Samyang 50mm f/1.4 AS UMC

Summary

The Samyang 50mm f/1.4 AS UMC is a solid optical performer — a short telephoto prime (75mm equivalent) with f/1.4 maximum aperture. The lens is priced at approximately ~$500 USD. Please check the official product page for sample images, manuals, and firmware updates.

Genre Suitability

  • Excellent for: Nightscape, Street
  • Adequate for: Landscape, Architecture, Travel
  • Avoid for: Portrait, Sport, Wildlife, Macro

Strengths

  • Negligible distortion

Weaknesses

  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
  • Noticeably soft corners wide open
  • Noticeable spherical aberration wide open
  • Noticeable vignetting wide open
  • Below-average bokeh quality
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight
  • No built-in optical stabilization

Specifications 19/20

Optical construction 9 elements in 6 groups (2 aspherical)
Coating UMC
Focal length50mm
Max aperturef/1.4
Sweet spot f/4
Aperture blades 8
Sunstar points 8 (sharp — straight blades)
Max magnification 0.17x
Min focus distance450mm
AF motorManual focus
OISNo
Weather sealedNo
Aperture ringYes
Clickless apertureNo
Focus ringYes
Focus by wireNo
Distance scaleYes
Rotating frontNo
Tripod mountNo
Weight500g
Diameter81.6mm
Length100.7mm
Filter thread77mm
Year2014

MTF Charts

f/1.4 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 C 5 10 15 20 Image height (mm)
10 lp/mm S 10 lp/mm M 30 lp/mm S 30 lp/mm M
Position 10S 10M 30S 30M
Center 0.90 0.90 0.73 0.74
5mm 0.91 0.91 0.66 0.55
10mm 0.92 0.85 0.49 0.42
15mm 0.96 0.86 0.55 0.47
20mm 0.75 0.91 0.50 0.54
f/8 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 C 5 10 15 20 Image height (mm)
10 lp/mm S 10 lp/mm M 30 lp/mm S 30 lp/mm M
Position 10S 10M 30S 30M
Center 0.99 0.99 0.93 0.92
5mm 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.88
10mm 0.99 0.98 0.96 0.88
15mm 0.99 0.98 0.94 0.81
20mm 0.99 0.89 0.94 0.48

Source: Official manufacturer specifications

Optical Quality 14/14

Center (wide open)
0.5
Corner (wide open)
0.5
Center (stopped)
2.0
Corner (stopped)
1.0
Coma
1.5
Astigmatism
2.0
Spherical aberration
0.5
Longitudinal CA
1.0
Lateral CA
2.0
Distortion
1.5
Vignetting (wide open)
0.5
Vignetting (stopped)
1.5
Bokeh
0.5
Flare resistance
0.0

Sharpness

  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
  • Noticeably soft corners wide open
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
  • Acceptable corner sharpness stopped down

Aberrations

  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration
  • Well-controlled coma
  • Negligible astigmatism
  • Noticeable spherical aberration wide open

Rendering

  • Below-average bokeh quality
  • Noticeable vignetting wide open
  • Vignetting clears well when stopped down
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight

Distortion

  • Minimal distortion

All optical scores are based on lab measurements and field tests from trusted review sources. For details on how we score lenses, see our scoring methodology.

Genre Fit

✓ Nightscape Good ~ Landscape Adequate ~ Architecture Adequate ✓ Street Good ~ Travel Adequate ✗ Portrait Avoid ✗ Sport Avoid ✗ Wildlife Avoid ✗ Macro Avoid

✓ Nightscape Photography 4/5

Nightscape Photography prioritizes coma control, astigmatism correction, and a fast aperture for short star exposures.

Primary
  • Well-controlled coma
  • Negligible astigmatism
  • Fast f/1.4 aperture
Secondary
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration
  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
  • Noticeably soft corners wide open
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Noticeable vignetting wide open
  • Noticeable spherical aberration wide open

~ Landscape Photography 3/5

Landscape Photography prioritizes corner-to-corner sharpness at stopped-down apertures and good flare resistance.

Primary
  • Acceptable corner sharpness stopped down
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
Secondary
  • Minimal distortion
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Vignetting clears well when stopped down
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight
  • Negligible astigmatism
  • Well-controlled coma

~ Architecture Photography 3/5

Architecture Photography prioritizes geometric precision with minimal distortion and even corner sharpness.

Primary
  • Acceptable corner sharpness stopped down
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
  • Minimal distortion
Secondary
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration
  • Vignetting clears well when stopped down
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight

✓ Street Photography 4/5

Street Photography prioritizes sharp stopped-down performance and a fast enough aperture for low light.

Primary
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
  • Fast f/1.4 aperture
Secondary
  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Well-controlled coma

~ Travel Photography 3/5

Travel Photography prioritizes balanced image quality in a lightweight package.

Primary
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
  • Heavy at 500g
Secondary
  • Fast f/1.4 aperture
  • Poor flare resistance — ghosting and veiling flare with backlight
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post

✗ Portrait Photography 2/5

Portrait Photography prioritizes smooth bokeh and critical center sharpness wide open for subject isolation.

Primary
  • Below-average bokeh quality
  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
Secondary
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Noticeable spherical aberration wide open
  • Noticeable vignetting wide open

✗ Sport Photography 2/5

Sport Photography prioritizes sharp wide-open center performance to freeze action at fast shutter speeds.

Primary
  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
Secondary
  • Fast f/1.4 aperture
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration

✗ Wildlife Photography 2/5

Wildlife Photography prioritizes center sharpness across apertures for distant subjects.

Primary
  • Below-average center sharpness wide open
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
Secondary
  • Fast f/1.4 aperture
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration

✗ Macro Photography 2/5

Macro Photography prioritizes stopped-down center sharpness and high magnification for close-up detail.

Primary
  • Outstanding center resolution stopped down
  • Low magnification (0.17x)
Secondary
  • Minimal distortion
  • Negligible lateral chromatic aberration
  • Moderate longitudinal CA, correctable in post
  • Noticeable spherical aberration wide open
  • Below-average bokeh quality

Reviews

LensTip Dustin Abbott

Alternatives

Fujifilm XF 56mm f/1.2 R WR Fujifilm XF 50mm f/2.0 R WR Fujifilm XF 60mm f/2.4 R Macro Viltrox AF 56mm f/1.7 Samyang 50mm f/1.2 AS UMC CS Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR Sigma 17-40mm f/1.8 DC Art Fujifilm XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR II
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