What is the purpose of the 15mm limited?

stevebrot · 01-11-2021, 01:55 PM - **4 Likes**

Originally posted by Cerebum

To control our minds! What other purpose could there be?

Pentax Forums | The 15mm Limited Controls My Mind!

Steve

(...perhaps to conveniently provide a 23mm equivalent...)

Last edited by stevebrot; 01-11-2021 at 05:30 PM.

**aslyfox** · 01-11-2021, 02:02 PM - **4 Likes**

Originally posted by pepperberry farm

there's supposed to be a purpose??

to cause LBA

**BigMackCam** · 01-11-2021, 02:05 PM - **4 Likes**

Originally posted by Cerebum

OK, anyone's head exploded yet? No? OK good, let me explain. I have the 70, 40, 35 & 21mm limiteds. I feel the 40 & 35mm cover the same ground and I have the same feeling about the 21mm and the 15mm. As the 15mm is the dearest of the limited primes I haven't been tempted but one has slipped into my price window and is so tempting. The trouble is I don't want to spend £250 on a lens I will rarely use, so, what does it do that the 21mm doesn't? Why is it so popular and why does it hold its value? And, what do you use it for?

Firstly, everything you like about your existing DA Limiteds holds true with the DA15... build quality is superb, and the rendering - for this type of lens - is lovely.

Where you find the DA35 and 40 cover similar ground (and to some extent, I'd agree), the DA15 stands very much on its own. The difference between it and the DA21 is as marked - if not more so - as that between the DA40 and 70. Where the DA21 gives you a moderately wide angle of view, the 15 is truly wide... as another post above suggested, bordering on ultra-wide. It allows - often requires - you to work much closer-in than you may be used to, emphasising subjects in the immediate foreground and seemingly casting everything behind into the middle or far distance, with a real three-dimensional feel. The second shot by Craig ( @c.a.m ) above - the bird house on a telegraph pole - is a classic example of this.

My own journey with really wide and ultra-wide angle photography is in its infancy, and I've found it takes quite a bit of adjustment. I don't yet think naturally in such wide fields of view, and find the most challenging part is having complete awareness of background elements to either side of a subject... but I can see why folks enjoy it so much, and I think I'll grow into it. Certainly, if you're looking for something new and different, I think you'd enjoy it too

EDIT: Some of the best fun I've had with photography was quite a few years ago (before I got into digital) using a simple, all-plastic, "fixed focus" Vivitar Ultra-Wide and Slim 35mm film camera. That camera has a 22mm lens which, coincidentally, gives almost the exact same field of view as the DA15 on APS-C...

photoptimist · 01-11-2021, 02:09 PM - **4 Likes**

In the wide-angle arena, a few mm makes a big difference. A 15mm lens is 40% wider than a 21mm lens which means it covers double the area on the subject.

An ultra-wide-angle (UWA) lens like the DA 15 has four valuable categories of features:
1. UWA has a special look with exaggerated perspective and vanishing points to create a more dramatic composition.
2. Some scenes (e.g., wide vistas, tall buildings, large rooms) can't be captured in a single 21mm shot.
3. Deeper DoF for the everything-in-focus look.
3. UWA is the poor-person's shift lens -- level the camera to create vertical lines with no keystoning of tall trees/building, shoot, and crop out out the unneeded foreground.

That said, buying a UWA like the DA-15 depends on whether the photographer likes the look of UWA or takes shots that need wide angles because backing up is impossible to do.

**ThorSanchez** · 01-11-2021, 02:32 PM - **3 Likes**

You don't need any logic, or any process to go through. Just look at the 15mm LTD Controls My Mind thread and there's a thousand awesome photos. And the lens is a tiny little gem of a thing that you can point into the sun or a bunch of city lights and it does cool starbursts.

It's awesome, go buy one.

**Cerebum** · 01-11-2021, 02:45 PM

Originally posted by luftfluss

As a comparison of field of view, I just took a couple snaps with my DA 12-24. The first pic is at 21mm, the second at 15mm:

See, now that is interesting

thank you

its good to see a direct comparison

---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:46 PM ----------

Originally posted by Bertrand3000

I cannot say for the DA 15 since I don't own it (nor any other Limited), but you cannot compare focal lenghts from the DA 10-17 Fisheye with rectilinear lenses like the DA 15.

I know, I'm not helping.

Actually, that helped a lot

food for thought

---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:48 PM ----------

Originally posted by pepperberry farm

there's supposed to be a purpose??

Errrrrrm, OK, I concede that

I recently bought the 40mm despite having it covered & I don't know why but I don't regret it for one second

Bertrand3000 · 01-11-2021, 02:55 PM

Originally posted by Cerebum

Actually, that helped a lot

food for thought

You are lucky. You have good reasons to get that DA 15 now.

I have both the DA 10-17 and Sigma 10-20. The Sigma at 10mm has almost the same angle of view than the fisheye at 17mm, so the two lenses complement each other very well. But I have no reason to get that DA 15 other than plain Limited LBA, something wife won't understand.

**Cerebum** · 01-11-2021, 02:56 PM - **2 Likes**

When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it

time to start moving money around

---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:59 PM ----------

Originally posted by Bertrand3000

You are lucky. You have good reasons to get that DA 15 now.

I have both the DA 10-17 and Sigma 10-20. The Sigma at 10mm has almost the same angle of view than the fisheye at 17mm, so the two lenses complement each other very well. But I have no reason to get that DA 15 other than plain Limited LBA, something wife won't understand.

This will complete the set. Ask me to justify these primes, and I will struggle. I do love shooting inside churches though, and the 15mm w........ Etc ..... for several pages

**wm_brant** · 01-11-2021, 03:07 PM - **6 Likes**

A 6mm difference in focal length does not make a lot of difference when you're talking about telephotos or normal lenses, but 6mm of difference makes a lot of difference when you're talking about wide angle lenses.

Here's another example of what the 15mm can do (F16, 4s exposure on a tripod, focused using the DOF scale on the lens):

dbs · 01-11-2021, 03:09 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Cerebum

When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it

time to start moving money around

---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:59 PM ----------

This will complete the set. Ask me to justify these primes, and I will struggle. I do love shooting inside churches though, and the 15mm w........ Etc ..... for several pages

Then we have succeeded then ... if I am poorer then so can everyone else be ..

You'll love the 15 also

stevebrot · 01-11-2021, 03:17 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by BigMackCam

as another post above suggested, bordering on ultra-wide.

I would suggest that 15mm is an ultrawide by the conventional boundary of 24mm (84.06° diagonal FOV) and shorter for 24x36mm FF. The DA 15mm is pushing 90° with a diagonal FOV of 87.75° so I think it belongs in that club.

Steve

**Cerebum** · 01-11-2021, 03:24 PM

Originally posted by stevebrot

I would suggest that 15mm is an ultrawide by the conventional boundary of 24mm (84.06° diagonal FOV) and shorter for 24x36mm FF. The DA 15mm is pushing 90° with a diagonal FOV of 87.75° so I think it belongs in that club.

Steve

Aaaaargh! .... Science makes my brain hurt

I have no grasp whatsoever of the technical side, hence my reference to the 10-17mm but I am seeing that I have an ultrawide gap in my lens collection, but probably not for long

**aslyfox** · 01-11-2021, 03:40 PM - **3 Likes**

Originally posted by Cerebum

When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish. . .

" well excuse me "

You Tube

you have been here for a while

what ever made you think that talking you out of buying a good lens, much less a " limited "

was part of our job description

it ain't

" and that's the truth "

You Tube

**iheiramo** · 01-11-2021, 03:42 PM - **4 Likes**

Originally posted by Cerebum

When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it

time to start moving money around

By now you should already know how this forum works, so by opening this thread you basically just wanted to get the right reasons to confirm your buying decision

Just let us know when we can congratulate you of new lens

**UncleVanya** · 01-11-2021, 04:01 PM

Another way of looking at this is that the 21 is a lot like a 31mm on 35mm film cameras and the 15 is a lot like a 24mm. One is just a bit wide, the other is very wide.

As mentioned the da 15 has great flare resistance. The da 14 might be better at foreground emphasis shots but the da 15 is no slouch.

Contrast and color are just superb.

It is light and small also. A favorite carry kit of mine is the 15, 20-40, and 50-135. Another is 15, 18-135, 55-300.

01-11-2021, 02:05 PM - 4 Likes	#18
BigMackCam Digitiser of Film Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: North East of England Posts: 20,681	Originally posted by Cerebum OK, anyone's head exploded yet? No? OK good, let me explain. I have the 70, 40, 35 & 21mm limiteds. I feel the 40 & 35mm cover the same ground and I have the same feeling about the 21mm and the 15mm. As the 15mm is the dearest of the limited primes I haven't been tempted but one has slipped into my price window and is so tempting. The trouble is I don't want to spend £250 on a lens I will rarely use, so, what does it do that the 21mm doesn't? Why is it so popular and why does it hold its value? And, what do you use it for? Firstly, everything you like about your existing DA Limiteds holds true with the DA15... build quality is superb, and the rendering - for this type of lens - is lovely. Where you find the DA35 and 40 cover similar ground (and to some extent, I'd agree), the DA15 stands very much on its own. The difference between it and the DA21 is as marked - if not more so - as that between the DA40 and 70. Where the DA21 gives you a moderately wide angle of view, the 15 is truly wide... as another post above suggested, bordering on ultra-wide. It allows - often requires - you to work much closer-in than you may be used to, emphasising subjects in the immediate foreground and seemingly casting everything behind into the middle or far distance, with a real three-dimensional feel. The second shot by Craig ( @c.a.m ) above - the bird house on a telegraph pole - is a classic example of this. My own journey with really wide and ultra-wide angle photography is in its infancy, and I've found it takes quite a bit of adjustment. I don't yet think naturally in such wide fields of view, and find the most challenging part is having complete awareness of background elements to either side of a subject... but I can see why folks enjoy it so much, and I think I'll grow into it. Certainly, if you're looking for something new and different, I think you'd enjoy it too EDIT: Some of the best fun I've had with photography was quite a few years ago (before I got into digital) using a simple, all-plastic, "fixed focus" Vivitar Ultra-Wide and Slim 35mm film camera. That camera has a 22mm lens which, coincidentally, gives almost the exact same field of view as the DA15 on APS-C... Last edited by BigMackCam; 01-11-2021 at 02:14 PM.

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01-11-2021, 01:55 PM - 4 Likes	#16
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by Cerebum What is the purpose of the 15mm limited? To control our minds! What other purpose could there be? Pentax Forums \| The 15mm Limited Controls My Mind! Steve (...perhaps to conveniently provide a 23mm equivalent...) Last edited by stevebrot; 01-11-2021 at 05:30 PM.

01-11-2021, 02:02 PM - 4 Likes	#17
aslyfox Seeker of Knowledge Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Topeka, Kansas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 24,582	Originally posted by pepperberry farm there's supposed to be a purpose?? to cause LBA

01-11-2021, 02:09 PM - 4 Likes	#19
photoptimist Pentaxian Join Date: Jul 2016 Photos: Albums Posts: 5,127	In the wide-angle arena, a few mm makes a big difference. A 15mm lens is 40% wider than a 21mm lens which means it covers double the area on the subject. An ultra-wide-angle (UWA) lens like the DA 15 has four valuable categories of features: 1. UWA has a special look with exaggerated perspective and vanishing points to create a more dramatic composition. 2. Some scenes (e.g., wide vistas, tall buildings, large rooms) can't be captured in a single 21mm shot. 3. Deeper DoF for the everything-in-focus look. 3. UWA is the poor-person's shift lens -- level the camera to create vertical lines with no keystoning of tall trees/building, shoot, and crop out out the unneeded foreground. That said, buying a UWA like the DA-15 depends on whether the photographer likes the look of UWA or takes shots that need wide angles because backing up is impossible to do.

01-11-2021, 02:45 PM	#21
Cerebum Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Lancaster Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,829 Original Poster	Originally posted by luftfluss As a comparison of field of view, I just took a couple snaps with my DA 12-24. The first pic is at 21mm, the second at 15mm: See, now that is interesting thank you its good to see a direct comparison ---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:46 PM ---------- Originally posted by Bertrand3000 I cannot say for the DA 15 since I don't own it (nor any other Limited), but you cannot compare focal lenghts from the DA 10-17 Fisheye with rectilinear lenses like the DA 15. I know, I'm not helping. Actually, that helped a lot food for thought ---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:48 PM ---------- Originally posted by pepperberry farm there's supposed to be a purpose?? Errrrrrm, OK, I concede that I recently bought the 40mm despite having it covered & I don't know why but I don't regret it for one second

01-11-2021, 02:55 PM	#22
Bertrand3000 Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2019 Posts: 2,009	Originally posted by Cerebum Actually, that helped a lot food for thought You are lucky. You have good reasons to get that DA 15 now. I have both the DA 10-17 and Sigma 10-20. The Sigma at 10mm has almost the same angle of view than the fisheye at 17mm, so the two lenses complement each other very well. But I have no reason to get that DA 15 other than plain Limited LBA, something wife won't understand.

01-11-2021, 02:56 PM - 2 Likes	#23
Cerebum Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Lancaster Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,829 Original Poster	When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it time to start moving money around ---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:59 PM ---------- Originally posted by Bertrand3000 You are lucky. You have good reasons to get that DA 15 now. I have both the DA 10-17 and Sigma 10-20. The Sigma at 10mm has almost the same angle of view than the fisheye at 17mm, so the two lenses complement each other very well. But I have no reason to get that DA 15 other than plain Limited LBA, something wife won't understand. This will complete the set. Ask me to justify these primes, and I will struggle. I do love shooting inside churches though, and the 15mm w........ Etc ..... for several pages

01-11-2021, 03:07 PM - 6 Likes	#24
wm_brant Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Central Iowa, USA Photos: Albums Posts: 173	A 6mm difference in focal length does not make a lot of difference when you're talking about telephotos or normal lenses, but 6mm of difference makes a lot of difference when you're talking about wide angle lenses. Here's another example of what the 15mm can do (F16, 4s exposure on a tripod, focused using the DOF scale on the lens):

01-11-2021, 03:09 PM - 1 Like	#25
dbs Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Clare Valley S A Photos: Albums Posts: 7,564	Originally posted by Cerebum When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it time to start moving money around ---------- Post added 01-11-21 at 02:59 PM ---------- This will complete the set. Ask me to justify these primes, and I will struggle. I do love shooting inside churches though, and the 15mm w........ Etc ..... for several pages Then we have succeeded then ... if I am poorer then so can everyone else be .. You'll love the 15 also

01-11-2021, 03:17 PM - 1 Like	#26
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by BigMackCam as another post above suggested, bordering on ultra-wide. I would suggest that 15mm is an ultrawide by the conventional boundary of 24mm (84.06° diagonal FOV) and shorter for 24x36mm FF. The DA 15mm is pushing 90° with a diagonal FOV of 87.75° so I think it belongs in that club. Steve

01-11-2021, 03:24 PM	#27
Cerebum Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: Lancaster Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,829 Original Poster	Originally posted by stevebrot I would suggest that 15mm is an ultrawide by the conventional boundary of 24mm (84.06° diagonal FOV) and shorter for 24x36mm FF. The DA 15mm is pushing 90° with a diagonal FOV of 87.75° so I think it belongs in that club. Steve Aaaaargh! .... Science makes my brain hurt I have no grasp whatsoever of the technical side, hence my reference to the 10-17mm but I am seeing that I have an ultrawide gap in my lens collection, but probably not for long

01-11-2021, 03:42 PM - 4 Likes	#29
iheiramo Unoriginal Poster Join Date: Nov 2016 Location: Espoo Photos: Albums Posts: 3,182	Originally posted by Cerebum When it comes to talking me out of buying a lens, you lot are rubbish! And I can't begin to tell you just how much I appreciate it time to start moving money around By now you should already know how this forum works, so by opening this thread you basically just wanted to get the right reasons to confirm your buying decision Just let us know when we can congratulate you of new lens

01-11-2021, 04:01 PM	#30
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,445	Another way of looking at this is that the 21 is a lot like a 31mm on 35mm film cameras and the 15 is a lot like a 24mm. One is just a bit wide, the other is very wide. As mentioned the da 15 has great flare resistance. The da 14 might be better at foreground emphasis shots but the da 15 is no slouch. Contrast and color are just superb. It is light and small also. A favorite carry kit of mine is the 15, 20-40, and 50-135. Another is 15, 18-135, 55-300.