This is a mirror lens, so it will not be contrasty. IF it was film days, this would be terrible, but contrast is super easy to add in post.



It's sharp and the focus is well dampened. It could have a long throw, but it still works. On my Panasonic G9 the IBIS works well enough that I can hand hold it, but it really shines on a tripod.


It's is so light, that you don't mind carrying it on birding hikes.


This lens is the best value you will find for a long lens.

The lens is difficult to use but is worth the effort.

There is no auto-focus and its takes time to manually get the image clear. It has a fixed aperture and the depth of field is limiting. Its best to always use a tripod because this lens is sensitive to shake. This lens should never be used on a windy day. When everything is right this lens produces good images that are sharp but not as sharp as a finer lens will produce. The doughnut shaped bokeh is very beautiful and artsy. In daylight its no problem getting proper exposure.

100% of the photos I took with this lens and then submitted to Adobe Stock were accepted and are currently for sale on their site. If the quality is acceptable to Adobe, who has a reputation for being very, very picky, its acceptable to me.

If you want to be creative this is a worthwhile item to add to your collection.

Surprisingly small and light yet solidly built. Handheld shooting requires a fast shutter speed but a tripod is still necessary for accurate framing as the viewfinder image is very shaky. Lens needs good focussing since the depth of field is very small. Interesting bokeh due to its mirror construction. Well suited for close - up photography as its minimum focus distance is quite small. Images have more softness than normal but nothing dramatic. If one knows about its idiosyncrasies then this lens is fun to use. One thing to keep in mind is that the lens focuses past infinity so even long distance shots must be focused accurately.

I always wanted a 250 to 300 mm reflex lens so when B&H camera offered the Samyang reflex 300mm lens I jumped at the chance to get one. It came within a few days after I ordered it and I put it on my Canon D50 to get a few test shots. I was surprised how nice it was to focus and how sharp for a reflex lens this Samyang 300 mm is. I thank Samyang for making this lens and I thank B&H Photo for offering it as a cost effective, quality telephoto lens.

Ever since I learned about mirror lenses, in my film days, I've wanted to try one. I recently got an X-T5, my first digital interchangeable lens camera, and I wanted a telephoto lens. I saw this and just had to try it out.
First impassions, manual focus(not electrified) with a mirrorless camera is difficlelt compared to with an SLR, but it well doable if you're patient. I really enjoy using the donut shaped boke of this lens. It requires you to think a bit more about the background. Even though it's blurred it still has some busyness to it, which some photographers don't like. I think it's fun to work with. As others have noted, because this is a mirror/reflex/catadioptric lens, it is soft. My experience has this being softer than my vintage Canon FD mount lenses from the 70s and 80s. But, because this lens is catadioptric, it does not suffer the fringing and other chromatic aberrations that those old lenses have. In color, this looks sharper, in BW, the old lenses are way sharper.
I had a non-photographer friend comment that these photos looked like they were painted. That is because of the unique boke. If you want to use it, for that effect, you can do some cool stuff with it. I'm only scratching the surface of what this is capable of.
In short, make sure that you want the effects of a catadioptric lens before buying. If you don't like it, then save up for a normal 300mm lens. For me, this thing is a blast to use. So much fun.

My first impression upon unpacking this lens was to realize how small and light it is. Then I was impressed by how smooth the focusing ring was, without stickiness or backlash, a must for this kind of lens. Once I got enough practice focusing with it, I was impressed with its sharpness. Make no mistake, you will need practice: depth of field is quite short and focusing is a real exercise in finesse. But once you get there, the results are quite rewarding. The weakest point of this lens is its apparent vignetting, but if this bothers you, it is easily fixed using image processing software.

I use this mirror lens specifically for astrophotography for use on a SkyTracker Pro mount. Reason is this lens is very light and I don't need to counter balance it. However, the only way to get perfect critical focus for astrophotography (and you can with this lens) is to use a SharpStar2 by Lonely Speck (Bahtinov Mask). This lens is well made and seems to be rock-solid. I use a SharpStar2 by Lonely Speck with all my lenses for astro work, regardless of focal length. Takes the guesswork out of getting perfect focus. Again - this 300mm Rokinon mirror lens is great for astro.