Shibu George

Well-Known Member
Anyone tried Loxia 35mm or 21mm with Sony for astrophotography? Just wondering how good is it for Astro, I'm just thinking about using the loxia 35mm with A7S for astro pano, any suggestions?
Thanks
 

Bob Israel

Elite Member
The Loxia 21 is works really well for astro. My copy is focuses to infinity at hard stop making it quite easy to use. Corners are great wide open too. Not at home this week so I can't post examples but if 21mm is wide enough, the Loxia is a great choice.
 

JimFox

Moderator
Staff member
The Loxia 21 is works really well for astro. My copy is focuses to infinity at hard stop making it quite easy to use. Corners are great wide open too. Not at home this week so I can't post examples but if 21mm is wide enough, the Loxia is a great choice.
I had heard great things about the Loxia lenses. One can never have too many choices when it comes to lenses to shoot astrophotography with. It would be great to see some samples with the 21mm when you do get back home.
 

Bob Israel

Elite Member
Another solid choice is the Rokinon 14/2.4 SP. This is a much higher quality lens than the 14/2.8. It is hardly talked about any where I can see perhaps because of its price ($900-1000). However, I find it a really good lens for astro and, IMO, much better than the 14/2.8 especially when it comes to quality control.
 

Kyle Jones

Moderator
Another solid choice is the Rokinon 14/2.4 SP. This is a much higher quality lens than the 14/2.8. It is hardly talked about any where I can see perhaps because of its price ($900-1000). However, I find it a really good lens for astro and, IMO, much better than the 14/2.8 especially when it comes to quality control.
I have that lens (for Canon) and love it. Definitely a lot of vignetting at f/2.4 but it looks great at f/2.8. It is a much higher quality lens than the 14/2.8, which I never wanted to use wide open.
 

JimFox

Moderator
Staff member
Another solid choice is the Rokinon 14/2.4 SP. This is a much higher quality lens than the 14/2.8. It is hardly talked about any where I can see perhaps because of its price ($900-1000). However, I find it a really good lens for astro and, IMO, much better than the 14/2.8 especially when it comes to quality control.
I am
Glad you mentioned the 14mm f2.4 from Rokinon/Samyang. It’s one I was looking at last year but was never available for a Nikon mount. In the end I went for the Sigma 14mm f1.8 that I truly love, but it is a lot more money then most of the other Ultra Wides.

I think a better price point for the Rokinon would be around $700. But what do I know? I did enjoy the Samyang 14mm f2.8 for a few years until the lens became decentered, so a better quality lens from Samyang/Rokinon was appealing to me. It just never was available when I was in the market.
 

Bob Israel

Elite Member
I am
Glad you mentioned the 14mm f2.4 from Rokinon/Samyang. It’s one I was looking at last year but was never available for a Nikon mount. In the end I went for the Sigma 14mm f1.8 that I truly love, but it is a lot more money then most of the other Ultra Wides.

I think a better price point for the Rokinon would be around $700. But what do I know? I did enjoy the Samyang 14mm f2.8 for a few years until the lens became decentered, so a better quality lens from Samyang/Rokinon was appealing to me. It just never was available when I was in the market.
Yeah, I agree the price point should really be around $700. Perhaps this is why this lens seems to go under the radar. Samyang/Rokinon have had QC problems in the 14/2.8 series and that hurts their ability to convince folks that spending more on a quality lens with few reviews.
 

Bob Israel

Elite Member
Here's a few star scenes with the Loxia 21. Not the best shots/processing but give you an idea. My lens hits infinity at hard stop so there's no problem with focus to get stars in focus. Focusing foreground elements is pretty easy as well
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s4ducati

Member
Anyone tried Loxia 35mm or 21mm with Sony for astrophotography? Just wondering how good is it for Astro, I'm just thinking about using the loxia 35mm with A7S for astro pano, any suggestions?
Thanks
I just bought a used version of the Loxia 21mm lens today. Should have it Wednesday. Just in time, going to the Eastern Sierra at the end of the week to shoot landscape and astro.

I have been shooting the APS-c versions of the Samyang 24mm f/1.4 on the a6500. Once in focus it took excellent, sharpe pic's a few stops down from wide open. For me there was a learning curve to focus and find the 'sweet spot' of the aperture; plus you need to be diligent in checking any new or used lens for de-centering. I have learned how to do it myself and glad I do.

www.lensrentals.com/blog/author/roger/

That is an excellent paper on how to test and understand checking your lenses without the expensive equipment.

Good luck,

Steve
 

Jim Dockery

Well-Known Member
I'm sure the Loxia 21mm is a great lens, but I went for the 18mm Batis since it got such good reviews (which included astro) and has auto focus for general shooting. Of course that makes it harder to focus at night. The 35mm might not be the best for astro if you want longer exposures without star trails.
 
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