Very happy with the Samyang 8mm f/3.5 FE

[ricardovaste]

<p>Just wanted to follow up on the previous thread from last week. I was having problems with my Peleng fisheye, mainly regarding glare control but also with the blacked out corners which were causing what I would call 'excessive' processing work. Bob (?) mentioned the Vivtar 7/3.5 lens and I got it after reading the review here: http://www.lenstip.com/index.php?test=obiektywu&test_ob=160</p>

<p>Mine is a 'Falcon', though they come under many names. Yeah, it's not a high grade lens but it's certainly a step up from the Peleng and importantly does the job I want it to. Unlike the Peleng, it's not 180 degrees from side to side, though is 'corner to corner'. It's slightly 'less fish' and slightly 'less wide', but definately does the job. No need to clone/stretch the corners out and the flare/glare control is much better - genuinely can't see any glare yet.</p>

<p>I know most probably shoot full frame digital here, but I can highly recommend this lens as a 'cheaper' alternate for anyone looking to experiment with fisheye on APS-C. I think a lot of people dismiss dismiss fisheye as nothing more than a 'fun' lens or a 'toy' (aren't they all ;) but I've found it really can be a great creative tool if you learn to work with it.</p>

<p>It's been raining the last two days now, so only one sample sadly, from the evening I got it.<br>

<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2492/3725957771_5a8b2c1306.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="356" /><br>

<em>( Larger: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2492/3725957771_5c9026027b_o.jpg )</em></p>

[george_widman]

<p>Very nice frame. HDR processed? Seems that way, given the extremely-well rendered highlight and shadow detail. Congrats!</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>I'm confused. Is this a Samyang 8mm as in the review, a Falcon, or a Vivitar? or all three? I'm not familiar with these so can't sort out which you are referring to.<br /> I'd like to know because the picture does look more promising than most "cheap" fisheyes.<br /> Can you give some idea of the price class, also--is it the $300 mentioned in the review?</p>

[ricardovaste]

<p>Sorry JDM, I was a little unclear on that. The Samyang 8mm f3.5 lens, as shown in that review i liked, is shown under numerous brands including Falcon, Bower, Polar, Walimex, etc. It is only vivitar that decided to say its a "7mm" lens. So I guess its somewhere inbetween 7 & 8mm, but thats not really important... theyre all the same design anyway. I payed a little over 200GBP, which is around 330 USD? It was brand new and came boxed with instructions, a pouch and both front and rear caps... (the front cap is actually good on this one, unlike other fisheyes)</p>

<p>Thanks George :). I guess the scene has a "high dynamic range", but it wasnt "HDR" processing as such. Its just one exposure using a "digital" neutral density filter to even the exposure.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Thanks Richard. I'm going to have to think about this one--it looks promising, and it's sure a heck of a lot better than my Spiratone 8mm fisheye!</p>

[hoogw photo]

<p>Bought the lens through e-bay in Poland as Samyang for Euro 181,= incl postal costs! Within 3 days delivered. No complaints. After a few days my experience was: Unsharp at 0,60cm till indefinite. But surprisingly from 0,30 till 0,50 cm it worked well. Strange, but even the long distances at 0,50 the picture were sharp. As if the scale was wrong. Aperture sharpest at 3.5(!) and 11 (?!)</p>

 

[kjeld_olesen]

<p>Hi<br>

This lens is now supported natively be RectFish for accurate remapping to recilinear projection<br>

<a href="http://www.acapixus.dk/software/rectfish/index.htm">http://www.acapixus.dk/software/rectfish/index.htm</a></p>