Samyang AF 85mm f/1.4 EF review

The lens produced a poor set of resolution results wide open. As the solid red line on the chart shows, sharpness improves considerably by stopping down to f/2.8, with centre sharpness peaking around f/5.6. The Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art and Canon EF 85mm f/1.4L IS USM produce sharper results wide open and deliver far superior edge sharpness. Corner sharpness gradually improves to where it peaks between f/5.6 and f/8.

Shading

Uncorrected corner shading at f/1.4

Uncorrected corner shading at f/2.8

Using the lens wide open at f/1.4 results in the corners of images appearing about 1.6EV darker than the centre. By f/2.8 corner shading is less severe and unrecognisable in real-world images. At the time of testing a lens profile was unavailable, but the profile for Samyang’s 85mm f/1.4 AS IF UMC lens was effective at correcting corner shading.

Curvilinear Distortion

Uncorrected curvilinear distortion, 1.2% TV SMIA

Our test shot was taken from a distance of 2m and shows that the lens exhibits minor pincushion distortion. You may notice this in images where straight lines are placed along the edges of the frame, but in most cases you won’t notice it and will be able to get away without correcting for it.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7