Author Topic: Fisheye/Ultra Wide Angle advice (Read 2458 times)

JasonMcW · « **on:** August 21, 2009, 02:14:50 PM »

Hi

I'm a proud owner of a 2 week old E-P1. Loving the camera so far- I bought it as a carryaround alternative to my Pentax SLR, predominantly for taking on hiking trips, and one particular trip planned for December to the Everest Base Camp. I've splurged a bit and invested in a Lumix 4/3 to Micro 4/3 converter and Zuiko 40-150mm lens to give me some reach, and now that I've bought the converter I've been thinking about splashing out further and getting a Fisheye (for fun and getting creative) or ultra wide-angle for panoramic shots in the mountains.

I had a look at the 8mm Zuiko FE, only problem being that it's Â£700, which is a little out of my budget after having spent as much as I have on kit already. Does anyone know of any alternative Fisheyes or Ultra Wide Angles that would fit the Lumix 4/3 converter? I'm afraid my technical knowledge is fairly limited so I'm finding it difficult to figure out what will fit with what. I spotted a Zenitar 16mm Fisheye that is advertised as fitting Olympus 4/3 mount with its own adapter, but is there any way of ensuring that it will be compatible? I don't necessarily mind not having autofocus, but I'd hate to spend a couple of hundred quid on something that just doesn't work at all...

Are there any other Fisheye alternatives? Or alternatively ultra wide angles that are in the sub Â£350 price bracket?

Any advice greatly appreciated! Glad to have found this forum and see there are a fair few other Pen fans out there!
Jason

voyager · « **Reply #1 on:** August 21, 2009, 05:23:22 PM »

Yikes! That is a lot. There are quite a few Pentax fisheyes that are much cheaper, abeit being manual focus and some with stopped down metering, but you can check ebay.

bodog · « **Reply #2 on:** September 05, 2009, 07:13:48 PM »

I have the Zenitar and use it on a Canon 30D. If you are looking for a fisheye for the m4/3, this is not what you want. The zenitar is a rectilinear fisheye first of all, so you won't get the round "world in a fish bowl" look. Even on the larger sensor of the Canon, it's only a wide angle with distorted edges. If you're careful and keep any straight lines away from the edges, and the horizon centered it makes a pretty decent wide angle. Place the horizon in the lower half or upper half of the frame and the curvature is apparent. (since the the FOV is 180 degrees diagonal, the actual FOV is wider than a 16mm 'normal" wide angle). The lens is very well made and the lens coating is excellent. But on these smaller sensors it is not a fisheye.

aaronl · « **Reply #3 on:** September 21, 2009, 03:43:48 PM »

hey jason,.

i've been using a peleng 8mm in nikon mount with the m43 to f adapter and its pretty decent as far as fisheye goes. for the ep-1 if you want a fisheye look you're gonna want atleast an 8mm, since the crop factor is 2x.

the lens itself is made in belarus, i got mine from kievcamera in atlanta,.
i checked their site and it looks like they do make it for olympus 4/3 mount.
http://kievcamera.net/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=197&osCsid=0dc6bf3e7c3fe5baf1007803d7db5b09

its a really fun lens to shoot with.
here's a shot of mt.hood from a august.

Fisheye/Ultra Wide Angle advice