This lens isn't easy to use for those used to relying on modern autofocus technology: it is completely manual, saving - to judge from the price - considerable money by not having a focussing motor, image stabilisation or any electrics at all. The downsides of this are considerable: you can't just point it at something, half depress the shutter button to focus and then shoot, and the exif data will lack any information about or from the lens - i.e. focal length, distance, aperture, lens make and model (NB - Walimex have now launched a version containing a chip that sends exif data to the camera, which at the time of writing is an insignificant £10 more than this version; it is still completely manual, however). You have to set the aperture on the lens as well and you can't really do that while looking through the viewfinder, although there's nothing wrong with the aperture ring per se - you just can't see the setting without looking at the side of the lens. It's pretty hard to focus accurately without using live view, though ok for landscapes once you've found infinity. So you may find yourself putting the camera on a tripod quite a lot as that makes live view a lot easier to use.But once you get past these issues, the upsides are considerable - first, it's a very fast lens so you can isolate your subject and get some excellent bokeh, although like virtually all lenses it's a bit soft wide open. Second, the image quality is stunning - worthy of far more expensive lenses. It's very sharp, and spectacularly free of chromatic aberration - I was closely examining some photos with very strong contrast recently, and purple/green fringing was insignificant (narrow and very faint) at 100%; it will be completely invisible when you can see anywhere near the whole photo, even on a really big monitor. I'm assuming this is a result of the extraordinary amount of glass they've put in the thing. It's very solidly built, takes a common filter size (77mm) and comes with a lens hood. There's a nice big and fairly stiff foc

This lens isn't easy to use for those used to relying on modern autofocus technology: it is completely manual, saving - to judge from the price - considerable money by not having a focussing motor, image stabilisation or any electrics at all. The downsides of this are considerable: you can't just point it at something, half depress the shutter button to focus and then shoot, and the exif data will lack any information about or from the lens - i.e. focal length, distance, aperture, lens make and model (NB - Walimex have now launched a version containing a chip that sends exif data to the camera, which at the time of writing is an insignificant £10 more than this version; it is still completely manual, however). You have to set the aperture on the lens as well and you can't really do that while looking through the viewfinder, although there's nothing wrong with the aperture ring per se - you just can't see the setting without looking at the side of the lens. It's pretty hard to focus accurately without using live view, though ok for landscapes once you've found infinity. So you may find yourself putting the camera on a tripod quite a lot as that makes live view a lot easier to use.

But once you get past these issues, the upsides are considerable - first, it's a very fast lens so you can isolate your subject and get some excellent bokeh, although like virtually all lenses it's a bit soft wide open. Second, the image quality is stunning - worthy of far more expensive lenses. It's very sharp, and spectacularly free of chromatic aberration - I was closely examining some photos with very strong contrast recently, and purple/green fringing was insignificant (narrow and very faint) at 100%; it will be completely invisible when you can see anywhere near the whole photo, even on a really big monitor. I'm assuming this is a result of the extraordinary amount of glass they've put in the thing. It's very solidly built, takes a common filter size (77mm) and comes with a lens hood. There's a nice big and fairly stiff focu

I got this at Christmas but didn't get a chance to really use it much until recently. Build quality seems good, obviously don't drop it! Focusing is smooth, aperture clicks fine. Hood is provided. I did a shoot in in a dimly lit house and having a fast aperture of 1.4 saved my bacon. You really need to have live view to be able to use this lens as focusing using the viewfinder is highly inaccurate. It is slow as opposed to Automatic focus so this lens needs to be used mostly for landscape or static shots. Having the aperture set manually also slows down the whole picture taking process as I normally have the lens wide open to focus and then set the aperture, take the photo, check the histogram for the exposure and then retake the photo adjusting the aperture or shutter. Lens image quality is very high but I just seem to feel the colours seem a bit cool but that might just be me. It's not an everyday lens but for certain types of photography it's worth it especially if like me you buy it at a special offer price.

I don't usually write reviews but I felt this product is so good it deserves some love!I bought this lens as I've been looking out for a Samyang 35mm f1.4 for some time and as this is basically made by the same company and rebranded I decided to get it whilst it was reduced. It is easily my fav. lens by a long way.I use it mainly for video work and the aperture is just beautiful. I've found working with a manual focus lens to be a dream however it does take some getting used to so make sure you have considered this prior to purchasing. Build quality is great, almost up to that of an "L" lens and the smoothness of the operation (focus and aperture is great). For those who wish to it is also easy to remove the hard stops in the aperture ring to give a smooth adjustment during use.The lens is quite heavy however this is to be expected for the amount of glass in this lens! It's huge! But worth it for the sheer quality and depth in the images it produces. I've found myself using this as a go to lens and for the money you really can't get better.The included lens hood, caps and bag are an added bonus too although this lens doesn't really need a uv filter or hood as it deals with direct light really well, rarely flaring at all!In summary, not a lens for everyones tastes but personally I love it and will be using it for many years to come!

I don't usually write reviews but I felt this product is so good it deserves some love!

I bought this lens as I've been looking out for a Samyang 35mm f1.4 for some time and as this is basically made by the same company and rebranded I decided to get it whilst it was reduced. It is easily my fav. lens by a long way.

I use it mainly for video work and the aperture is just beautiful. I've found working with a manual focus lens to be a dream however it does take some getting used to so make sure you have considered this prior to purchasing. Build quality is great, almost up to that of an "L" lens and the smoothness of the operation (focus and aperture is great). For those who wish to it is also easy to remove the hard stops in the aperture ring to give a smooth adjustment during use.

The lens is quite heavy however this is to be expected for the amount of glass in this lens! It's huge! But worth it for the sheer quality and depth in the images it produces. I've found myself using this as a go to lens and for the money you really can't get better.

The included lens hood, caps and bag are an added bonus too although this lens doesn't really need a uv filter or hood as it deals with direct light really well, rarely flaring at all!

In summary, not a lens for everyones tastes but personally I love it and will be using it for many years to come!