Is this a decent lens?

[Red Squirrel]

Ran across this on Amazon, for the price, that seems really good. Is there maybe something I'm missing?

http://www.amazon.ca/Rokinon-650Z-B-...KFBM3625T6VDS9

I understand the F8-16 stop is probably not optimal but given this would typically be used on a tripod I think I'd be ok. Would be neat to get day nature shots as well as night space (moon, etc) shots. Will this lens be good for that?

These are typically in the thousands, even 10's of thousands, so I'm just wondering what is the main differences are and if it's something that I will notice as an amateur.

Guessing I would need this too?

http://www.amazon.ca/Fotodiox-Mount...m_sbs_p_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=1Y0AV9NNGGVC7829VA8K

 

[Throckmorton]

It's cheap because it has no autofocus and is a lot smaller than a long length lens with lower f stops

Rokinon seems to be a good brand. It's made by Samyang in Korea which is more than you can say for most other lenses which are made in China!

 

[Red Squirrel]

Hmm I can live with that. Also what do I need to mount it on the tripod, I don't know if it actually comes with anything. I imagine it would be too much stress on the camera to mount the camera directly with nothing supporting the lens. Though it looks like there may be a spot on it to mount, it does not say if that's what it's for though.

I caved in, just bought it. I'm hoping to get it before April 14 but it says the ETA is that date. Suppose to be a lunar eclipse that day. Will be awesome if I can use it for that if it's not too cold out.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

It uses a t-mount according to B&H. That aside, is doesn't come with a traditional lens-mounted mount.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Oh ok, so that T-mount adapter I linked to is what I need? (I have a Nikon D7000)

Also for the tripod, what accessory do I need to mount it?

 

[imported_Irse]

What type of tripod system do you have? You may have to wait until you get it to determine what will hold it.

Let me know how you like it. May be good for whale watching here in Hawaii. Just set it to focus at infinity and it should be good.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Just a standard tripod with the screw, but it's detachable so I usually leave that part on the camera.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I finally got the lens and the ring to attach it to my Nikon camera, it's pretty decent for the price, of course it's not comparable to a 10k+ pro lens but for amateur stuff it will be good enough. I did not want to bring it outside in the snow/rain crap that's falling on and off so I just tested it from inside the house.













These are unedited straight from the camera. It's a bit washed out given I was going through a window. It's hard to keep it from moving though, just me moving my body around made it move enough, and the actual action of the shutter also makes it shake. I imagine they make heavier duty tripods for this purpose, or I can probably set a weight on it. I took a few pics of trees while just holding it and it was actually not too bad. I imagine on a sunny day you could get away just holding it to take nature shots and what not.

I can't wait till summer so I can use it outside and go in the bush and stuff or just get space shots from the field outside.

One downside is I cannot adjust the aperture but that's not really a huge issue for a telephoto lens, you typically want the widest possible anyway.

 

[CuriousMike]

I'll be curious to see how it works in good light.
It's a monster.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Yeah can't wait to have a sunny day and try it. Probably in June/July some time I'll be able to take it out for real.

 

[AViking]

What's the deal with the mount? You have to buy the attachment for Nikon or Canon separately?

 

[Red Squirrel]

Yeah, guess it's meant to be universal, so it uses a threaded mount, then you buy the proper threaded attachment to fit your camera.

 

[finbarqs]

use the mirror lock up function. Helps reduce shutter movement. Straight out of camera shots are almost pointless anyways, it's always gonna be the flattest most non-biased image you can get. don't worry about that. As long as you have good focus, no motion, you'll be good to go!