Samyang Rokinon 12mm First Shots

WA State Capitol – 12mm, 1/20 @ f/11

I just got my first manual focus lens for the Canon EF mount, made by Samyang (Rokinon brand) from Korea. This is a 12mm f/2.8 with 180 degrees angle of view (on a full frame dSLR).  I was thinking about the 14mm, but I have a 16-35mm Canon lens, and opted to go with something more extreme.

With the photo above, I used -1 EV exposure compensation to avoid blowing out the sunset part of the sky.  I reason that I’m not going for an obvious HDR look, and it really was getting dark, so allowing the dark areas of the photo stay fairly dark is realistic and adds to the mood of the picture.

WA State Capitol – 12mm, 1/8 @ f/11

Both the above photos had some manual correction done in Lightroom to straighten the curving lines, but this second photo with the lens tilted up at the tall building creates more distortion and bowing of straight lines, which is typical of a fisheye lens.  When you do this correction you lose some of the edges of your photo, if you want to keep them straight.

WA State Capitol – 12mm, 1/8 @ f/11

Here it’s even more obvious that while the Capitol building in the center looks okay, the framing buildings are bowing and tilting dramatically.  If I did any more correction, I would nearly lose those buildings entirely.  Wouldn’t be a bad thing to lose the photo bomber hand on the right.

As for operation, the lens is manual focus and has an aperture ring. No auto focus, no camera control of aperture setting.  But anything beyond 6 feet away, focusing at infinity seems to get the best results.  Setting the camera to aperture priority mode (Tv on a Canon) and turning the lens ring to set lens opening is easy enough.  It does darken the viewfinder, though not enough that you couldn’t see to compose.  I had my camera on a tripod and used Live View mode to compose using the back screen.

WA State Capitol – 12mm, 10 sec @ f/11

This is a few minutes later, after the sun had set.  I’m impressed with how sharp this lens is.  I got mine for around $350, so I wasn’t expecting a lot.  It’s amazing how much of a scene you can squeeze into a standard photo like this.  But you have to be careful.  Too much detail spoils a photo so choosing the right shots to use this lens is important.  I took some shots in my back yard that were downright boring.

WA State Capitol – 12mm, 15 sec @ f/11

Finally, here’s one photo with no distortion correction.  Odd how straight the Capitol roof is, yet the flag poles seem to be bending to kiss each other.  And the flat drive in front of the steps is curved.

So the Samyang 12mm 2.8 for full frame cameras seems great to me and I’m not sorry I spent the money.  It should provide lots of unique perspectives in the future!

Northwest Trek Predators

Golden Eagle – 300mm, 1/750 @ f/5.6

For those of us who can’t spend thousands on an African Safari, places like Northwest Trek near Eatonville, Washington provide a way to get close to wildlife without spending days in a blind, hoping for something interesting to pass by.  I took the family here a couple weeks ago. My favorite animals are the predators, but because the massive enclosure sizes to let animals roam a bit more than your typical zoo, sometimes it’s hard to see them.

Lynx @ NW Trek – 300mm, 1/250 @ f/5.6

The cats were resting in the back of their enclosures, so even at 300mm I had to crop this photo so much it wouldn’t be worth using for a print.  Still, good lighting and I managed to get their eyes.  Animal photos usually aren’t worth anything unless the eyes are sharp.

Cougar @ NW Trek – 300mm, 1/180 @ f/5.6

Cougars are some of the most graceful, regal, magnificent animals.  Most of the shots I got of this one, his brows shadowed his eyes.  This one shot he tilted his head up to watch a bird and I got the light in his eyes.

Wildlife photography is not my forte, but it’s fun to dabble in it once in awhile.

Portland Mountains

Mt Hood from Portland, OR – 95mm, 1/45 @ f/8.0

I took a business trip to Portland, Oregon for a couple days in February, and of course brought my camera along.  Didn’t get a lot of great shots, but I like this one of Mt Hood from the hill above the southern downtown area.  These photos were both taken right at sundown.

Mt St Helens from Portland – 146mm, 1/60 @ f/8.0

While Mt Hood is actually in Oregon, Mt St Helens seen in the second photo is in Washington State.  You can see the Willamette River and some of the bridges that span it.

One thing that strikes me from looking at these two photos is that Portland was founded in a relatively large flat area.  Probably by design.  Easy expansion. Ships can reach it from the Pacific Ocean via the Columbia River, but it’s a good hour drive to the ocean so not the most convenient port.

I’ve been on more outings recently, and doing more than just working, eating, and sleeping, so I have some photos to post now.

McLane Nature Trail – Winter

I took a weekend hike at a local wildlife preserve, McLane Creek Nature Trail.  Not a long hike, but I am always amazed at what I find in this part of Washington State in the dead of winter!

McLane Pond – 16mm, 1/350 @ f/5.6

Morning light is always a different quality than afternoon light.  Looks cooler and more fresh.

McLane Boardwalk – 70mm, 1/250 @ f/8

This board walk over the swampy areas was glazed with ice.  I was slipping and skating, trying not to fall and land on my camera backpack. I saw some seniors out walking and warned them.  I know once you get older it doesn’t take much to injure yourself in a fall.  But at the same time, the older people out walking everyday are much, much less likely to be injured in a fall.

Downy Woodpecker – 300mm, 1/90 @ f/8

This little woodpecker was resting not far from the trail.  He was perfectly still and didn’t move a muscle while I had the camera pointed at him.

Dirty Eagle – 300mm, 1/1500 @ f/5.6

This bald eagle was sitting high in a tree above me, his head and tail feathers dirty with mud. I couldn’t tell when I took the photo, but after cropping it in post, I was surprised to see that he was literally keeping an eye on me.

Winter Leaves – 300mm, 1/250 @ f/5.6

This is what I mean, it’s amazing to see so many plants growing in the middle of winter.  But I guess these vines are pretty hardy, and Olympia’s winter isn’t that harsh compared to other northern cities in the United States.

Nisqually Nat. Wildlife Ref.-Winter

Resting Heron – 300mm, 1/80 @ f/5.6

I’ve been to Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge many times because it’s right down the road from my house.  It’s a fun challenge to try to find new compositions each time I go to a familiar place.  This is probably the first time I’ve gone in January.

I am also getting better about being critical of my own photos.  I took a lot of photos of birds this last time, but only the one above has any artistic value, in my opinion.  Nice lighting, bird isn’t a tiny blip in the photo, being backlit helps the subject stand out from the background, etc.

Rainier over Nisqually – 252mm, 1/90 @ f/5.6

I should probably point out that this is basically a snap shot.  If I was going to do a shot like this justice, I’d put it on a tripod to eliminate camera shake, shoot with aperture around f/13, manually focus with Live View.  But I was walking with the family and church friends, and the amazing image stabilization in the EF 70-300mm EF/4-5.6L saved another shot.  I like the layers in this shot, going from muddy beach to open water to frozen water to tree line to another tree line to sky and mountain.

Icy Fields – 93mm, 1/125 @ f/8

Nisqually Sky – 16mm, 1/60 @ f/8

The sun was just setting during this last shot, at 4:30 PM.  But I am learning that the dramatic lighting resulting from low winter sun in the afternoons means I can get more pleasing lighting earlier in the day.

Inside Bryce Canyon

Looking Up in Bryce – 16mm, 1/15 @ f/13

I was busy looking for canyon rim overlooks, to get those wide sweeping views.  But my Dad, who was my companion on this trip, suggested we take a quick walk down into the canyon.  Am I glad he did! This place is full of unique scenery, whether you’re looking down on it from the rim, or you’re down in the middle of it.  This hike was a loop that took us about an hour, stopping to take lots of photos.

Bryce Path – 21mm, 1/60 @ f/11

Shooting into the sun is always tricky. I gave up trying to shade the lens with my hand and just let it flare.  The hood for the EF 16-35mm f/4 lens doesn’t help when you’re turned almost directly to the sun.

Reaching for the Sun – 31mm, 1/4 @ f/13

I got so excited shooting that I didn’t pay attention to my ridiculously slow shutter speed.  Image stabilization saved my bacon!  Well, I’m a vegetarian, so really, I just ended up with a reasonably sharp photo.  I was just amazed by this tall tree growing out of the bottom of the canyon and reaching to the top, where the few needles gathered the sunlight.

The Hoodoos – 16mm, 1/20 @ f/13

What a unique area!  Even the landscape surrounding Bryce Canyon National Park seems ordinary high desert compared to this place.

Bryce Towers – 16mm, 1/60 @ f/11

Before I went there, I did a fair amount of research online, trying to learn the best places to go and how to make the best use of the short time I had.  But standing in a place like this, in person, is a completely different experience from looking at photos on a computer screen.

Bryce Dawn

Dawn on Bryce Canyon – 25mm, 0.5 sec @ f/16

I made a point to get to Bryce Canyon for sunset on Saturday and stay overnight for sunrise the next morning.  This photo was taken just after 6:30 AM, and the sun had not quite risen.  Only a few other photographers around the lookout point.  It was actually a lot darker than it looks here.

Bryce Canyon at Sunrise – 24mm, 2 sec @ f/16

Here the sun was just touching the “hoodoos” as it rose past the horizon.  My technique in shooting these shots was to use a tripod, set the camera to “Live View” so I see a preview on the back screen, then magnifying 10 times to focus manually.  Autofocus is pretty good, but not as precise as using this manual method.  When shooting landscapes, you have time to do this. It does not work for sports photography or even weddings.

I also used a wired remote to avoid bumping or shaking the camera with my hands while triggering the shutter.

Evening Rainbow over Bryce Canyon – 16mm, 1/20 @f/8

This photo was taken the night before.  I got to the canyon just as the sun was setting. The clouds hid the sunset, but then I was lucky enough to catch this rainbow.

I think visiting in November was perfect, because not too many people were there, and it was a very comfortable temperature during the day.  Freezing cold at 6 AM!  There were several lookouts along the canyon rim, and I got some great photos from them.  But next post I’ll put up some of the photos I got from down inside the canyon.