How many Fisheye have you owned? Thoughts on Fisheye (wedding, people, etc.)

Actually, there's slim chance I will own Fisheye again. But I am very interested to learn about other photographer's experiences with use and ownership of these lenses. If I happen to get one, it will probably be in relation to weddings, but I suspect an ultra wide angle may be better. Personally, I've owned 2 fisheye, and bought and sold each one months afterward. They were fun for a couple weeks, then got old. After selling the 2nd one, the Canon 8-15mm, I told myself to remember getting a new one would likely mean selling a 3rd one soon after.

I don't do weddings but love playing with my fisheye. Fisheyes "work" very rarely, but when they do they look great.

This guys loves them and I found the video interesting.

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=e-WxCoDewbY

Pigpen101 wrote in post #18499844
I don't do weddings but love playing with my fisheye. Fisheyes "work" very rarely, but when they do they look great.

This guys loves them and I found the video interesting.

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=e-WxCoDewbY

I've seen that one before. He seems to put them to good use for his style of shooting. Some sounds more "spray and pray" than he explains, but he certainly must use technique. One thing that stood out, was his loose camera strap and I was wondering if he wraps the strap differently during weddings to avoid covering the lens. Otherwise it defeats the purpose. I'm guessing that hand straps could be very practical using two cameras that way, but haven't tried using them myself even for other lenses.

You didn't give an option for not owning/never owned or used one.

Fisheye shots have their uses but I just couldn't justify spending a lot of $$$ on a lens I'd use sparingly. That's why I bought the Rokinon version.

Ian Mackie wrote in post #18499857
You didn't give an option for not owning/never owned or used one.

The thread text is the option for that.

Pigpen101 wrote in post #18499858
Fisheye shots have their uses but I just couldn't justify spending a lot of $$$ on a lens I'd use sparingly. That's why I bought the Rokinon version.

That's why if I even got a 3rd one at all, it would be for my M5, which would cost about $200. But I did shop just in case. It's always possible.

A fisheye distorts all that it sees...even if an object is centered perfectly both horizontally and vertically, it will suffer from barrel distortion. For that reason, it might be 'fun' for a couple of shots, but it is too 'gimmicky' to be of general interest in weddings because few people want to be capture distorted or looking more portly than they really are.

OP himself well summarized, ", I've owned 2 fisheye, and bought and sold each one months afterward. They were fun for a couple weeks, then got old."

For myself, the poll lacks 'None' as a possible response, so I have not voted

I have owned a FE for quite a few years. I bought it for certain landscapes, and that is all I have used it for. Fortunately I can afford to have it hanging around without much use, but ready if I go somewhere it might be useful.

I think you have to have a specific image in mind that you want and use it just for that. It's not something I would think would work well just walking around looking for FE shots.

Pigpen101 wrote in post #18499858
Fisheye shots have their uses but I just couldn't justify spending a lot of $$$ on a lens I'd use sparingly. That's why I bought the Rokinon version.

Same. I owned a Canon 15mm FE but sold it to fund another purchase. I sort of missed it but didn't want to spend at much so I got the Rokinon. I don't mind the manual focus because at f/5.6 pretty much everything is in focus.

How many I owned? Zero. Thoughts? I don't need it for people. Or else...

None. I don't see it has a valid option for what i shoot: landscapes.

Azathoth wrote in post #18500318
None. I don't see it has a valid option for what i shoot: landscapes.

A place I shoot often is the redwood coast. I've seen a few fisheye photos that look interesting, and likewise a few wedding photos from that area. But I felt both would look even better had they been taken with a wide or UWA ..

Never owned one, nor really felt the need to.

Seeing that you can get a good sharp Fisheye (all manual) for under $200, I don't see much of a reason not to try it out. It's not tying up a ton of cash, and you get to have fun and who knows what you'll get out of it.

Get a used Rokinon/Samyang. I've certainly spent more on dinner for the family.

Very best,

MalVeauX wrote in post #18501727
Seeing that you can get a good sharp Fisheye (all manual) for under $200, I don't see much of a reason not to try it out. It's not tying up a ton of cash, and you get to have fun and who knows what you'll get out of it.

Get a used Rokinon/Samyang. I've certainly spent more on dinner for the family.

Very best,

And with a good used lens like that, someone could practically get every dime back if they sell it in good condition.