Samyang 12mm F2.0 – Black Gold

I bought the Samyang 12mm f2.0 specifically to photograph my apartment as I wanted something wide, sharp and above all, cheap to help me create some marketing buzz. From everything I had read, the Samyang (or Rokinon as it also known) ticked all the boxes, both from it’s reviews and perhaps even more importantly the amount I had to pay to own one. From everything I found out, this was clearly a very good lens despite it’s low cost and while I am not generally known for my interest in ultrawide shots, I assumed that it could serve a purpose beyond interior photography. A few minutes walkabout with this lens confirmed that this was indeed the case, particularly the fact that at f8, everything was practically in focus from 1m to infinity. That makes it an invaluable street lens as you can simple set the focus on something within say, 2 metres away and everything closer and further away will be in focus too.

With regards my marketing shots, the images below are straight out of camera (SOOC) with no post-processing so what I saw through the lens is exactly what you are seeing now . For the record, the camera was a Fujifilm x-t1. Once lockdown is over and we are more freely able to move around I’ll take the lens out again soon and grab some shots, both landscape and local street shots. In the meantime, make you’re own mind up how good or otherwise this lens is from the images above.