Canon fisheye - which one?
I have a full frame camera and I am going on a holiday where a fisheye is recommended. I don't think I would use it a lot at home so I dont want to buy an expensive one. There is a second hand but like new Canon 15mm f2.8 lens for sale. Or I could look at another make such as Samyang or Sigma.
Any opinions on any of these. I see that the Canon one was well reviewed but it is no longer produced. I assume it would still work on a Canon camera?
Thanks Sue
Any opinions on any of these. I see that the Canon one was well reviewed but it is no longer produced. I assume it would still work on a Canon camera?
Thanks Sue
Sue,
I purchased the Irix 11mm Fisheye although it does produce rectilinear images (not circular) I am really happy with it.
Manual focus but you can set it at f11 and use hyperfocal setting and shoot and forget about focussing as the depth of field is massive.
Mine is the Blackstone version but the Firefly is cheaper and has the same optics, some images in my portfolio.
Ian
I purchased the Irix 11mm Fisheye although it does produce rectilinear images (not circular) I am really happy with it.
Manual focus but you can set it at f11 and use hyperfocal setting and shoot and forget about focussing as the depth of field is massive.
Mine is the Blackstone version but the Firefly is cheaper and has the same optics, some images in my portfolio.
Ian
If it unlikely to be used again - why not hire one?
The Canon 15mm f2.8 is an excellent lens. My specimen is still going after 20 years, just needed a quick tweak at a local camera repairers this year when the AF clutch disconnected. Yes, by modern standards it's got a bit of chromatic aberration wide open, but stop it down a bit, and it's very sharp.
Even second hand it's not a 'cheap' lens. I would be tempted to buy the cheaper Irix/Samyang as they are pretty much a one trick pony.
Overused they are a nightmare. When I used to freelance at a local paper myself and one other photographer had fisheyes, we went OTT one week, and finally we agreed to cut back- to put it into perspective, for a daily paper one fisheye pic per month is about right! That's not to say they are not useful- during the dry summer I used the same ultra wide for everything on drained reservoirs until it became boring, so I used the fisheye one evening. Just one paper, the Express used it.
You just can't put fisheye shots repeatedly into the same place. I have a few published fisheye shots on my EPZ gallery, but I reckon that no editor would use two fisheye shots in the same edition of a publication. Once a fisheye shot was used, I would wait at least two months before sending another in.
They are immense FUN, and they do have lots of creative potential. Even on a crop sensor, that barrel distortion looks good on commercial shots. In my case, I bought a second hand 5D Mk2, just so that I could use a full frame fisheye after it lying redundant for years. I can honestly say, the best thing about the exercise was buying a full frame body for the improved high ISO!
In brief, yes the Canon 15mm still works on modern bodies, but there's no software mapping in the camera body to remove vignetting/CA. If you can find a nice clean one, get it cheap. Otherwise, look at 3rd party stuff, possibly even then, second hand. Use it sparingly.
Finally you get more EPZ votes for using one on a mundane shoot
Even second hand it's not a 'cheap' lens. I would be tempted to buy the cheaper Irix/Samyang as they are pretty much a one trick pony.
Overused they are a nightmare. When I used to freelance at a local paper myself and one other photographer had fisheyes, we went OTT one week, and finally we agreed to cut back- to put it into perspective, for a daily paper one fisheye pic per month is about right! That's not to say they are not useful- during the dry summer I used the same ultra wide for everything on drained reservoirs until it became boring, so I used the fisheye one evening. Just one paper, the Express used it.
You just can't put fisheye shots repeatedly into the same place. I have a few published fisheye shots on my EPZ gallery, but I reckon that no editor would use two fisheye shots in the same edition of a publication. Once a fisheye shot was used, I would wait at least two months before sending another in.
They are immense FUN, and they do have lots of creative potential. Even on a crop sensor, that barrel distortion looks good on commercial shots. In my case, I bought a second hand 5D Mk2, just so that I could use a full frame fisheye after it lying redundant for years. I can honestly say, the best thing about the exercise was buying a full frame body for the improved high ISO!
In brief, yes the Canon 15mm still works on modern bodies, but there's no software mapping in the camera body to remove vignetting/CA. If you can find a nice clean one, get it cheap. Otherwise, look at 3rd party stuff, possibly even then, second hand. Use it sparingly.
Finally you get more EPZ votes for using one on a mundane shoot
