Lost in the headlines surrounding Photokina 2012 that dealt mainly with two huge releases from the big two of cameras, namely the Nikon D600 and Canon 6D, there was a lens that created quite the buzz among serious shooters: the Rokinon 24mm f3.5 tilt-shift. Unfortunately, at the time, there were no specifics on the lens, just news that it would be coming down the pipeline in the future.
Well, the future has arrived.
Yesterday, Rokinon announced the pricing and availability of the new optic. The T-S 24mm f3.5 ED AS UMC, as it will officially be known, will hit the United States market in May or a suggested retail price of $1299. the lens will be available in Canon, Nikon, ans Sony mounts.
For people who don't know what a tilt-shift lens is, basically, such a lens allows one to bend the lens up/down and left/right in order to eliminate distortion created by a traditional lens (and the need to correct in Photoshop). The new Rokinon will offer 12 degrees of tilt (up and down) and 8.5 degrees of shift (left-right) movement. While nothing new in itself, such a lens coming from Rokinon is quite the bargain as the company has quickly built a reputation for offering manufacturer-grade optics at a fraction of manufacturer prices. Yes, $1299 is not cheap, but it will sting one's bank account a lot less than a similar manufacturer product.
So, want one yet?
Before buying, if you don't know what a tilt-shift lens does, its best to probably skip it as these are specialty optics for very advanced shooters. For the rest of us, there are far cheaper autofocusing lenses to play with.
Still your cup of tea?
For anyone looking to buy a Rokinon 24 T-S in the Cleveland area? Unfortunately, Cleveland-based Dodd Camera, with its downtown superstore and many smaller Cleveland metro area chain stores in the Cuyahoga County area do not carry Rokinon, which means that, to buy this product, one will have to look online.
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