Canon FD's or Rokinon cine?

[Ron Michaels]

Anyone here still shoot with vintage lenses like canon FD? I'm thinking of building a collection, but I'm not sure it's the smart choice. Would Rokinon Cine lenses be the better option? Thanks.

 

[Jeffery Anderson]

Rokinon are cheap... they are not really Cinema Lenses either, they just have gears.

Optics wise, the older glass flares a lot, but is sharp

 

[Ron Michaels]

That's encouraging because I already bought a few vintage FD's.

 

[Alexander Thomson]

I have FDs and Rokinons. The FDs are slow (f/2.8-f/4) but they are classic old lenses... That means character, sharp optics, a "better" image (whatever that means).

The Rokinons are good. Got more than my money out of them but they are a very corporate-interview-y type of lens. Sharp, but breathes a lot, and has some CA.

I think if you're going primes, go for the FDs. You could always sell them for pretty much what you paid for them.

 

[Clint Lealos]

I own both sets. The Canon FDs are built to last and will make beautiful images for at least a couple more decades. The Rokinons are great on paper, but fall short in real life. I've had mechanical issues on almost every lens in the set. Nobody will work on them, and even if they did its probably not financially sustainable. I would choose the FDs over the Rokinons everyday and for any project. There are some super speed lenses in the FD set, but they aren't cheap. Here is what my set looks like with hard EF mounts:

14mm f/2.8 L
20mm f/2.8
24mm f/1.4 L
28mm f/2
35mm f/2
50mm f/1.2 L
85mm f1.2 L
100mm f/2
135mm f/2 L
200mm f2.8

Good luck!

 

[Alexander Thomson]

I own both sets. The Canon FDs are built to last and will make beautiful images for at least a couple more decades. The Rokinons are great on paper, but fall short in real life. I've had mechanical issues on almost every lens in the set. Nobody will work on them, and even if they did its probably not financially sustainable. I would choose the FDs over the Rokinons everyday and for any project. There are some super speed lenses in the FD set, but they aren't cheap. Here is what my set looks like with hard EF mounts:

14mm f/2.8 L
20mm f/2.8
24mm f/1.4 L
28mm f/2
35mm f/2
50mm f/1.2 L
85mm f1.2 L
100mm f/2
135mm f/2 L
200mm f2.8

Good luck!

Damn that set is gorgeous.

 

[Karim D. Ghantous]

Well it seems the best answers have already been given. I was going to suggest that you take two main steps:

1. Compare the looks of each brand, and if you like both, then

2. Compare the performance, such as wide-open CA, edge smearing, focus shift, etc.

The FDs apparently pass all the tests - see above! I personally would choose the FDs, FWIW.

I couldn't care less about 'speed'. We don't have High Speed Ektachrome anymore. I'll take f/1.8 over f/1.2 in any circumstance, assuming that the former lens is not a worse performer than the latter. It's not merely about money - it's about weight, performance, useful DOF, etc. Do all those super fast lenses have flat fields? (Actually what about the slower ones, too?).

Are the FDs colour-matched, within reason? I guess that the focus throw might also not be great, so you'll have to do a full rebuild on at least some of them.

 

[William Long]

I own both sets. The Canon FDs are built to last and will make beautiful images for at least a couple more decades. The Rokinons are great on paper, but fall short in real life. I've had mechanical issues on almost every lens in the set. Nobody will work on them, and even if they did its probably not financially sustainable. I would choose the FDs over the Rokinons everyday and for any project. There are some super speed lenses in the FD set, but they aren't cheap. Here is what my set looks like with hard EF mounts:

14mm f/2.8 L
20mm f/2.8
24mm f/1.4 L
28mm f/2
35mm f/2
50mm f/1.2 L
85mm f1.2 L
100mm f/2
135mm f/2 L
200mm f2.8

Good luck!

Clint, that's a lovely set you got there!
Where did you get your EF mounts?
Thanks

 

[Clint Lealos]

Thanks William! RP lens did the whole cine-mod. It wasn't super fast, but it wasn't super expensive either. Overall I'm pleased with their work. A little sloppy at times, but only minor stuff.

 

[Ron Michaels]

Do SSC lenses decklick? Or only nFD? Thanks.