Outstanding value!

Timmbits wrote:

eFilm wrote:

Thanks for the mini-review. Sounds like an interesting lens, especially when considering the price. It probably is one of the lenses that make the whole NX system more attractive to newcomers.

Although the manual focusing sounds like a big bummer.

I wonder if all the NX primes behave the same way? I also wonder if the manual focus ring is at least linear, 1:1 type, rather than dynamic, like in some Sony lenses? Both types are almost useless in video use, but the dynamic type is both useless and annoying.

It is the same for the 30mm f2 that I own. But I don't consider it a deal-breaker, because as you can witness, it didn't prevent me from buying the 45mm.

Yeah, well, I figured because of the iFN feature, they all are likely to behave the same way, but technically it could be done without losing the traditional manual focus feel, as demonstrated by Fuji and Sigma in some of their lenses. At least in theory. That's why I wondered if the pricier NX lenses were like that.

I do not know what you mean by line an versus dynamic - but even if I make the assumption that dynamic would be like on a logarithmic scale, I couldn't answer that, because nothing is telling me what the distance increments are, when I turn the ring. If my assumption is wrong, and it were just speed-sensitive, I'm not sure... I don't think so.

Suppose speed-sensitive is indeed a better expression. What I meant by dynamic rather than linear was that, in some new Sony lenses, for example, turning the focus ring in different speeds results to different focusing behaviour, and the downside of that is that you cannot use the focus ring for reliable focus pulls. The focus ring won't give you real visual clues of where the focus will be.

Whereas in a 'linear' system where the focus ring is directly coupled to the focusing elements of the lens, (albeit with a "clutch" between them, to allow manual override of the AF, for example), and turning the focusing ring works just like that of a fully manual lens, with a nice 'linear' feel, making it possible to do actual focus pulls.

In my Sigma 150mm macro lens, for example, when I put in MF mode, the lens will behave just like it was a real manual lens, including the distance scale and hard stops on both ends of the focusing range. The focus ring will keep on turning beyond the hard stop if you turn it, but you can feel and hear the focus hitting the end of the focusing scale, and the focusing stops there, thanks to the 'clutch' built in the focus ring. Some Fuji XF lenses have the same kind of system, when you pull the focusing ring into manual focus mode. I like that.

So, I'm still curious to know if some of the new, more premium NX lenses have the same kind of focus clutch and hard stops built in them, (I would think/hope they do), or are they all like the 45mm lens, with no manual focus 'feel' whatsoever. If someone can confirm that, please feel free to chime in.

Unless you're trying to photograph bugs on a branch, where you have to go from focus very afar to closest - but how often do you do that? I would be more concerned how the 60mm macro lens performs in such situations (which I don't own, thus can't comment).

Manual focus fulfills it's purpose quite adequately, when you want to make quick, minute adjustments to the distance chosen by AF when in AF mode, where the camera's on-screen tools, namely the 5X/7X on-screen enlargement, or the sharpness-peak bar, are of help (I think that is model-dependent though, as some may offer focus-peaking).

My concern about the manual focus was mostly related to video shooting, where proper manual focus is a must. Yes, I agree, AF with manual override is indeed nice when shooting stills. But when we'll start shooting 4K video with the NX1, for example, proper and accurate manual focus will be absolutely essential.

Therefore, based on your review above, if you are going to buy the NX1 and shoot 4K video with it, you'd better be prepared to invest in the manual Samyang cine lenses, too, or to some other third party manual lenses with an adaptor. At least as long as the 30 to 45mm focal length range is concerned.

No such concerns when shooting photos, of course, and for that the 45mm still sounds like a nice bargain, and the dodgy manual focus doesn't really matter.