The Samyang AF 50mm f/1.4 FE (aka Rokinon) is one of the first third-party full format lenses that were released for Sony FE cameras - thus it's about time for us to have a look whether it's worth it. In a typical Samyang fashion, they are tackling the market from a value perspective. You can purchase the lens for as little as 500USD/EUR - which is a third of what you'd have to pay for Sony's own Zeiss Planar T* FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA. To be honest though - that Zeiss lens has a mad price tag to start with but it leaves the market wide-open to such alternative offerings.

The build quality of the AF 50mm f/1.4 FE is very good. The lens body is made of metal ( aluminum-alloy) including the focus ring. Weather-sealing is not provided. While it has a slightly matte finish, it is rather slippery. The focus ring operates smoothly. A petal-shaped lens hood is part of the package. This may sound all fine but it still lacks the final refinement which would make it a true premium offering,

The AF motor is reasonably fast without being a true speed demon though. It's also near silent. Manual focusing works by-wire - as usual. The manual focus action is fairly coarse although that's probably not an issue for most users.