Trying to decide between 2 lenses

tnp · May 5, 2014

I was going to buy the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8, but I see Rokinon has just come out with a 10mm f/2.8 in the same price range.

Any opinions as to which one I should buy? I'm a beginner and mostly do landscapes, sunsets and astrophotography and I have a Canon EOS Rebel T3i crop sensor.

Anyone know which one is sharper and which one would have less lens flare in sunlight?

Is the 1mm difference between the two a big difference on a crop sensor?

snerd · May 5, 2014

True story.................. not 15 minutes ago I ordered the Canon 10-22!!!!!!!!!

I have no experience with any of these lenses. But my second choice was the Sigma 10-22. You may want to look at that one too.

tnp · May 5, 2014

Thanks, snerd. I looked at that one too, but I need a faster lens, at least f/2.8 for the type of astrophotography I want to do.

snerd · May 5, 2014

Cool. I'm sure some folks will be along shortly with good advice. Good luck!!

Solarflare · May 5, 2014

Well ... thats really your own choice, is it not ?

The zoom has a very good name.

The other lens obviously is brand new, thus nobody knows how good or bad it is.

tnp · May 5, 2014

Solarflare said:
Well ... thats really your own choice, is it not ?

Yes, but it helps to have opinions from people who have used the lenses.

The other lens obviously is brand new, thus nobody knows how good or bad it is.

Yes, it's new, but it's been available for purchase for over a month, so I thought maybe someone here has already tried it, which is why I asked.

grafxman · May 5, 2014

CdTSnap · May 5, 2014

TOKINA!!! (in a bad Japanese accent)

tnp · May 5, 2014

Thanks, grafxman and CdTSnap. Thanks for the sample images, grafxman. Nice shots!

Yes, the Rokinon is manual focus. This doesn't bother me, because I use manual focus for my landscapes, and when I'm not doing landscapes I would probably have my autofocus kit lens on the camera.

I did find out today that the Rokinon doesn't accept filters, which could be a deciding factor. I don't use filters right now, but eventually I want to try some water photography and I might want to use a polarizer. On the other hand, that extra 1mm sounds very tempting for milky way pics. I'd get both if I could.

Scatterbrained · May 5, 2014

You won't be using a polarizer too much on an ultra wide angle lens, you end up getting an uneven effect due to the very wide area of sky in the frame. Rokinon does have a filter kit they released for their 14mm 2.8, I wonder if it would fit the 10mm? Granted it's Euro only right now.

Beyond that, as has been pointed out, the 11-16 is going to be more versatile than the 10mm. It's only 5mm of zoom, but at the wide end every mm is significant.

snerd · May 5, 2014

Scatterbrained said:
You won't be using a polarizer too much on an ultra wide angle lens, you end up getting an uneven effect due to the very wide area of sky in the frame. Rokinon does have a filter kit they released for their 14mm 2.8, I wonder if it would fit the 10mm? Granted it's Euro only right now. Beyond that, as has been pointed out, the 11-16 is going to be more versatile than the 10mm. It's only 5mm of zoom, but at the wide end every mm is significant.

I was also wondering about a CPL on the ultrawide 10-22.......... they're just not used because of distortion? I use one most of the time on my 17-55. Sorry tnp, not to hijack your thread.

Dao · May 6, 2014

The issue is not distortion, it is the uneven light distribution with the filter. With the Ultrawide angle lens, the effect of the CPL varies across the frame.

As for the Ultrawide angle lens, I have the Sigma 10-20mm . And if I do not mind spending extra money, I will go with Canon.

tnp · May 6, 2014

Thanks, Scatterbrained and Dao. No problem with the hijack, snerd. It's all good information to have.

shaylou · May 6, 2014

Isn't the Tokina a fish eye lens? I'm almost positive it is. I rented one when I had my crop body and had fun with it . You really need to understand what you are buying before jumping into it . I would do some more research if I were you .

grafxman · May 7, 2014

shaylou said:
Isn't the Tokina a fish eye lens? I'm almost positive it is. I rented one when I had my crop body and had fun with it . You really need to understand what you are buying before jumping into it . I would do some more research if I were you .

It's not a fisheye lens. The Tokina 11-16mm 2.8 is a very sharp, wide angle zoom. I think the sample photo links I provided above should provide sufficient information.