IRIX 15MM F/2.4 BLACKSTONE

This manual-focus prime lens is impeccably turned out and boasts a host of fancy features

IRIX IS BUILDING A STRONG REPUTATION IN MANUAL-FOCUS PHOTO AND CINE LENSES. BOTH PRODUCT LINES INCLUDE 11MM, 15MM AND 45MM LENSES, PLUS A 150MM MACRO OPTIC. THEY’RE ALL FULL-FRAME COMPATIBLE, AND THE 15MM PHOTO LENS IS AVAILABLE IN CANON EF, NIKON F AND PENTAX K MOUNT OPTIONS. IT’S ALSO AVAILABLE IN TWO DIFFERENT VERSIONS – THE FIREFLY AND THE BLACKSTONE. THEY HAVE AN IDENTICAL OPTICAL DESIGN, BUT THE PRICIER BLACKSTONE HAS TOUGHER BUILD QUALITY, WITH A METAL RATHER THAN PLASTIC BARREL AND MORE COMPREHENSIVE WEATHER-SEALING, AND COMES WITH A HARD CASE RATHER THAN A SOFT POUCH. IT ALSO HAS ENGRAVED UV-REACTIVE MARKINGS THAT ARE EASIER TO SEE UNDER DULL LIGHTING.

UNLIKE FULLY MANUAL LENSES, THIS MANUALFOCUS LENS HAS BUILT-IN ELECTRONICS THAT ENABLE COMMUNICATION WITH THE HOST CAMERA. YOU CAN THEREFORE CONTROL THE APERTURE FROM THE CAMERA BODY AND SHOOT WITHOUT ANY LIMITATIONS IN THE FULL RANGE OF PASM SHOOTING MODES, WHILE ALSO AVOIDING A DARK VIEWFINDER IMAGE IN DSLRS AT NARROW APERTURE SETTINGS. OTHER BONUSES ARE THAT THE VIEWFINDER’S FOCUS ASSIST/CONFIRMATION LAMPS ARE ENABLED, AND LENS-BASED EXIF DATA IS RECORDED WITH IMAGES.

TYPICAL OF MOST MANUAL-FOCUS LENSES, THE FOCUS CONTROL RING HAS A LONG ROTATIONAL. UNLIKE THE SAMYANG MANUAL LENS ON

TEST, THE IRIX HAS MARKINGS FOR BOTH THE HYPERFOCAL DISTANCES AND DEPTH-OF-FIELD LIMITS FOR APERTURES OF F/8, F/11 AND F/16.

THE LATTER IS USEFUL FOR ‘ZONE FOCUSING’, ENABLING YOU TO APPLY THE RANGE OF DISTANCES THAT WILL BE RENDERED SHARPLY IN THE SCENE.

THE OPTICAL LINEUP INCLUDES THREE ASPHERICAL ELEMENTS, TWO ED (EXTRA-LOW DISPERSION) ELEMENTS, AND FOUR HR (HIGH REFRACTIVE) ELEMENTS, ALONG WITH IRIX’S PROPRIETARY ‘NEUTRINO’ COATINGS TO REDUCE GHOSTING AND FLARE. UNLIKE ALL OF THE OTHER LENSES ON TEST, THE LENS HAS A SEPARATE HOOD THAT ENABLES THE INCLUSION OF A FILTER THREAD AT THE FRONT, ALTHOUGH IT’S RATHER LARGE AT 95MM. A GEL FILTER SLOT IS ALSO INCLUDED AT

THE REAR.

A tactile lens The rubberised, ridged manual -focus ring comes with a secondary focus-locking ring, plus UV-reactive engravings for the focus distance scale, and markers for hyperfocal distances and depth of field