>From: ecs amkoc <amkoc@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>I have option to purchase either lens and would like have opinions on
>the performance of the lenses from list members who are familiar with
>either lens.
Get them both, if it's a decent price!
In particular, the 16mm fisheye is generally cheaper than the 18mm, and
underrated. Until I ended up with one as part of a whole-system purchase, I
wouldn't have thought to get one, thinking it a "novelty" or "special
purpose" lens, limited to special effects.
The thing to keep in mind is that any line that passes through the center
will be straight. So while it looks distorted when in a building (because
of all the straight lines, impossible to have all going through the
center), it is wonderful for sweeping foreground-to-background scenics,
because you generally only have one line to worry about -- the horizon.
It's particularly wonderful on partly-cloudy days, since it encompasses
almost half the sky. It seems to be particularly flare-resistant. I
regularly shoot it right into the sun, with only a tiny bit of iris flare
resulting.
Be careful about metering. Use the spot meter on a gray card or on your
subject. With all that bright sky in the frame, average metering and
auto-exposure tends to be too dark.
My favorite technique is to set it hyperfocal at f16, then get 9" from some
interesting object, then tilt it up or down until the horizon straightens
out in the center. As a matter of fact, that's how I tend to use the 18mm,
also, but for perspective control, rather than curvature distortion control.
One thing is for sure -- using the 16mm is great training for using ANY
wide angle lens!
: Jan Steinman <mailto:jans@xxxxxxxxxxx>
: 19280 Rydman Court, West Linn, OR 97068-1331 USA
: +1.503.635.3229
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