematographers on a budget, using Panasonic’s GH3 and GH4 camera models.
Finally, the 10mm f/2.8 ED AS NCS SC lens will also be available later this month. Originally announced back in December, it provides an extremely wide 15mm-equivalent angle of view on cameras with an APS-C-sized sensor, and 20mm-equivalent angle of view on Micro Four Thirds cameras. Sporting 14 lens elements in 10 groups, with two aspherical elements and one ED glass element, it features the same nanocrystal anti-reflective coating as the 12mm f/2. It will be available in Canon EF, Canon M, Fujifilm X, Nikon F (DX), Four Thirds, Micro Four Thirds, Pentax K, Sony Alpha, Sony E, and Samsung NX-mounts, at a retail price of $529.
(Felix Esser contributed to this article; via DIY Photography, Digital Photography Review)
