Review on Samyang SY300M FX S Mirrorless Interchangeable Cameras by Rip Twin

Preliminary review, I will update once I have more experience with this lens: I bought my first SLR in the mid 1960's and was fascinated by (among other things) the then mirror lenses on the market. These were 500mm f8 lenses that looked huge and were made in Eastern Europe or Russia. While they were something of a novelty, the idea of having a lens with such a long focal length in such a compact body appealed particularly to bird lovers, or anyone who wanted a long focal length without carrying size and bulk. Bazooka weight. I shoot with Fujifilm mirrorless cameras these days and the Fuji lenses are excellent, absolutely amazing. While the cost of the lenses matches the quality, I just don't have the funds to own more than a few. I was looking for a compact superzoom for bird photography when I came across a Samyang 300mm SLR with a Fujifilm mount. Well, my goodness, the price is very attractive, and there's a boyish curiosity about mirrored lenses. I've only had the lens for a few days at the moment and bad weather has limited me to shooting inside and outside windows so I'm just getting started with the lens. Here are some first impressions: the build quality seems very good, it attaches perfectly to the camera and the large focus ring is comfortable and easy to use. Very impressive due to its small size and light weight. It's shorter than my 18-55 lens and lighter. The depth of field is very shallow. Mirrored lenses don't have an aperture, so depth of field is what it is. Since there aren't many of these, focusing can be an issue. My camera has focus peaking, which is very helpful. For handheld shots, you need 1/250 second or more. Image Quality: This is clearly not a Fujifilm lens. Contrast and color reproduction cannot be compared with the top Fuji. On the other hand, it can be used like any other tool, it requires familiarity and creativity to get results. I'm really enjoying the lens so far and looking forward to getting started with it. This is clearly a specialty tool and not a general purpose lens. It represents the outstanding value of a Fujifilm mount lens and offers great convenience in a small and affordable body. I'm excited to see what bird shots I can take with it.