RokinonFE8M-N 8mm F3.5 Fisheye Fixed Lens for Nikon (Black)

I bought this lens 8 years’ ago and think it deserves a review.I was a reluctant purchaser having spent years dismissing fisheye lenses as a gimmick or something people bought when they ran out of other things to buy. How wrong l was. I have since developed an attachment for this lens and use it regularly. In 8 years this is what I found:-PROS:Well built, l have never had build problems with it. The controls are still precise after exposure to years of dust, dirt, grime etcGood (rather than great) contrast and renditionSimple - manual aperture and no autofocus means little to break.Useful - l use this for all the usual stuff - streetscapes, architecture, parties etc. It is fun to use and gives interesting shots.Value - rather than jumping in and spending heavily to get the Canon fisheye this is a vastly cheaper way to try this out.CONS:No autofocus. Manual aperture. Doesn’t bother me but some people have found this irritating.Doesn’t have the razor sharp rendition that the Canon fisheye has (but at a fraction of the price l didn’t expect it to).In summary, I am glad l bought this and I am surprised at how often I use it. If you are hesitant about getting a fisheye this is a great purchase. I am glad l have it.

It's a fun lens, but picture quality isn't the best. Can't expect a lot for a cheap lens though. Don't use it on a full frame camera. Ice got a 6d and a 650d but only use it on the 650. Manual aperture as well, but can usually put in on about f8 and everything is in focus.

I read some great reviews on this lens on a Canon forum and the one thing I kept noticing was how many people used the word 'fun'. Having never even tried a fisheye lens before, I thought I'd give it a try. Despite the lack of autofocus and manual aperture, I would recommend this lens to anyone considering it. Focusing at around 10ft and using f8 ensures practically the entire scene to be in sharp focus. It's sharp, cheap and fun - buy it! You won't regret it

What a great lens! Use it regularly on my Nikon D300 - it is MANUAL on the D300 but provided I have plenty of light the results are superb. 8mm means I get some incredible effects and can get close to my architecture - which is where it excels - Highly Recommended

Very good for the price, got this at least 3 years agon and it's still in good nik! thank you

excellent

I bought this second hand from my local photographic store and am blown away. I use a Nikon D90 and the shots are fantastic. The image quality a F3.5 ia a bit soft but is still good where as the image at f8 is superb the softness has dis appeared at the higher F marks vignetting increases but for me that is the beauty of this beast of a lens. I was fortunate to use it on a bright day and taught myself quite quickly to get the best results in Manual mode it does operate the light metering on my Nikon and I must admit I found under exposing by a third of a stop seemed to get me the best colour reproduction with the highest dynamic range.Unlike many photographers of today I started life with manual lenses and having to use my on board light meter to get the best from my cameras so this lens which has AE capabilities but needing to be focused manually is like going back in time.For the money this lens is a gift. Don't be put off by its lack of auto focus as after F5 it is basically in focus from 0.3 meters to infinity. I had decided I would buy the lens via Amazon but saw it in my local dealer a lot cheaper preowned, I would say even at the amazon price it is a steal.

I gave this a 4 star, with one very important caveat. Arrived before stated delivery, good solid build, controls are smooth & easy to use. The optics are very good resulting in very nice sharp images, the contrast & colour rendition are great too. The depth of field is huge. My goodness this is so wide in vertical format it's easy to get your feet in the shot if you're not careful.Now for the not so good. My version was not chipped so there is no way to meter on my Nikon D3100, it only works on the manual setting. so I have to take a test shot review the histogram & adjust aperture/shutter speed accordingly, or you could use an exposure meter. Since most of my stuff is landscape work, I don't mind this too much, but if you're looking for a point & shoot get the chipped version.Now for the really bad - the factory setting focus scale is way off, so much so, I was unable to get any focussed image. This seems to be an issue with the Nikon lens mount, a browse on the internet revealed many users having to peel back the front edge of the focusing grip, loosen the 3 slot screws & correct the factory setting. I did this & it now works as it should, full descriptions are available on the internet. If you are not technically minded/hands on don't even consider this Nikon version. This Rokinon lens is actually a Samyang, shame on them for releasing lenses that aren't properly calibrated.