Samyang AF 24-60 mm f/2.8 FE review

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Samyang AF 24-60 mm f/2.8 FE

14 September 2026

Maciej Latałło

6. Distortion and field of view

Field of view

A full frame rectilinear 24-60 mm lens should give you a range of angles of view from 84.0 to 39.6 degrees. In their official specification Samyang provides almost exactly the same values. Of course we decided to check these declarations. In order to do so we took photos of a starry sky and saved them as both corrected JPEG files and uncorrected RAW files developed by a third-party software such as dcraw. Then we transformed the pixel layout (X,Y) from the photo into the equatorial coordinate system (right ascension and declination), which locates a star on a celestial sphere. That way we were able to measure the field very precisely and exactly as it should be done for rays of light coming from infinity.

At the 24 mm focal length and with the corrected JPEG file, our transformation was based on positions of 161 stars spread evenly across the frame. An average mesh-fitting error amounted to 52 seconds of arc. Our final result amounted to 83.08 degrees with a measurement error on a level of 0.03 of a degree. It's a result by about one degree lower than the value stated in official specifications.

Very interesting things can be observed at a 24 mm focal length on uncorrected RAW files. Here the transformation is based on the position of 181 stars spread evenly across the frame. An average mesh-fitting error amounted to 2 minutes and 40 seconds of arc and we got a result of as much as 86.96 deg with a measurement error not exceeding 0.15 deg. Here the amount of spare field is really significant because it is an equivalent of a rectilinear 22.8 mm lens. In a moment we are going to show that his amount of spare field is indeed badly needed.

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In case of the 60 mm focal length we used only uncorrected RAW files and the positions of 137 stars; an average mesh-fitting error decreased to just 6 seconds of arc. The angle of view, measured by us, amounted to 40.27 deg with a measurement error not exceeding 0.02 deg. Here the value is also a tad higher than stated in official specifications and it corresponds roughly to the 59 mm focal length.

For an uncorrected RAW file we used the positions of 142 stars and an average mesh-fitting error increased to 11 seconds of arc. The angle of view, measured by us, amounted to 40.86 deg with a measurement error not exceeding 0.06 deg. As you see here, the field is also a bit wider than stated in specifications and it means the resulting angle of view corresponds to the angle provided by a rectilinear 58 mm lens.

It's worth noting that, while working with distortion-corrected JPEG files, you get a real focal range from about 24.4 to 59 mm, a tad narrower than declared in specifications.

Distortion

Corrected JPEG files joined with the smaller APS-C/DX sensor don't give you any reason to worry – not yet. After all the software is able to correct this aberration practically to zero. At 24 mm we got a result of -0.30%, at 35 mm it was -0.35%, at 50 mm it decreased to -0.18%, and after passing to 60 mm it dropped further to -0.10%.

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, JPEG, 24 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, JPEG, 35 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, JPEG, 50 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, JPEG, 60 mm

Of course only RAW files developped by neutral software are able to show you the real distortion values on the smaller detector. We don't like these values at all. At 24 mm significant barrel distortion of -4.14% will bother you; at 35 mm it decreases to a still visible level of -1.83%. Not especially bothersome values can be obtained only at 50 and 60 mm focal lengths with results of -0.82% and -0.64% respectively.

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, RAW, 24 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, RAW, 35 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, RAW, 50 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, APS-C, RAW, 60 mm

Corrected JPEG files on full frame once again are almost devoid of any geometric deformations. At the widest angle you can notice slight barrel distortion of -0.79% which, after passing to 35 mm decreases very slightly to -0.72%. A practically zero level can be observed at 50 and 60 mm, where we got the following results: -0.35% and -0.16%.

Sony A7R IIIa, FF, JPEG, 24 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, FF, JPEG, 35 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, FF, JPEG, 50 mm

Sony A7R IIIa, FF, JPEG, 60 mm

Keeping in mind about RAW files on the APS-C/DX sensor, we didn't doubt that full frame RAW files would be problematic. Indeed, the results are simply weak. At 24 mm you deal with very pronounced barrel distortion of -7.49%. At 35 mm you can still notice huge problems, with distortion reaching -3.06%. What's more, barrel distortion can be noticed even at the longest focal lengths – at 50 mm we got a result of -1.49% and at 60 mm it was -1.20%.

Any good points in this situation? Photos, presented below, don't feature any noticeable traces of bending the lines the other way and it means that the level of moustache distortion is not significant.

On the one hand, you could expect some compromises in this category exactly. On the other hand, we hoped that limiting the focal range compared to the standard values of 24-70 mm would make the task of optics specialists a tad easier and they wouldn't chalk it up to the software of the camera. Unfortunately, they did…