Show us you circular fish-eye images

[Jan Anne]

Canon EF 8-15mm on the a7r2 

A little heavier than some of the other alternatives but also does regular fisheye shots and anything in between. And yes its on my shortlist of lenses to buy as its one of those unique lenses I want to cherry pick from the Canon lineup (others are 100-400 II, 50/1.2, 17mm TS).

[Bjørn Rørslett]

What do you guys recommend for a light weight circular fisheye to lug into the mountains or on long hikes?
D800 and A7RII are the cameras it would be mounted on.
8mm/2.8?
7.5mm/5.6?
8mm/8?
10.5mmDX (Shaved?)
non-Nikkor?

Thanks - John

8/2.8 is big and heavy. The 7.5/5.6 & 8/8 mm are lightweight, but fix-focus and not retrofocus designs, so they are not well suited for digital cameras. The 10.5 (shaved) is sharp inside its designated field of view and not equally well so outside it, plus you won't get a full circle.

I'd suggest a Samyang, Sigma or similar 8/3.5 circular fisheye lens.

[Bjørn Rørslett]

The 10 OP Fisheye-Nikkor is a nice lens, but of course not among the more common alternatives ... It orthographic rendering is more flattering to most subject than the usual fisheyes.

[Jan Anne]

amazing how you guys find creative uses for this.

It helps when you're surrounded by photogs whom understand what you're planning to capture, link that to the capabilities of the used lens (what is in the frame and such) and have the playful mindset to play along 

With fisheye lenses almost everything in front of the lens is in the frame and getting really close is the name of the game, photogs know this and play along accordingly. Got a girl upset once whom asked me to photograph her sitting in a stand at a fair, I was so close with a 16/3.5 she thought I was "zooming" in on her chest, only when I showed her the image contained the entire stand she realised I was not the pervert she thought I was 

Here's the Bear playing along, or maybe not

D3s with a borrowed 8/2.8, Norway 2010

[Bjørn Rørslett]

The Sigma 4.5 mm f/2.8 can be used on DX or FX cameras, but for FX using a high MPix model is preferable.

[Bjørn Rørslett]

Again, 10 OP on a D800. Nikon claims the combination is 'impossible' but the camera does not know and the photographer might not care.

[Jakov Minić]

Bjørn, your astronomy domain needs some explanation

[Bjørn Rørslett]

Why? It is just an ordinary picture. Interpret it as you like.

[Jan Anne]

A circular fisheye shot of a special circular fish eye lens

D3s with Nikkor 8/2.8 and built-in green filter, Norway 2010

[Bjørn Rørslett]

With a fisheye. you never walk alone.

[jhinkey]

I just checked out the 10mm OPs currently for sale - I had no idea they were that dear . . . . but I want one.

[Kim Pilegaard]

Slightly related to this topic, but I am sure some of you can give me advice.

I need an 8 mm fisheye lens for taking hemispherical pictures for determining leaf area index in a beech forest. I would like to use it on a Nikon full frame camera. What are my options (including other brands, e.g. Sigma), and what would be the best?

Just to add: I need 180 degrees field of view, not necessarily 8 mm.

[Bjørn Rørslett]

This is one of the chief applications for which Nikon developed the 10 OP.

[Kim Pilegaard]

Will it work on a modern camera e.g. D810?

But not really an option because it is way too expensive: Grays of Westminster has one MINT- for GBP 30.000 !

[Bjørn Rørslett]

A few more examples of captures by the 8 mm f/2.8 Nikkor. My sample is a very early non-AI, later AI-converted using the AI kit for the 6 mm f/2.8 !! I got the massive fisheye lens for next to nothing^*, in pristine condition for $175, so why not make it more useful for modern cameras? The AI-kit and then a CPU and the 8 mm is ready to impress its presence on the ambient world.

^* Another of those strange tales of life when progress of life itself is non-linear. In this case the Nikon dealer found on a stock inventory update the lens hidden on a shelf overlooked by them 30 years, in fact standing there since I ordered it in 1975 but couldn't have it delivered because  it was allegedly "out of stock". So they called me some years ago and asked politely if I still was interested. I asked about the lens coupling and they told me it was pre-AI, to which I answered I would only take it off their hands for "a reasonable price". That offer panned out as $175. Add $25 for the AI kit and I was in  business.