B&H Photo Video has a one-day deal on the very popular Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 Ultra Wide-Angle for Canon for $249.00. This lens is regularly $329, this is a 24% savings.
The Lonely Speck calls this “arguably the best, most affordable lens for astrophotography”. This deal is available today only or until sold out. Canon, Nikon, Pentax, and Sony E mounts are available.
If you are on a 6D or other full frame, this is probably your best bet for astro shooting without spending a whole lot more money. If on a crop camera, it can still work, but won’t give you as long of exposure before you get star trails. I have been trying out the 10mm F2.8 from Rokinon on my 80D, and it is working alright so far, but has a lot of distortion when I try to include scenic elements. Since there is no data transfered to the camera from these lenses you have to select the profile under lens corrections yourself (not a big deal, just wanted people to know this).
Thanks, Kevin. Good points of information. Lonely Speck highly recommends the Tokina 11-16 F2.8 for ASPC format camera.
I’ve had this lens for about 5 months now and it is awesome! I have use it on my Canon 5D Mark III.
I am an event photographer, so I use it for a few shots at the start of my events to get some shots of the venue before guests arrive.
I would also like to include that this is VERY WELL BUILT! I am usually always very careful with my gear, but this one time I dropped it about 4 feet from the air and onto tiled flooring. Part of the lens hood chipped off, but the glass and all internal parts were fine, thankfully! I just glued it back on and it still works perfectly.
The only downside is that this is a manual lens. I use it in Live View and magnify to 10x. It is really sharp from corner to corner. It is a real bargain at $249, especially when the 16-35 go for $1500+
It’s a real shame the Canon mount version with the AE chip is not in the sale…
Got my copy for free last winter, as the craigslist seller discounted it from $175 as he discovered a front element scratch. It is perfect for astro, but has problems if shooting into the sun. I also have the 24 f/1.4 and 8mm f/3.5