Tips for Using the Rokinon 7.5mm Fisheye Lens with the Olympus OM-D

Blue Lupine Patch, Indiana Dunes National Park

The Rokinon 7.5mm F3.5 Fisheye Lens for Micro Four Thirds is manufactured by Samyang and is also sold as Samyang and under the name Bower.  The Rokinon is a completely manual lens with manual focus.  The aperture is changed with a ring on the lens (just like the old days).  With the Rokinon, you will need to shoot in manual mode on your camera.

Overall, the lens has a really solid build while remaining small (1.9 inches) and relatively light (6.9 ounces).  What’s really great about this lens is the price.  Amazon lists the lens for $287, while the Panasonic 8mm fisheye lists for more than double the price.

The photos in this blog were taken with the Olympus OM-D E-M1 and the Rokinon 7.5 mm fisheye lens.  Click on the photos for a larger image and more information on the photo.

Rokinon 7.5mm Fisheye Performance

I found the lens to be sharp across the frame.  It is also relatively easy to get the entire image in focus due to the large depth of field by setting the focus to the infinity setting on the focus ring.  I also found only minimal chromatic aberration in the images.  The photos can be rather distorted due to the 180 degree field of view of the lens.  However, the distortion can be corrected in Lightroom or Photoshop if you don’t want that fisheye look.  This should also be a good lens for night star photography

Tips for Using the Rokinon 7.5mm Fisheye Lens

• As you shoot with smaller apertures, the viewfinder becomes darker and hard to focus.  Try focusing first and then stopping down the aperture.
• Focus peaking also still works with the Rokinon and can help with focusing.  I have focus peaking mapped to the fn2 button on the Olympus OM-D E-M1.
• If it is bright outside, focus using the electronic viewfinder.  You can also zoom in using the viewfinder.  I have zoom mapped to the fn1 button on the Olympus OM-D E-M1.
• Zooming in on the LCD screen can also help with manual focus.
• You will need to shoot in manual mode with the Rokinon 7.5mm lens.  Once you set the aperture, adjust the shutter speed and ISO to set the right exposure.
• Once you set the aperture and focus, move your left hand back to the camera body.  This is one short fisheye lens.  This will help prevent your hand from being in the photo.

Written by Martin Belan

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