Specs

• 14 lens elements in 11 groups
• 2 aspherical ED lenses, 1 DSA lens, 1 aspherical lens, 3 Super ED lenses 1 ED lens and 2 HR lenses.
• Manual focus clutch
• L-Fn button
• Minimum focusing distance - 7.5cm
• Weigh - 534g.
• Available - July 2015
• $999.99
• http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-M-Zuiko-Digital-f1-8-Fisheye/dp/B00WENHV2G/

Hobbyists, photo enthusiasts and professionals alike will be captivated by the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 8mm f/1.8 PRO Fisheye lens' 180-degree diagonal angle of view. Like the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 7-14mm f/2.8 PRO, this lens includes dustproof and splashproof construction, for unlimited wide-angle adventure. The lens is also compatible with a custom dome port for use with an Olympus underwater housing.

The M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 8mm f/1.8 PRO Fisheye lens is constructed of 17 elements in 15 groups and can capture high resolution at the very edges of an image, even at the maximum aperture of f/1.8. ZERO Coating minimizes optical flares and ghosting. The lens also comes with a fixed lens hood and a pinch-style lens cap LC-62.

From under the sea to the night sky, the record-breaking new M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 8mm Fisheye 1:1.8 PRO is an unprecedented opportunity to add stand-out creativity and a uniquely dynamic and abstract look to extremely wide-angle shots of the natural world. Unprecedented, because – in this category – the Fisheye PRO is the world’s brightest fisheye lens*. The super-large aperture ensures photographers top-notch optical performance in any conditions, especially in low light. The 2.5-cm minimum focusing distance (measured from end of the lens) and maximum magnification of x0.2 make it a logical choice for nature photographers with a passion for quirky perspectives and eye-catching bokeh.

But the Fisheye PRO is also ideal for fast-action sports photography; landscape, nightscape and sky panoramas; as well as crowds, interiors or architecture. For underwater specialists, it likewise opens up exciting new opportunities – it’s compatible with a range of accessories via the new underwater lens port PPO-EP02.

Like the other lenses in the M.ZUIKO PRO family, it’s extremely compact and lightweight, especially compared to equivalent D-SLR rivals. The build quality is top notch. In pre-launch tests, professional photographers were quick to praise the blur-free performance of the Fisheye PRO at both ends of the f stop scale. Light fall-off at the edges is negligible, as are both chromatic and comatic aberrations, particularly when compared to equivalent rival lenses.

Specs

• Full Frame sensor coverage
• 14 elements in 11 groups, 3 aspherical + 2 ED element, Nano Crystal and fluorine coatings
• Minimum focusing distance - 0,28m
• Ring type ultrasonic AF, internal
• 645 g weight
• 83mm diameter
• 101 mm length
• 77mm filters thread
• Sealed
• $1247, available at
  • https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-FISHEYE-NIKKOR-8-15mm-3-5-4-5E/dp/B071LTFPDQ/

In Anamorphic mode & 6k Photovideo mode the full Circular Fisheye image is perfectly framed. This is the highest resolution FullDome image we can capture on a low cost system - before using a Blackmagic, Kinefinity or RED camera solution.

I had used the GH4 with the same lens- and this needed a speed booster to achieve the same result.

Could be interesting for Fulldome Planetarium Capture! Especially once Panasonic update Anamorphic mode to high quality. Would be nice if 6k Photovideo mode was also updated to higher quality as well- and 4:2:2.

I am also interested in testing Kinefinity with the Yashuhara Madoka on a Kinefinity. Which should allow similar resolution capture. http://www.yasuhara.co.jp/madoka/index-e.html

I've recently started to get interested in C mount (CCTV) lens, for they are fast, wide, and cheap. So I wondered, is there any CCTV lens that I could use as a Fisheye (and get the same effect as the Panasonic 8mm f3.5, but faster) ? Here's a few lens I've found looking on the internet :

• Rainbow 3.5mm 1.6

• Tamron 4-12mm 1.2

• Pentax 6mm 1.2 (+ wide conversion lens x0.45)

Wanted effect :

The GH2 exact m4/3 sensor crop is x1.86.

So I would like to get the same widness as the Panasonic 8mm or any 8mm Fisheye (Samyang, Peleng, Rokinon...) :

Panasonic 8mm : 8 x 1.86 = 14.88mm equivalent (no need for ETC mode)

Rainbow 3.5mm : 3.5 x 1.86 = 6.51 -> 6.51 x 2 = 13mm equivalent

Pentax 6mm : 6 x 1.86 = 11.16 -> 11.6 x 2 = 23.2mm equivalent -> 23.2 x 0.45 = 10.44mm equivalent

x 1.86 : GH2 Sensor Crop

x 2 : ETC tele conversion mode crop (to cover vignetting)

x 0.45 : Wide convversion lens

Does that mean we could use any CCTV c mount lens instead of the Panasonic lens to get the wide fisheye effect ?

A few videos :

Lenses :

• http://www.ebay.fr/itm/Varifocal-Manual-Iris-CCTV-Lens-4-10mm-C-Mount-2-Mega-Pixel-VF-MI-4-10-C-2MP-/121077583241?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item1c30c94d89

• http://tinyurl.com/qx3utvp

• http://www.ebay.com/itm/DV3-4X3-8SA-1-LENS-1-2-3-8-13MM-VARIFOCAL-MANUAL-IRIS-/150585299071?

C mount lens (1/2") work well on the GH2, but I heard that the CS mount lens (1/3") would still have really heavy vignetting because even with the ETC mode it would not cover entirely the GH2 sensor. Is that true ?

Interesting CS mount lens, but 1/3 inch : http://www.ebay.fr/itm/TAMRON-Manual-Iris-CCTV-Lens-3-0-8mm-1-1-0-ASPHERICAL-C-Mount-3-Mega-Pixel-/261248954560?pt=UK_CCTV&hash=item3cd3a6b0c0

I would use the fisheye to film Skateboarding.

Thank you.

Samyang 8mm 1:2.8 UMC Fish-eye is currently the smallest and the brightest Fish-eye lens compatible with compact cameras featuring APS-C sensor. It perfectly combines high optical value, impressive lens speed and exceptionally compact sizes.

Its sophisticated optical construction relies on the system of 10 lenses arranged in 8 groups. They include, among others, one aspherical (AS) lens and two lenses made of extra low dispersion glass (ED). This provides perfect sharpness for the entire field of view and maximum aperture of f/2.8. Obviously all surfaces of the lenses were covered with multi-layered UMC anti-reflective coatings adding to the high contrast and splendid light transmission.

Samyang 8mm 1:2.8 UMC Fish-eye will be marketed with Sony E (NEX) and Samsung NX mount. In both cases its maximum angle of view will amount to 180 degree, with the minimum focusing distance of 0.3 meters.

Release date and the expected price will be separately announced on a later date

Available at:

• http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313&_nkw=Samyang+8mm&_sacat=0

Good, cheap, compact, AF fisheye.

Utilizing a proprietary system based around an "axisymmetric free-form-surface lens," the camera could shoot video at horizontal and vertical viewing angles of 360-and-50-degrees, respectively; the images could then be projected in the same range by a separate unit.

That was back in 2007 and nothing has ever materialised from them.

I am trying to help a company involved in the events sector to seek and find a current solution where they could offer a walk-in 360 arena (tent or whatever) and immersive world for an audience to view a dramatic show utilising 360 degree projected switchable backgrounds.

Does anyone know of where this technology is going (is it doomed?) or of any other viable solutions that could be made and put together using today's technology?

I'm open to purchasing 3rd party filters, just haven't found any that will work in CS6 specifically (it's the version I have).

Thanks!

I just recently wanted to buy a fisheye lens to filming skateboard videos, but I came across 2 different fisheyes :

• The Rokinon 7.5mm f3.5 for Micro 4/3

Or

• The Rokinon 8mm f2.8 for Sony E-mount (NEX-7, NEX-5, NEX-3...) + Adapter

The thing is I know the Rokinon for M4/3 is going to fit directly on my camera (tried it in a shop), but the Rokinon for Sony is much faster, but maybe a little less wide...

Can you please help me choose ?

Thank you.

Lens seems to be early prototype now.

Via: http://www.thephoblographer.com/2013/10/25/surprise-surprise-sakar-bringing-fast-kodak-branded-glass-micro-four-thirds/

The short story: 31-OCT, the day the Portuguese Budget for 2013 was approved. People gathered in front of the Parliament to say we're being governed by thieves. Not very original I know, but it's a great place to shoot video and take pictures (well at last until it degenerates into mayhem which is rare around this parts but not unheard of until very recently). This is how I worked it.

1) The extremely simple setup:

GH2, screen folded back as a monitor, Transcend 32GB class 10, Samyang 7.5mm fisheye (my favorite video lens), set and forget to hyperfocal, ISO 400 I believe, SS=1/25s. Flowmotion 2 was used as I never know before hand how much video I'm going to capture or how many photos I'll be shooting, so I need something that is very good quality but doesn't make me have to change cards when something very important is happening. If the card is pre-formatted (the extended, not the quick format) it has never failed me to span.

2) The capture:

This is all about getting there up front and trying not to shake the camera. The police until very recently (and only after a 1h stone shower) has been instructed not to charge, so it's an easy job, you just dodge the TV reporters and other amateurs like me. So, here's my first mistake: the aperture is fine, this lens is sharp as an axe, but should have upped the ISO and set a faster SS because in these situations you are always bound to get bumped and it shows in wobbles after software stabilization.

3) Defishing the Samyang:

Load the MTS into AE. Export as image sequence. Use a batch (http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/comment/69869#Comment_69869) to defish the images and import the output again to AE now as image sequence. The defishing was done using the Panini projection. It's loads more natural on people than Rectilinear, it preserves a lot more corner resolution and still manages to keep a few lines straight. This was the first export and not reasonably quick because the synthesis part takes it's toll: ~2-3fps.

4) Stabilizing:

Throw AE's Warp Stabilizer on the footage. Set the "Smoothness" to 15-25% (it will require much less cropping later) set borders to "Stabilize, Synthesize Edges" (again a lot less cropping) but drop the "Synthesis Input Range" to 0,2s otherwise you'll bog AE. In this kind of footage there is usually little point in using a higher value. Skim the footage looking for black borders and try to resize and reframe it so that they don't become evident. Note: defishing after stabilizing should make more sense as you would have more image to work with (defishing crops it) but from a few rough tries, the AE stabilization isn't clearly as effective when working on fisheye footage. This was the second export and a very long one: below 1fps.

5) CC & Denoising:

Used some of ColorGHear's gears, notably GHrain killer to kill a bit of noise and blockiness, but the footage was already very clean from the start and little color correction was used, just a little bit of levels adjusment. This was the third export and I believe it was even longer than the third due to the noise reduction filters: below 0.5fps.

6) The "so long" part: video effects, tracking and subtitling:

Translations were pretty quick, the hard and long part (at least until I found out how to smooth it) was tracking. It was fastidious to track people's features, takes a long time and needs constant review and adjustment. In the end I found out a few tricks (like increasing the tracking area) and smoothing the tracking points. This eased the job a lot and gave much better results. In the end I had to do it sometimes up to 3x until I was satisfied with it. In the process I had to learn a lot about tracking, smoothing, 3D objects, texting, transitions and light sources. This was the forth, the quickest and last export, probably around 10fps.

7) Audio mixing.

This was the part I was more ignorant about, but turned out to be pretty simple. Even though it's pretty rough, the footage is little demanding with so much crowd noise. It was as simple as importing the last video export from AE into Premiere, importing the original sound, importing also "Le Tigre - Dike March 2001" cutting and pasting a few pieces of this track and adjusting the volume here and there to serve the original events while leaving the words of the protesters audible when needed and off I was to the final export.

The resulting video can be found here:

Here are a few pictures of the event.

Anything more you may want to know about any part of the process I'll be glad to detail it.

filmed with hacked gh2 and 550d with fisheye lens.