Web Reviews: The New Nikon 85 1.8G

Jezzce

Senior Member
The only reason, I will get a non AI, AI, AIS, or D lens, is they will be better for using on the mirrorless camera. I do buy AI, AIS, or D lenses, but the newer lens design is better for newer camera.
 

Mister

New member
I have the Nikon D7000 and this 16MP camera is very, very, picky when it comes to lenses, and it seems to LOVE the Rokinon. The photos come out extremely sharp. The newer Nikon lenses are comming out very good, GLASS wise, the constuction sucks!! I refuse to spend $500 on a lens costruction as the new 1.8G. I did buy the Nikon 35mm 1.8G but that's because i sold the older and much much less sharp 35mm f/2 lens and with that money i spent the $199, but that's about it, i know how cheap these newer lenses are mechanically, they wont last that long as the older ones.

I love Nikon, but the Rokinon IS a high quality lens. Trust me, i feel better having a high quality lens for $299 then a $1200 Zeiss lens that performs nearly the same or just as equal, and the rest of the money, well, i can buy a ton more things i want :)

Name brands don't make me feel any better. Some people feel and think they are more "important" if they drive in a BMW or Mercedez, but at a fraction of the cost a Hyundai Genesis performs and feels just as good, or even better.
 
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Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
I have the Nikon D7000 and this 16MP camera is very, very, picky when it comes to lenses, and it seems to LOVE the Rokinon. The photos come out extremely sharp! I don't know how a cheaper built, newer lens would beat this lens. By the way, I love Nikon, but the Rokinon IS a high quality lens. Trust me, i feel better having a high quality lens for $299 then a $1600 Zeiss lens that performs nearly the same or just as equal, and the rest of the money, well, i can buy a ton more things i want :)

Name brands don't make me feel any better. Some people feel and think they are more "important" if they drive in a BMW or Mercedez, but at a fraction of the cost a Hyundai Genesis performs and feels just as good, or even better.

I checked out ebay for this lens and the only one at $299 was refurbished. Was yours refurbished as well? At that price, I'm very much tempted to just get it.
 

Mister

New member
No Marcel, i got it brand new from Amazon. Like i said, the price already went up just a bit. You wont be sorry if you get it. trust me. I myself, was not sure is this would be a good idea either, i said to myself if i didnt like it i will just return it and get the new Nikon 1.8G. I do not regreat it at all! But than again you are you and you might not like manual focus, so you might end up returning it. With manual focus you will miss some shots as i have, so what? I also miss photos using Auto Focus. A manual lens will teach you to pay way more attention, to be patient and be more artistic. With a manual lens YOU will decide WHAT you want to focus and HOW, and not the camera. It is pretty neat!
 
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Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
No Marcel, i got it brand new from Amazon. Like i said, the price already went up just a bit. You wont be sorry if you get it. trust me. I myself, was not sure is this would be a good idea either, i said to myself if i didnt like it i will just return it and get the new Nikon 1.8G. I do not regreat it at all!

Thanks. My hesitation comes from the fact that I already have the 85 1.8 D, and a few lenses that can also cover that focal length. So, I'm not so sure I want to spend just to spend. After all, I'm not making one single penny out of this. It's just for fun.
 

Mister

New member
I know exactly how you feel, people are so cheap they dont want to pay for a good photographer now a days.
I have offered to do several weddings and i am practically offering to do it for free and they still don't want to.

What other lenses of the same focal range do you already have? By the way, I sold my 1.8D also, for $350. More than what i paid for the Rokinon! How awesome is that!!
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
I know exactly how you feel, people are so cheap they dont want to pay for a good photographer now a days.
I have offered to do several weddings and i am practically offering to do it for free and they still don't want to.

What other lenses of the same focal range do you already have? By the way, I sold my 1.8D also, for $350. More than what i paid for the Rokinon! How awesome is that!!

You've convinced me. It's ordered and I should get it monday. I'll have to start selling stuff now. The 1.8D is probably the first one that I will try to sell.
 

jcottone45

Senior Member
You've convinced me. It's ordered and I should get it monday. I'll have to start selling stuff now. The 1.8D is probably the first one that I will try to sell.
Marcel, some where along the way I didn't get the exact lens is it the Rokinon 85mm1.8 ??? I am interested my self, is it a FX or DX lens???Please let me know. Thanks
 

Marcel

Happily retired
Staff member
Super Mod
Marcel, some where along the way I didn't get the exact lens is it the Rokinon 85mm1.8 ??? I am interested my self, is it a FX or DX lens???Please let me know. Thanks

If you mean the one I'll be selling, it's a Nikkor 1.8D. It is a FX and DX lens. The one I'm getting is 1.4 manual focus.
 

jcottone45

Senior Member
I know exactly how you feel, people are so cheap they dont want to pay for a good photographer now a days.
I have offered to do several weddings and i am practically offering to do it for free and they still don't want to.

What other lenses of the same focal range do you already have? By the way, I sold my 1.8D also, for $350. More than what i paid for the Rokinon! How awesome is that!!
I have a number of older Nikon lenses & have had very good luck with them & am not afraid to spend extra for better quality if indeed it is better quality. 3 of my older lenses are more than 33 years old & still going & one of them is a Vivitar lens that I refuse to part with.!!! So I get your drift about this Rokinon lens. Good luck with it.!!! Growing old with a trusted lens & camera is almost as good as growing old with my better half only it doesn't talk back!!!!
 

Mister

New member
Yeah! Definitely! I posted reviews in other forums and some people get pissed when i tell them about this lens, what it does and i have compared it to, and what i have SEEN not heard, what i know, and they think this lens is not better than what they have. I guess some people get very angry and jealous when you tell them how much money they have spent on their lenses, and when you bring up this little $300 puppy and you say that it performs the same or BETTER, that's when they can't take it. Oh well! That is why i got this lens instead of the new Nikon 85 1.8G, because it will outperform it for MANY MANY YEARS :)

By the way, this Rokinon can be used on FX or DX. Tons of people that have D3's and D700 have found this jewel and they can't believe it either.
 
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jcottone45

Senior Member
Thanks I appreciate your reply. I've run into that situation in the past with the vivitar I mentioned, 33 years ago I bought because I couldn't afford the Nikon zoom, but the vivitar has served me very well, I haven't used it for a long time but its there if I need it. On my D300s the 210 mm zoom becomes a 315mm zoom becuase of the crop factor.So it stays right where it is. I like it better than the series E zoom by nikon that I now have because of it's F3.8 aperture where as the series e is F4 both weight the same but the vivitar has another advantage 33 years ago it was called a close focus feature nowadays macro/micro feature it acts like a microscpoe.!!!used it many times in the last 33 years too.!!!
 

amonamarth

Senior Member
No, what the chip also does is it gives you the option to simply change the apperture on the camera dials, as well as the shutter speeds also, i believe, not sure about that one, i haven't mess around with that yet. In another words, you dont have to change those settings from the lens itself by rotating the apperture ring on the lens.
there are tons of reviews on this lens, you can also check reviews from Amazon.

You can check some walk around photos from this Rokinon lens at: www.flickr.com/photos/mistermejia


Mister: Thanks for the information, very useful. Here are some follow up question if you don't mind.
1) how do confirm focus then, just "by eye"? Is there some kind of way for a D7000 to electronically confirm you've achieved focus? bhphoto says:
Chip Allows Focus Confirm, Auto Modes
 

Mister

New member
Recently I started doing it mostly by eye and stopped looking at the dot TOO MUCH. You need to understand that if you are about to take a photo of a "moment", or something that is about to pass by you, you better be ready to just shoot at it. If you just keep starring at the confirmation dot, forget it! You'll never get shots. Unless the subject will wait for you or if you are shooting in really low light where you can barely see the subject, then you can look at the dot to see if you are in focus.

I would say that between 1.4 and 2.8 the dept of field is so shallow that sometimes, even with the confirmation dot the photo might come out blurry. But with time you will get used to it and you will get better and better at it. You'll be able to know how your camera and lens behave together to achieve focused photos. It is very easy. Is kind of hard to explain, you'll understand what i am saying when you first get your lens.
 
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amonamarth

Senior Member
I think I understand. Thanks.
My plan is to use this lens not so much to capture "the moment" but for creative shots; so I'm thinking I can probably take some time to focus.
 

Mister

New member
For FASTER action i use my other Nikon AF lenses, but dont get me wrong, you can definitely catch moments with the lens, i am not saying all you are going to get is laim photos, it has an incredible bokeh, you just have to be on the look out.

I will be attending a friend's wedding next month, i cant wait!! :)
 
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