At one point in the not so distant past I did have a Rokinon 8mm fisheye lens in my inventory but I sold because, well, quite frankly I hardly ever used it. This is an extremely specialized EXTREME wide angle lens and even though I will still only have the rare occasion where I might employ a lens such as this, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to replace mine when, on a photography Facebook page, one was made for sale for a GREAT price. This lens sells brand new for around $270-$280 USD.
This particular seller was asking only $160 and he ended up taking my offer at $150. I think I sold my original Rokinon for $220. The end result is I ended up with the same lens with a net of $60 USD in my pocket.
So what can this 8mm fisheye lens be used for? This lens has a few applications that are well suited for it such as architecture but it really excels when you WANT to end up with that extreme wide angle fisheye look. I also have in my kit the Sony 16mm f/2.8 fisheye but it's definitely not as extreme as this one. This lens is so wide, I can almost see my ears in the lens view when I hold it up to my eye to take the shot. I've also used this lens for funny face pictures, see the sample below.
I know that I'll still hardly ever use the lens but it was cheap and I do like to have the option of the extreme wide angle. One thing to note, this lens is made for APS-C sized sensors, so if you're using a full frame camera like the A7, you'll want to change your sensor size in the settings. The full frame equivalent is 12mm. Almost forgot to mention, this is an A Mount lens, HOWEVER, they DO make it for E Mount with a 2.8 aperture instead of 3.5 like mine, but it is more expensive.
This particular seller was asking only $160 and he ended up taking my offer at $150. I think I sold my original Rokinon for $220. The end result is I ended up with the same lens with a net of $60 USD in my pocket.
So what can this 8mm fisheye lens be used for? This lens has a few applications that are well suited for it such as architecture but it really excels when you WANT to end up with that extreme wide angle fisheye look. I also have in my kit the Sony 16mm f/2.8 fisheye but it's definitely not as extreme as this one. This lens is so wide, I can almost see my ears in the lens view when I hold it up to my eye to take the shot. I've also used this lens for funny face pictures, see the sample below.
I know that I'll still hardly ever use the lens but it was cheap and I do like to have the option of the extreme wide angle. One thing to note, this lens is made for APS-C sized sensors, so if you're using a full frame camera like the A7, you'll want to change your sensor size in the settings. The full frame equivalent is 12mm. Almost forgot to mention, this is an A Mount lens, HOWEVER, they DO make it for E Mount with a 2.8 aperture instead of 3.5 like mine, but it is more expensive.
Rokinon 8mm fisheye
