racerrich3 Loc: Los Angeles, Ca.

I'm interested in getting a fisheye or two. live in l.a. and looked up on samys website a little info they have on these 5 i'm curious about.
1) & 2) Rokinon- both 8mm/ a. t/3.8 and b. f/3.5 both designed for aps-c (crop). t/3.8 is a cine lens.
3) Nikon-10.5 f2.8g DX for crop.
4) Tokina - AF DX 10-17 f/3.5-4.5 for crop.
5) Nikon - 8-15 f/3.5-4.5e ed for FF.

would like thoughts and opinions on these and by those that have used them. these specific only. NOT interested in others. thank you in advance for your time. Mr. "Jerry", send me those links you offer to people, lol.

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

I’ve had the Rokinon for a few years, used it on my D5000 and now my D7100. It’s sharp and I’ve been very satisfied with it. It costs significantly less than the Nikkor.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

I have and occasionally use a Bower, I believe same as Rokinon, fun lens, I usually shoot at f8, focus at about 3' if I remember right, I check the scale when I set up, no focusing.

Bill_de Loc: US

I own the Nikon and use it very occasionally on a D7200. Nice and small, sharp, and fun to use. it's just not very practical, at least for me. Of course, now that you mentioned it I'll probably dust it off next week.

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Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

Have a Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 DX. Have used it on both a D7200 and D500. There is some distortion, which is easily corrected in LR. Other than that, it is very sharp and nice and light, it is f/3.5 with very little CA.

Bill_de Loc: US

I didn't realize that was a fisheye. --

Pablo8 Loc: Nottingham UK.

I didn't realise it is a Fish-Eye lens....And I have got one. Very little distortion if you know how to handle it.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

To the best of my knowledge many of the Rokinon/Bower/Vivitar fisheye lenses are made by Samyang and rebranded. I have one under the Vivitar brand. It was inexpensive (~ $175 ) and I really like it. I have the Canon version ( T3i / 80D ). I like super wide lenses for some things, also have the EF-S 10 - 22 for rectilinear vs. barrel distortion. They are both excellent lenses in my opinion and are part of my standard grab bag of gear.

Typically I don’t correct for distortion in post processing, just pick the lens for the effect that I want.

Good luck!

rayr

I have a Rokinon 8mm for a Nikon aps-c and last year I bought one for my Olympus EM 1 Mark ll, both are F/3.5 I believe. As someone else said, set it at infinity and F/8 and it will produce beautiful sharp photos. It's a fun lens.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

You've gotten a number of replies here. Some may be helpful, some may be less so.

Please tell us a little bit more about what you mean when you talk about a "fisheye" lens. Almost all extreme wide angle lenses sold today are not fisheye lenses, but instead are "rectilinear wide angle lenses.

Years ago, I used a 16mm fisheye wide angle lens on my Olympus cameras. Even though the image filled the entire frame, it clearly exhibited an unique image with the overall character associated with true "fisheye" lenses. Olympus also offered an even shorter "true fisheye" lens (8mm, I think) which produced a round image on the film.

My 14-24mm Nikkor covers the range of focal lengths that are considered "extreme wide angle," but it is not a fisheye lens.

All wide angle lenses introduce distortion into the image. It is not physically possible to represent the wider angle of view on a limited frame without doing so. A fisheye lens preserves angles but bends straight lines. A rectilinear lens mostly preserves straight lines but distorts angles.

We have to know which type of lens you are really looking for before we can give you any advice which has any real value to you.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I also have the Rokinon. Excellent lens, set to hyperfocal and do not worry about focusing. Great price and very well built for a lens you will not likely be using a lot.

CamB Loc: Juneau, Alaska

I have the Nikon 10.5 and use it fairly often. When you need Wide, need to get it all in one shot, this is a great lens. Of course there is distortion That’s why it is called a fisheye. Most of the time when I need it, distortion is not a problem. If I don’t want distortion I use fisheye tricks when shooting then use the Nikon fisheye filter in LR to straighten in up. You can get amazing results. It is a staple in my bag, particularly when traveling.
...Cam

User ID

The OP names specific lenses. THAT answers ALL your uncertainties.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Actually not. The topic clearly states "fisheye." As far as I can tell, none of the lenses in the list are true fisheye lenses.

CamB Loc: Juneau, Alaska

My Nikon 10.5 is certainly a fisheye. It’s not a circular fisheye but the only straight lines go right through the center horizontally and vertically. Everything not on those axis curves around as though trying to create a circle. A rectilinear lens tries to correct this distortion. Fisheyes don’t concern themselves with such mundane things.
...Cam