[Christopher M.W.T]

Sigma 10-20 ? <== I know its a good lens, only thing is it good enough for realestate or is there too much distortion.

Pentax DA Fisheye <== already have this lens, can do some awesome things but it may not suit everyones tastes for realesate, unless I'm wrong? around 15-17 the distortion isn't that noticeable and if you shoot right it's pretty good however the edge sharpness still isn't the best. Still can already crop?

Pentax 12-24? <== seems like a great lens.

Pentax DA 15 ltd, looks like a fantastic lens.
Pentax DA 14 <== I don't reallly get this lens, its 1mm wider yer is a lot larger so why wouldn't I get the DA15?

[Christopher M.W.T]

Actually I just went down the basement before at my house to test out me FE, seems alright actually, what do others think?

I shot these at 10mm at near pitch black as the fluro's are all busted.

[Ash]

Of course, you're putting up with a lot of distortion that is not so desired in real estate photography, and so the Sigma 10-20, Tamron 10-24 and Pentax 12-24 come to mind as rectilinear options.

Pentax is most favoured in this situation as it performs where it matters most, whilst the Tamron and Sigma respectively form the other favourable choices for the job.

[ivoire]

I previously used the Sigma 10-20mm (early version) and switched to the Pentax 12-24mm. The Pentax is sharper and I usually shoot at 12 - 14mm for interiors. When shooting at 10mm, the Sigma had a tendency to elongate furniture in close/smaller rooms and was unacceptable and uncorrectable. I believe the new Sigma is very good, but haven't tried it. Both lenses will produce distortion in some situations (correctable with K7 in camera setting or photoshop). I did use a fisheye when the client wanted a virtual tour, but it was a nikon with the IPIX system (IPIX was the easiest/best at creating virtual tours as it was a 2 shot system and the software did all the stitching and correction work automatically). Re your shots, if you are happy with them then the fisheye is fine. I doubt you will get a realestate company to buy or use them for sales purposes (unless the distortion is corrected). With the fisheye and correction software you are in business... just takes a bit more post processing.

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Last edited by ivoire; 01-17-2010 at 05:17 PM.

[SOldBear]

I've been going out taking photos for a friend of mine, a real estate agent.

Initially I used a Sigma 18-50mm F/2.8. Many times it was not wide enough so I brought along a Ricoh GX200 with a 0.7X auxiliary wide angle adapter (the Ricoh lens became 16-50mm equivalent in 35mm film format). I do have a Pentax 10-17mm FE but many customers don't like the FE effect.

Now I'm strictly using a Pentax 12-24mm F/4. I don't need anything else.

[Christopher M.W.T]

Cool thanks for the feedback.

What zoom range do you typically use on the 12-24?

What do you use for lighting?

[Ash]

I have all the indoor lights switched on, photographing optimally at the end of day when the light intensity is subdued through the windows and go for 12-15mm, sometimes up to 18mm depending on the room.

[benjikan]

I would highly recommend the Pentax DA 12-24 which is a stunning lens with very little distortion and sharp from wide open.

[ivoire]

My K7 went in for repair so i picked up a used K10D as the market has picked up a bit and i can use a few xtra $s. You can view the first use of the K10 and the Pentax DA 12-24mm (in a very tiny condo) here. As for distortion, almost all the images were shot near 12mm and required distortion correction in photoshop. It's a great lens and i recommend it highly.

http://3difocus.com/slideshows/433Commons/

[keyser]

Do Pentax make a tilt/shift? That may be handy for outdoor shots, avoiding converging verticals. It would set you apart from everybody else... the results look more professional in a way that's hard to define.

[Pentaxor]

I would highly recommend the Pentax DA 12-24 which is a stunning lens with very little distortion and sharp from wide open.

one of the main reasons why I preferred it over the Sigma 10-20. I knew I had to spend more money on it, but it's worth the investment. besides, 10-20 would become 12-20 versus the DA 12-24. that's an extra reach of 4mm right there, not to mention it's a 24mm/4 of goodness.

[Ash]

Do Pentax make a tilt/shift? That may be handy for outdoor shots, avoiding converging verticals.

Not yet... wouldn't be a big seller, but it would sure make architectural photographers chime into Pentax...

[Jewelltrail]

I do not shoot Real Estate, but surely do shoot indoors. I use my Sigma 10-20mm indoors and have been very happy with its performance. I'm sure the 12-24 f4 is a great lens, but I own the Tamron 17-50mm and did not need the extra reach of the 12-24. However. I was interested in having the 10-11mm the Sigma offers.This shot, at 10mm, has no distortion correction applied--it is fine for my needs and better than most of the Real Estate shots I see out there.

[Venturi]

Here are some shots made with my 12-24 we used for the listing on our old house last summer. ( They worked - we got a full-price contract in 48hrs. )

[Pentaxor]

Venturi, some pincushion distortion there in the first pic. how (what angle) did you shoot that one? and was it also shoot at the 12mm end?