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Fisheye options?

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Now that I have a DSLR again I'm thinking I need a Fisheye for it... :)

Has anyone tried the Minolta AF 16/2.8 Fisheye on an A900/A850? Is it worth getting?

I used to have the Zenitar for Canon and (actually, still do), well, it was borderline usable on a 1Ds2. The focusing helix wouldn't move all the way to infinity (the plain glass filter in the rear blocked it!), and optics are murky meh at best. I'd sell it, except I can't in right conscience sell a lens that won't focus at infinity...

There's also a super pancake flat Pentax M42 Takumar with, I think, fixed focus. But adapting it might be risky due to tolerances. Or maybe not... given the enormous DOF.

The Pentax 67 Fisheye was very good. Some of my favorite images were shot with it. So I know a good Fisheye is perfectly doable. Maybe the Minolta?

Edit: there's also a Pentax M42 17/4 that looks newer than the pancake...
 

ecsh

New member
I have the Sigma EX DG 2.8 Fisheye, and i am very happy with this. It is very well built for the most part, and small. Very sharp even at 2.8. This one is made for the FF Sony and i use this on my A900.
Joe

 

hot

Active member
For seldom use of such a lens I have my Samyang 8mm (less than $300) for all my cameras ... Canon, NEX, NX, Lumix.

It has top quality and a low price.

Samyang, Vivitar, Falcon, Polar, Walimex, Opteka, Bower, Rokinon ...
all made by Samyang in Korea




samples (sorry, lost names of photographers)









 
I have the Minolta 16mm f/2.8. The Sony lens is identical, it just says Sony on it. As I recall, it's 180° diagonally. Excellent quality IMHO, it's one of my favorite lenses for the special things it does so well. My only beef is I wish they had put something I could use in the selection of internal filters, like a 30CC Magenta or a 2 stop ND. Here are a couple of snapshots taken with it on the a900:



 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Nice shots. The Sigma and Minolta seem to be the ones to get for a FF camera... Neither seems to be particularly available used. And new they're pretty close; about $600 for the Sigma new, and $750 for the Sony. I'll probably pick whichever I find used first at a reasonable price.
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Haven't seen anything in the Dyxum classifieds (despite trawling once or twice a week), but I did get a Fujinon EBC 16/2.8 Fish-Eye (M42) on ebay.
 
One just popped up -- better hurry! :) It's a bit pricey once you convert from euros but it's available and was posted about 30 minutes ago.
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Well, turns out the Fujinon doesn't work on the A850. There's no A/M switch on the lens, so the aperture stays wide open no matter what. And none of the adapters I have will permit infinity focus. Oh well.
 

surfotog

New member
If you don't absolutely have to have a fisheye, but want a superwide, there's the Samyang (Rokinon, Bower, Falcon etc.) 14/2.8. From everything I've read it's resolution is quite remarkable, and it's cheap, about $350 new.
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
I don't think the Samyang is a fisheye, though - is it?

It turns out the aperture was easily resolved: bend the auto pin a little, then push it in to wedge it in place.

Still no infinity focus, however infinity is nice and crisp at f/8, and indoors perhaps at f/5.6, for a subject a few yards away f/4. I may see if I can find a better adapter... This is an excellent lens, so might be worth trying a few.
 
You mentioned clearance in the OP. Is the lens M42? If so I can't recommend James Lao's adapters highly enough. The ebay adapter I started with would bottom out the Mirex adapter on the too-wide chip and prevent it from screwing all the way in. Not to mention the glue in the threads. You get what you pay for. With Jame's adapter the Mirex screws down tight like it should. Maybe you are having a similar issue?
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Mark, I only did some quick testing but haven't shot anything I'd keep yet. Waiting for a better adapter to arrive first... Nice shot!
 

Jan Brittenson

Senior Subscriber Member
Got a couple of James Lao's adapters, and still the same problem. If I put the lens on the only M42 body I have (Bessaflex TM) it reaches infinity just fine. If I put it on my old Canon D30 with an EOS-M42 adapter it's fine. But on the Sony - no infinity focus. All the adapters I have are exactly the same thickness as far as I can tell using a pair of calipers. My other M42 lenses are all fine!
 
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