Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 RF / Z review

The Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 is a budget-friendly 85mm prime lens that's perfect for your Nikon Z or Canon R camera

Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 RF / Z review (aka Rokinon 14mm F2.8 RF and Rokinon 14mm F2.8 Z)
(Image: © Matthew Richards)

Digital Camera World Verdict

It might have no bells and even fewer whistles when it comes to automation, but this entirely manual Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 lens for Canon EOS R-series and Nikon Z-series mirrorless full-frame bodies really delivers in terms of image quality. It’s an absolute steal at the price, and you might just enjoy discovering (or rediscovering) the art of manual focusing and aperture control.

Pros

  • +

    Wide f/1.4 aperture rating

  • +

    Tactile controls

  • +

    Great for portraiture

Cons

  • -

    Manual focus only

  • -

    No aperture control from camera

  • -

    Nikon Z 6 and Z 7 IBIS not automatically available

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A good portrait lens is high on the wish list for most photographers investing in a full-frame camera, so a budget friendly lens like the Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 will likely be a crowd pleaser. With the tight depth of field enabled by an 85mm f/1.4 lens, and the relative lack of focusing aids in the viewfinders of digital SLRs, a manual-focus lens tends to be outside our comfort zone.

 But things are a bit different on a mirrorless camera. Focus peaking comes to your aid, especially in critical compositions where, for example, you want to focus on the closer eye of a person in a portrait shot. This makes the Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 a viable proposition.

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Matthew Richards

Matthew Richards is a photographer and journalist who has spent years using and reviewing all manner of photo gear. He is Digital Camera World's principal lens reviewer – and has tested more primes and zooms than most people have had hot dinners! 

His expertise with equipment doesn’t end there, though. He is also an encyclopedia  when it comes to all manner of cameras, camera holsters and bags, flashguns, tripods and heads, printers, papers and inks, and just about anything imaging-related. 

In an earlier life he was a broadcast engineer at the BBC, as well as a former editor of PC Guide.