| Author: | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2007 Posts: 872 | | Review Date: May 23, 2010 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
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Did anyone mention the close focusing ability of this lens?
If there is such a think as a "nose print" it's on the objective of my 10-17, and it belongs to my brother.  | | | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: July, 2008 Location: Rankin Inlet, Nunavut Posts: 3,948 | | Review Date: May 20, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $365.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Versatile, lightweight, very good for video, fast enough, close focus, sharp | | Cons: | High contrast and flare make for PP | |
Fun and furious is how I describe this fisheye. It's not everyone's cup-of-tea, but this lens makes you "see" creatively by its very design. You think "Now, how would that look from the fisheye perspective?", and the next thing you know you are down on the ground, under the drydocked boat trying to get a shot of some barnacles while still getting the sign from the oyster bar in the frame. And you can do it, and it looks great.
One thing is I have been amazed by the sharpness in the centre 2/3 of the frame. Crop or zoom out to 17mm and this is a very good piece of glass for its crispness while still giving a unique perspective.
The 10-17 FE's relatively fast aperture and close focussing ability makes it ideal for video I have found. It does what few dedicated videocams can do and that is get a true wide angle in lower light. Stop it down to get some DOF and zoom in slightly and you have one of the better lenses for video in the Pentax lineup.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2006 Location: Ontario Posts: 744 | | Review Date: January 2, 2010 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Build, price, fun, suprisingly versatile | | Cons: | PF | | New or Used: New
| |
I picked this lens up as a fun little way to kick-start my creativity and do some UWA shooting knowing full well that being a fish-eye, it would take some work.
First off, this is just a really fun lens to use. The sharpness is just fine and it's solid. I could only wish it was weather-sealed, but then again, maybe not, considering you'd have a real hard time keeping the front element dry. 
For doing UWA shooting, it's quite a remarkable little gem for less than half the price of the 12-24. It cleans up nicely in PTLens and all but the extreme edges seem to clean up quite good.
For the real close-up work, it's also quite a bit of fun to use.
In short, I got this mostly as a fun little distraction and it's proven to be more versatile than I originally thought.
It's also one of the (if not, the) only lens that's cheaper than it's Tokina counter-part.
I will also mention that you can hand-hold a square/rectangle GND filter in front of it from about 12/13mm with good results.
Here's an example of this lens being de-fished & perspective being corrected:
(Non working link removed)
This was corrected using PTLens and is a pseudo-HDR.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: July, 2008 Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia Posts: 2,924 | | Review Date: August 10, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | (looks) sharp, DA contrast and colors, VERY versatile, fun! | | Cons: | it's actually not really that sharp (but doesn't really matter since it looks sharp), filters are hard to use without vignetting, PF is terrible | |
What I said in pros/cons pretty much sums it up.
The bigggest point of this lens for me is its versatility. It's my fisheye, wide-angle, "for fun", portrait, and macro! If only it can go to a circular fisheye when zooming to it's widest end, it would be perfect  but that maybe a design impossibility.
The fisheye effect is really fun and can make amazing photos when used correctly. The zoom helps a lot in its versatility. If you defish the lens it becomes a super wide angle.
This lens have a reputation for being really sharp, but if you pixelpeep you'll realize that it's really not sharp. The pictures does look amazingly sharp when not peeped though, so I wonder why?
The only real bad side of this lens is PF. The PF is terrible and might be the worst from all lenses that I own. This only shows up in contrasty skies though,
I got it for 300 but I got really lucky... overall HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
| | | | | | | Loyal Site Supporter Registered: June, 2009 Location: Tumbleweed, Arizona Posts: 5,707 | | Review Date: July 4, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Extreme Angle of View, Image Quality (given the AoV), DOF, Color/Contrast, Build Quality | | Cons: | None | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
New or Used: New
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I have had this lens for 3 years and it is one of my favorites. It has taken several of my best images - ever! It has the feel of a precision instrument - with its well balanced all metal body, weight and mass along with its superior build. It is quite small - actually tiny against the DA 12-24. It is a Fish Eye, however I would classify it as a hybrid Fish Eye, because it enables - you, the photographer to place the "bend" where you want it or need it - simply by slightly aiming up, straight out or down . At 17mm the FE effect is fairly minimal and very well controlled - with the field of view about 100 degrees. At 10mm - especially in portrait, you have to ensure that your feet or toes are not in the frame. Again at 10mm the field of view is a full 180 degrees. You can also back off from the 10mm to 17mm where the fish eye distortion is less noticeable - its still there to an extent, however its not yet a rectilinear lens.
One of the major complaints aimed at this lens, is CA. I have shot directly into the sun at sunset, purposely placing lattice structures directly in line with the setting sun and not had any CA. Not that you will never get any, however depending on the composition it is not as overpowering as you may believe. And if you do have serious CA, there is software available able to clean it up.
Another advantage of this lens is its ability to take the image extremely close to the subject being photographed. This is especially useful in very crowded areas, where you can be right up against the subject and have a well controlled and framed image. The ability to get so close to massive objects has not been well reported. Conversely, using this lens as a pure landscape lens, tends to push back the center in order to pull in the edges (thus the wide angle), so objects far away will appear further away. The lenses depth of field is endless.
This lens is especially useful when a wide field of view is absolutely necessary - especially when things are in motion and stitching is not an option. You can capture the entire 180 degree field of view in a single image. That said, for even wider, or taller (stacked) views, the images are stitchable, especially non linear items such as trees, branches, etc. The images are also able to be defished and converted to a rectilinear perspective.
Its a fun lens. It provides a lot of creativity (in some cases - too much). It provides a VERY different perspective on things around you. Originally, I picked up the this lens because it was substantially cheaper and wider than the DA 12-24. I have read where quite a few folks think that, its one or the other, but not both. It has taken me well over 3 years, but acquiring both certainly does provide an endless amount of flexibility and capability for images. The DA 10-17 FE covers 180 degrees to 100, while the DA 12-24 covers 99 to about 60 degrees. So the lenses are very complementary, and actually join together rather than overlap, as the focal length values would imply.
This is a specialty lens - no doubt about it. However, I used this as a walking around lens for an entire day on several occasions. You start to think a bit differently about what you can do, and what you will do with this lens. It's appeal is actually much broader than one would think - and that is due to its zoom, and its well controlled FE effect - thus my term of a "hybrid FE". You can have as much of the FE or as little of the FE as you, the photographer desires.
The other aspect that a user must understand, is that this lens can pull an entire 180 degrees of view and put it on the sensor. Compared to any other lens that will take a smaller angle of view, each sensor pixel covers a lot more area. That said, the sharpness just due to the width of the scene determines that this lens will NOT have the sharpness of a FA 31. On the other hand, its sharpness is not muddy either. It just does extremely well in what it was designed to do, and that is to pull in angle of view and reasonably accurately (its a fish eye), lay the image on the sensor. The colors and contrast from this lens are excellent. I find both the colors and contrast in this lens to be superior to the 12-24.
Attached is an image at 10mm with a shot directly into the sun, through a ship's mast structure. The perfect conditions for PF. There is not much in this case. YMMV.....
I can VERY easily recommend this lens with absolutely no reservations.
 | | | | | New Member Registered: April, 2009 Location: Cambria CA USA Posts: 2 | | Review Date: May 14, 2009 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Incredible range of vision | | Cons: | I have none | |
This is my favorite lens. I get more compliments on the interesting photos. The distortion at 10mm is part of the art.
| | | | | Pentaxian Registered: December, 2007 Location: Upstate New York Posts: 9,553 | | Review Date: May 12, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $375.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Very sharp. Fast focus. Excellent close ups | | Cons: | None for me. Perhaps the filter issue | |
I have always been a fan of fisheye shots and this is my first fisheye lens. I love it! I find it very usable as a walkaround wide angle. With a little care, the distortion can be controlled and gets less as you lengthen the zoom. I was debating for a long time as to whether I would get the Sigma 10-20 or this lens and I am quite happy with my decision. I also like how I can get awesome close ups with this lens. I rate it a 9 because nothing is perfect but this lens is close. It does its intended purpose very, very well.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: December, 2007 Location: Montreal Posts: 1,249
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: March 21, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | very sharp, fun fun lens, unique (FE zoom), build quality, small, close focusing | | Cons: | Purple fringing, Chromatic aberrations | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 6
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 8
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I love this lens, it gives very fun shots and the widest angle of view you can get (180° and about 169° horizontally if I'm not mistaken). Because it's not rectilinear like the Sigma 10-20mm its effective field of view is much wider than the Sigma.
Its center sharpness is impressive, the corners are a bit difficult to judge due to the huge fisheye distortion. It's the only Fisheye zoom (the Tokina 10-17 is the same design and the Pentax also designed a similar lens for their film cameras). At 17mm the distortion is much less and gets closer to more rectiliner wide angle. Its close focusing ability makes it even more versatile and I love it for... macros!
It's also very small, about the same size as the kit lens I believe, but with a very good build quality. Focusing is fast (everything after 0.5m or so is in focus anyway) and smooth and provides quick shift. The cap and hood are uncommon and you cannot put filters but it's normal for that kind of lens, just be careful to not bump the front element.
The only downside of the lens are the CA and especially the purple fringing. I think this is mostly due to the fish-eye design anyway but it can spoil some shots.
Pictures taken with the DA 10-17mm fisheye | | | | | New Member Registered: March, 2009 Location: NWT Posts: 3 | | Review Date: March 7, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $700.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharp | | Cons: | No filter | |
I love it!
Great fisheye, and until Pentax comes out with a 8mm it will have to do.
Very sharp, great colour, well built, it is so nice to feel metal.
I love that I can keep it on for an event! You can play with your fisheye, and when zoomed out it is just a nice wide angle. No one wants to be the guy who only shoots with a fish eye, it gets old quick. Works great on my mz7, k10d, and the k20d.
Works great at -52C.
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: April, 2008 Location: Hayward, California Posts: 40 | | Review Date: February 3, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $310.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | well rounded, great picture quality | | Cons: | no provision for filter | |
This lens rounded out my DA lens set focal lengths. For my travels, I now only bring DA lens. I have the 18-55, 50-200 and now this one complete my low end focal length need at 10-17. It also satisfy my Fisheye need.
When I used the 17mm fisheye prime for my 35mm in the past, I find the lens to be a single purpose only and a lot of times it got very little use. With the 10-17, Pentax got it right by making it a zoom, thus providing you fisheye capability but also allow you to zoom to a normal wide angle application.
Pictures produced by this lens has been great, with slight CA during extreme lighting situation.
Excellent build, that mimics my K lenses quality.
Overall, an excellent lens to own.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: January, 2008 Location: Long Island, New York Posts: 2,703 | | Review Date: January 12, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Fun; very sharp; great IQ; fun! | | Cons: | PF....tons of it at wide apertures | |
This is one of the more interesting lenses I own. As popular as it is, I feel it's very underrated. The distortion at 10mm is something to behold, while at 17mm there's not very much at all. This lens is usually thought of as a gimmick lens, but it is surprisingly sharp throughout its range and delivers outstanding IQ. The only real drawback to this lens is the gobs of PF it delivers at wide apertures. Keep it at F8 and you'll be fine. The 10-17 also focuses very closely but without magnification, allowing you to accentuate the foreground while still yielding amazing DOF. Makes for some interesting framing.
A lens that is a lot more versatile than it's given credit for...
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: November, 2008 Location: Alabang Posts: 28 | | Review Date: December 23, 2008 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | nice build quality, awesome zoom barrel, good size | | Cons: | no filter - | |
this is the lens that gives me the biggest smiles (not only from me but also my human subjects)
in 2006 i bought a lomo fisheye (plastic camera) and had so much fun with it...
when i ventured into the wonderful world of pentax, i was hellbent - i had to grab the 10-17mm zoom.
this year, i finally was able to grab my copy, and i've never had so much fun with a lens.
to top it all off, the lens itself is the perfect size, nice zoom barrel, great indoors and outdoors, and of course.... the pentax colors are just awesome!
yes there is CA, but who really cares about that when your having REAL WORLD FUN!
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: November, 2008 Location: Eckington, Derbyshire UK Posts: 316 | | Review Date: November 25, 2008 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | No internal relections | | Cons: | Distortion - inevitably | | New or Used: New
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I'm surprised nobody's commented on this lenses amazing control of internal reflections, there just aren't any.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: October, 2007 Location: Claremont, CA USA Posts: 77 | | Review Date: November 12, 2008 | Recommended | Price: $360.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | It make me exercise my creative skills every time I use it. If I don't it lets me know. Has great potential | | Cons: | Sun shade not of much value. On filters can be used. | |
This is a special lens. You need to be ready to work with this one. No just snapping it on and out come beautiful pics. Oh no! You have to think about planes and angles, pitch and yaw, thrust and drag. No, I am being a bit silly. It is a lens for the patient artist, or wannabe. It renders beautiful natural colors, is sharp when not fully wide open. Well made and feels solid. It takes practice to use it well, but I would buy it again.
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: November, 2008 Location: Lismore, NSW, Australia Posts: 144 | | Review Date: November 11, 2008 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Fun factor | | Cons: | Getting people to accept a lens 1" away from their face | |
Bought for 'something different'
Wanted to try a fish-eye look on the world and to get different perspective on a traditional viewpoint.
Can be quite interesting when I am virtually touching the car with my camera as I take a shot looking for that artistic angle. People do look at you strangely.
Obviously a big hit with children and for family gatherings as portraits 'with a difference' are taken.
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