Rokinon Cine lenses vs. Zeiss ZE/ZF lenses...

eiker_ir

eiker_ir

Well-known member
Hi, i'll be upgrading to a 5D Mk. III soon and need to upgrade to some full frame lenses too.

I want to get quality stuff that will last me for quite a while (future proof if you will). I've worked with Zeiss ZE (Canon mount) primes before and simply love them. Awesome built quality, image quality, etc.

They were my first choice after trying them in person a few times, but know i'm also looking at the Rokinon Cine lenses as an option, very attractive because of the price, manual controls and de-clicked aperture.


Any opinions or pro and cons of one or the other? How their built quality and image quaity compared to the Zeiss?

Any comments are welcome :)
 
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Go with the zeiss. I was recently asking myself the same question between nikon g primes, nikon ais, samyang, and zeiss primes.


First, all manual is clearly the better option so nikon g is out.

Next, you want new glass and the 85mm 1.4 is no longer available new for the nikon ais series and their best wide option (28 1.4 d) is over 2 grand even used.

Samyang has focus marks that aren't accurate, no 50mm option, and dont have the best build quality. They are good if you need a whole set in a pinch but if you want something that will last i'd go zeiss
 
Samyang has some great lenses (85mm, 35mm, 8mm) and some not-so-good ones (14mm, maybe 24mm), and is still missing some important focal lengths (50mm), so if you want a full set, it's not the way to go. But if you want a great potrait lens, their 85mm is absolutely awesome. And the 35mm is sharp as can be. Yes, focus marks are not accurate (maybe they are in the cine version?), but it's also a fourth of the price...
 
Thanks for the comments, i'm guessing that Rokinon/Samyang should release a 50mm at some point, it's only logical.

How about the actual construction of the lenses? One thing i love about the Zeiss glass is the excellent all metal construction. I'm aware that the Rokinon will not reach this level but how are they overall compared to other lenses?
 
eiker_ir said:
Thanks for the comments, i'm guessing that Rokinon/Samyang should release a 50mm at some point, it's only logical.
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Maybe. I harassed Rokinon on Facebook about this a few month back and their response (yes, they responded) was basically "We currently have no plans for a 50mm."

Don't know if that's Samyang talking or Rokinon talking, or if that even matters. But while this doesn't mean they won't make one in the future, it means no for at least the next year to me. Even if they did eventually come out with one they're still missing a longer telephoto lens. (like a 135 or 100mm)

Don't get me wrong. I like Samyang and own some of their lenses. But I think you should satisfy yourself with an old zeiss Contax 50mm or something if you're going to go that route. I personally use a K-mount 55mm f1.2. Close enough.

My pipe dream (stressing pipe dream) would be fore them to make a f1.4 16mm for APS-C / S35. It doesn't have to cover FF35, and it doesn't have to be very sharp wide open. (I honestly don't think S35 1080p really takes great advantage of a lens's "real" sharpness anyway. It's contrast that gives perceptual sharpness. *Puts on fire suit*) A 16mm or something similar would make them a real contender for all these S35 cameras out there. Imagine a set from 16mm to 85mm all f1.4. That'd be like ultra low budget superspeeds.
 
meauounji said:
Maybe. I harassed Rokinon on Facebook about this a few month back and their response (yes, they responded) was basically "We currently have no plans for a 50mm."

Don't know if that's Samyang talking or Rokinon talking, or if that even matters. But while this doesn't mean they won't make one in the future, it means no for at least the next year to me. Even if they did eventually come out with one they're still missing a longer telephoto lens. (like a 135 or 100mm)

Don't get me wrong. I like Samyang and own some of their lenses. But I think you should satisfy yourself with an old zeiss Contax 50mm or something if you're going to go that route. I personally use a K-mount 55mm f1.2. Close enough.

My pipe dream (stressing pipe dream) would be fore them to make a f1.4 16mm for APS-C / S35. It doesn't have to cover FF35, and it doesn't have to be very sharp wide open. (I honestly don't think S35 1080p really takes great advantage of a lens's "real" sharpness anyway. It's contrast that gives perceptual sharpness. *Puts on fire suit*) A 16mm or something similar would make them a real contender for all these S35 cameras out there. Imagine a set from 16mm to 85mm all f1.4. That'd be like ultra low budget superspeeds.
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Just curious:
What is the deal with the names? Are they the same lenses? Same company? I've been thinking they are, but I don't know the back story.

If you check out some online tests, especially uneven field illumination, you'll see the Rokinon actually has less vignetting on FF, and on APS-C.

If you compare the Samyang 14mm to the Zeiss ZE 15mm, you'll see they vignette about the same on FF (4 stops! (in the corners)), and APS-C (1.75 stops (in corners)) wide open
If you compare the Samyang 24mm at F/2 and the Zeiss ZE 25mm at f/2 you'll see the Samyang vignettes much less at both FF and APS-C. The Samyang is 1/2 stop at APS-C and just at 2.5 stops in the corners. The Zeiss is 1.5 at APS-C and over 3.5 at FF.
If you compare the 35mm's they are almost identical at F/1.4
If you compare the 85's they are about the same wide open, too

Also, it seems the Zeiss, when wide open, have a bit more CA than the Samyang, resolution I can't tell much difference except under 35mm. The Zeiss 25 and 15 are MUCH more sharp than the Samyang 14 and 24. Above 25mm, the resolution difference isn't anything to really freak out over, either way.

Most vignetting goes away to unnoticable amounts after a stop or two closed down, as does the CA. So I suppose if you aren't too demanding and not always wide open, either set could serve you well. I would go Zeiss for a complete set and name recognition, but if you KNOW you are going to be going wide open all the time, I'd say Samyang is better until you hit 24 and 14mm where the Zeiss will clearly be better.

Tough call.
 
Ryan Patrick O'Hara said:
Just curious:
What is the deal with the names? Are they the same lenses? Same company? I've been thinking they are, but I don't know the back story.
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Same lens. Don't know how the companies are setup, but I assume that Rokinon is just just a sales entity to take the "Asian edge" off the Samyang name. Don't flame. I'm Chinese and I have stigmas against non-Japanese Asian brands.

When Rokinon answers a question, it's probably akin to Canon USA speaking for Canon Japan. Canon USA is basically here to sell Canon Japan's stuff. If you ask them a product roadmap or future development questions, they might answer, but Canon Japan is the one who really knows what's going to happen next.
 
Samyang designs and manufactures lenses. They are sold under many brands: Bower, Rokinon, Opteka, Vivitar, Polar, Falcon... I wouldn't be surprised if these companies had limited info on what lenses Samyang is working on.

Construction is quite good, I really like how they feel. But I haven't tested any modern Zeiss lenses, so I'm not sure how they compare with those.
 
I own 3 Rokinon lenses and I love each of them. I also use other manual lenses and there are plenty of 50mm f 1.4 out there ( I know there might be matching problem but not something a little bit Color grading can't fix). The Samyang/Rokinon lens are plastic, but they're high quality plastic. However, nothing beat an all metal lens. Image wise it has been shown that they're on par with Zeiss.
 
Thanks for all the answers so far, i think i'll be ordering their 85mm T/1.5 lens first since i hear it's one of their best so far.
 
The 24T1.5 is good but not great like the 35/85. I even think the 14T3.1 is good and it's difficult to choose between it and the Tokina 11-16 in Canon mount. Anyways they all are a steal!
 
Osslund said:
The 24T1.5 is good but not great like the 35/85. I even think the 14T3.1 is good and it's difficult to choose between it and the Tokina 11-16 in Canon mount. Anyways they all are a steal!
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I own both lenses, 24mm is an Excellent lens. I actually like it better than the Nokton 25mm for many reasons.... The Nokton is very sharp on the GH2/3 and in certain objects causes aliasing and moire, the same objects the 24mm while being slightly softer does not have this problem. Also the Rokinon being a larger lens is much easier to use with Follow Focus or just manual.
 
The 85mm T1.5 isn't plastic. They are incredibly sharp and very well built lenses, really suprised me how nice they are. The 85mm is awesome.
 
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