[danixmen]

What do you think is the best ultra-wide for Pentax? Take down 15mm

- Sigma 10mm
- Samyang 10mm
- Sigma 8-16
- Sigma 10-20
- Sigma 12-24
- Pentax/Tokina/Samgung 12-24
- Pentax DA 14mm
- Pentax 15mm (as DA versions as old)
- Samyang 14mm
- Sigma 14mm
- Tamron 14mm
- Sigma 15mm
...........

[normhead]

One vote for the SIgma 8-16
Based on the research I did before I bought it. Once I have something that works for me, I spend very little time on comparisons, so not really objective.
Sigma 8-16, excellent images quality, corrected for distortion to 12mm..
8mm is pretty much unequalled.

[lesmore49]

I like the Pentax 12-24. I have one, have used it 1000's of times. Wonderful lens, but pricey.

[northcoastgreg]

The DA 15 (either version) is the best of the ultra-wides in the K-mount. Followed by the Pentax version of the 12-24 (the Tokina version is inferior). At this time, I'm inclined to think the Samyang 10mm is the best of the 3rd party ultra-wides.

[danixmen]

thanks for the comments. I have the Sigma 10-20 and Pentax 12-24 I can only comment on them. For me it is better 12-24.
I have read that the SMC-A 15mm f3.5 is as good as 12-24

greetings

[Na Horuk]

For what purpose? I have Samyang 14mm, but I if I were buying today, I would get the Samyang 16mm f2. For landscapes, indoor photos 16mm is good. Samyang is best bang for buck, if you can deal with manual focusing and get a good copy. If you want a lens that will surely work well and has full compatibility with camera, get one of the Pentax lenses. If you need flexibility on a budget, get one of the zooms. If you need fast aperture, get a prime. The other constraint is your budget. And the final factor is what is actually available. No sense to wonder about a lens if its discontinued, local stores don't carry it, or shipping costs are ridiculous. The Sigma 8-16mm is considered one of the best btw, but can be hard to find and expensive. And the Pentax DA 15mm is a cult lens, especially the SMC version (since the new HD version has different starburst on point lightsources due to rounded aperture blades)
Oh, and we've had quite a few threads about ultra wide angle lens comparisons. It is a common topic, because people often assume that wider angle means you can capture "more" - but wide angles are very difficult to use to get good results, as they make anything that is even a little far appear tiny. This is part of the reason I don't recommend things like Samyang 10mm or Sigma 8-16mm to people who are new to ultra wides. Better start with something not as insanely wide. I've seen some great photos taken with the Sigma 10-20mm or Tamron 10-24mm posted on these forums, even though these lenses are not "top performers" in lab tests

[blackcloudbrew]

I have a number of UWA lenses and I like them all for different reasons. And there are a number on your list that I wouldn't mind having as well. The DA 15 Limited still comes to mind as just an amazing lens but really, all of them are special to me. I cannot pick just one.

[danixmen]

It is a survey that I want to propose, not to buy the winner.
"The Best" in detail IQ, color, aberration, distortion, microcontrast....
Without determining a specific discipline, for photography in general

Thank you

[alexcox]

10-17mm zoom, without a doubt! Though the 12-24 is very good, as well.

[esrandall]

I've only owned the Sigma 10-20 f/4-5.6. It was excellent for me in every way, especially considering I purchased it for $260 from the Marketplace. I just found that I wasn't using it that much, so I went ahead and sold it to finance an upgrade to the kit 18-55 (picked up a Tamron 17-50). I felt like the 10-20 was an easy lens to use if you put some thoughts into your shots, and I was definitely happy with the image quality. I know most of the other lenses on that list are a lot more expensive, but I would need to use them to make me a believer that the increased cost was in line with the increased performance. I thought the 10-20 was really good.

[VoiceOfReason]

Sigma 8-16 gets my vote.

[DeadJohn]

The best wide lens for me depends on my subject.

Tamron 10-24: This is a fantastic general purpose lens for cities, museums, and other tight spaces. Distortion is good through 12mm, and manageable all the way to 10mm. Having the 24mm zoom is invaluable when you need a narrower view without changing lenses. Flaring is kept under control and I really like the look of this lens for nighttime street photography. Images below show the extreme ends of a 24mm crop in a museum, and 10mm nighttime cityscape, both handheld and with minimal processing.

Samyang family: Even though I like the Tamron 10-24 for night street photos, my Samyang 14 is better for astrophotography. The Samyang is very sharp wide open and shows no coma distortion on stars. If I didn't already have the 14 and was buying this again, I would probably go for the 16/2 instead of 14/2.8 for the extra stop of light gathering.

Pentax DA 15: I have never used a DA 15, but based on what I've seen others do with it it's one of the best landscape lenses. It seems to give better colors than my Tamron 10-24 and therefore less processing work. I don't personally need the DA 15, though, because my DA* 16-50 is nearly as wide and very sharp for landscapes when stopped down.

[Hostis]

Hi.

I have the same problem. Don't know what lens to buy. I've been looking like crazy for some weeks now and decided to to get the Samyang 14 mm mainly for astrophotography. The fact that the 14 mm supports FF when that day comes makes this lens more sutiable compared to the Samyang 16 mm.

But this thread just messes with my decision

[civiletti]

Sigma 8-16
Samyang 14

[jrpower10]

I have the DA 12-24, DA 10-17, DA15 and Sigma 8-16 (can you have too many UWA's?). Best is subjective and I think they're all great, but I use the DA12-24 the most, so I guess for me it's the best. Great IQ, useful zoom range, and accepts filters for the times I need one (mainly ND's when I want to do longer exposures).