The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro and the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro is the longer of the two lenses at 123mm. The Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX with a length of 60mm, is 63mm shorter. On the other hand, there is no difference between the max diameters of these lenses, both coming at 73mm.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX weighs 340g, 52% (380g) lighter than the Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro's weight of 720g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the Telephoto Macro Lenses in Canon EF Mount for size comparison purposes.
Macro Lenses in Canon EF Mount for Size Comparison
Filter Threads
The Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro has a filter size of 67mm whereas the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX has a 52mm diameter. Larger filters are generally more expensive than the smaller ones given all the other features are equal.
Below are links to the 67mm filters that we recommend you to consider for the Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro:
And these are the 52mm filters that we recommend for the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX:
Lens Mounts
Both the Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro and the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX has the same Canon EF lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Canon EF lenses are Blackmagic URSA 12K LF, Z CAM E2-F6 II 6K and Z CAM E2-S6 II 6K.
Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro is also available in the Fujifilm X , Micro Four Thirds, Nikon F (FX), Pentax KAF, Samsung NX, Sony Alpha and Sony E mounts.
Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX is also available in Nikon F (DX) mount.
Focal Range
Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 100mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.6x crop, it provides a 35mm (FF) equivalent of
160mm.
On the other hand, the Tokina 35mm f2.8 Macro DX is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 35mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 56mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
