You knew you could get me to bite on this one.... My 10.5mm which I have cleaned up the edges a bit more than on this photo, is a nice lens on the D4. And, as stated elsewhere, I just love to carry one lens, a prime, and do what I can do. Maybe this is a through back to the old days, but I think it helps us to learn our equipment.

So, the image of the 10.5mm on FX

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fantinesfotos/7050923197/sizes/o/in/photostream/

I often carry the 16mm f 2.8 (FX) don't use it a lot, but its a lot smaller and lighter than the 16-35 f4 VR
I
Lightroom lens profile can be used if you don't want a distorted image

I had the Nikkor 8mm/2.8 and sold it for $450 back in 1991. Big mistake, thought I did make $50 on it. I have the Sigma 8mm which was about $750 and it works, but that's about it. Anyone want a deal on it? It gathers dust since going back to the Nikkor fisheyes which are EDGE to EDGE sharp!

TaoTeJared said:
Yes - there are some odd 3-party brands that have them. Sorry, I couldn't find the names but they are out there. I think one is phoenix. Not cheap either.

Not cheap, but there is one photo I absolutely *must* get that nothing else could accomplish.

Yup, a nice lens on DX. ANd when I get FX, the lens hood comes off.... somewhere I read how to do this, and then it is the original circle on FX..... Should be fun if I get a D4. Related to this is the 16-35mm VR Nikkor which suggests handholding at 1/4 or possibly 1/2 second with some lamppost or other support. This combined with high ISO... the nightlife is coming. I think I will start another post on this if not already on the NR Forum.

msmoto said:
Mmmm.... Liven up this post.... the 10.5mm on D90 is fun.

I agree. I really like its sharp performance and its ability to allow me to experiment and be more adventurous with my D7000. Moreover, it's 2.8 really does come in handy late in the day.

Yes - there are some odd 3-party brands that have them. Sorry, I couldn't find the names but they are out there. I think one is phoenix. Not cheap either.

I just learned about the old 6mm fisheyes and I love the idea of having a field of view greater than 180 degrees for some applications. Are there any more modern / more readily available fisheyes like this that anyone is familiar with?

Mmmm.... Liven up this post.... the 10.5mm on D90 is fun. Sometimes I will take it on a shoot as the only lens. Helps to find the limits of the perspective and actually con do some non-distorted shots. And if pbull221 looks at the 2012 Photo of the Day, a couple Pis are seen.

Oh, and the AW100 only shoots JPG. If it took NEF, I'd have it by now.

My 2 cents. I have the Nikkor 10mm Fisheye. It was a gift to myself because they've always fascinated me. My brother is new to Nikon and asked, "why would anyone want this?" It put me in a quandary. I got it to use as a sometimes architectural lens, and was shooting his new back porch with it and having well, fun. I finally just said, "it is a wonderful party lens and here's why." With that I nearly stuck it up his nose and took a picture. It included his entire face, was heavily distorted and (I'm not 100% sure about this yet) I think his son now has it as his Apple i4 caller picture for his Dad! True it distorts heavily, but I am learning more about the "proper" use of negative space than I ever did before and it simply helps amplify any semi-creative thing I may wish to shoot. Amplifies it like Alice In Wonderland. I did not need it, don't use it for practical purposes often, but as the porch is quite large, it displayed the newness of it in a way that simply can not be had any other way.

BrownewellPhoto said:
Rokinon, Samyang, Vivitar, Opteka, and Falcon, and maybe a couple others are all made by the same company in one of the Koreas and labelled under different names.

Even here, you have people who love the lens. Maybe I just got a bad copy.

I just read some reports about some problems with focus ring:

"Mine came with a miscalibrated focus ring (the lens was focused at infinite when it read 0.7 meters). Fortunately it was easy to fix (look on the internet for repair instructions). " (BH)

Ken Rockwell also writes about this.

Rokinon, Samyang, Vivitar, Opteka, and Falcon, and maybe a couple others are all made by the same company in one of the Koreas and labelled under different names.

Even here, you have people who love the lens. Maybe I just got a bad copy.

At BH and Amazon the Rokinon 8mm fisheye has good reviews. I have a Nikon 16 mm Fisheye, but looking for a fisheye for DX. At $300 USD the Rokinon looks like a great value with decent reviews.

Get the Samyang 8mm fisheye. You don´t need AF for this focal length anyway, and the Samyang is optically the best fisheye I have come across. And it´s dirt cheap also.

My Samyang has seen a lot of use, it´s a really fun lens to use in tight quarters. Also Awesome for pet photos, party photos, kid photos, self-photos and such.

For wide angle I purchased the Tokina AT-X 124 PRO DX II (12-24 F4 lens). This past weekend was the first time I was able to really get out and shoot it much and my friend and I had a blast with it. I couldn't wrestle it away from him after I let him use it for the afternoon. Personally a much better option. If you wanted to do some fish eye effects later then you could do it in post. It was really fun using the lens and after this weekend I want to use it even more. It is probably some of the better money I have spent on camera stuff.

yeah 50mm and 80 mm is more usable than wide lens.

Iloilo City | Dinagyang Festival

Rx4Photo said:
If anything, try to rent one to get it out of your system, then continue to enjoy your Tokina 11-16.

That's probably all I need, to get it out of my system ;)

I was just wondering if it was not the only lens I needed to complete my set, but until I truly better my skills, knowledge and experience. I am not certain it would not be to buy a lens just to buy a lens.

In the mean time, I will probably go for the AW100 for its everyday/weather-water-cold proof abilities to get the quick shots when the D7000 is not there.

Then who knows, I might feel the urge to ask for non-photo related goodies.

Thank you all for your valuable input, positively and negatively fisheye related, and by all means, to those who have yet to share, feel free to do so. It might further help others choose if this lens type is for them.

When and if I do make the jump, it will be either the Nikkor 10.5 or Tokina 10-17.

ithurtswhenipee said:
Although like anything with photography it is going to take more time then a rental period to really learn how to use it.

I think it has more to do with ones creative spirit and how easily a person can think outside the box. I'm on my 3rd day of a 7 day 10.5mm Fisheye rental and I learned how to use it on the 1st day. I'll admit that I did do some reading up on what to do so I didn't have to figure out so much out when I got the lens.

Honestly, I'm kind of relating to what kyosinikon has to say in that it's a fantastic lens to use when taking wide angle photographs. Just aim the lens level and straight on to the horizon and you have little distortion on the edges. Angle the camera a little up for a downward "curvature of the earth" type turn, angle the camera down for a little upward "smile" type turn. Angle the camera right or left for an exaggeration of the object closest to you. Shots from a low perspective are particularly interesting. It's excellent for taking shots of car exteriors & interiors and buildings with pillars. If taking picture of people (no more than 2 or 3 of them) they must be dead center to avoid that flat curved distorted look.

If anything, try to rent one to get it out of your system, then continue to enjoy your Tokina 11-16.

Don't own a fisheye and I will probably never buy one. The fisheye look is just not something that I find particular interesting. Sure there is a time and place for such images, but even if I had the best fisheye out there given to me I would most likely sell it and get a 35 prime or 85 prime or both.

Money spent on a cheap one is just money out the window. More money spent on a good one is money that could do a "new to photography" photographer much better if it were spent on some good glass that you will use more. I guess it boils down to what you are going to shoot. If you are still trying to find your style, rent one and see if you like it. Although like anything with photography it is going to take more time then a rental period to really learn how to use it.

AW100 - If you only have the choice of the two. (Unless you are going to do some diving - I would get a cheaper non-sealed model.)

I have a Sigma 15mm fisheye that collects dust, great to have but I rarely use it. It really is not the easiest lens to learn to use for the best images, but it can make some dramatic images if you are good at using them. Your Tokina hits the wide angle - a fish eye for your set up probably wouldn't get used much.

kyoshinikon said it right if you need/want one.

If you really want a lens, I would add a 50mm (1.4 or 1.8) or the 85mm 1.8. You would use those much, much more often.

One of the things I've enjoyed about Lightroom3 it has lenes correction and has 3 different Fisheyes for Nikon. Probably not as good as using a real fisheye but thought it might be of interest knowing about it.

lauzobe said:

I live in a small 10k town and neither this one nor the 55k town where I work have lens rental places. So the rental is not a option yet. Maybe on my next vacation trip to a more civilized area ;)

http://www.borrowlenses.com/
Just an idea. They advertise on this site so I guess it's OK to post this.

Honestly unless you are going underwater or somewhere where size is a big issue the lens is the better investment. Like I said before my 10.5mm is a fantastic lens. I don't even leave AF on because at infinity everything farther than a foot from my lens is always in focus. I do shoot motocross though...

I shoot A LOT of skateboarding and snowboarding, and i have had the same dilemma 300 or so dollars to spend, i took a couple months to research it and i came to the conclusion(my opinion i do not mean to offend anyone) but in certain situations fish eyes get over used and the bad fish eyes can break the moment for you if it is not focused properly, edges soft or if it is just a bad lens. save the money and add up and get a good lens. about the Nikon aw100 its good to have but no a necessary.