| Author: | | Junior Member Registered: September, 2009 Posts: 27
8 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 11, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $500.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | colours, contrast, useable from f/3.5 onward | | Cons: | not 8 mm, CAs | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 8
Value: 8
New or Used: New
Camera Used: Pentax K-5
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I started fishing with the Samyang 8mm some time ago. After pixel peeping other lenses, I became less satisfied with the Samyang’s IQ wide open as well as in low light. Hence I focused on the Pentax DA 10-17 as an alternative. I hardly found any comparative review between the two, so I find me providing one here.
Here are my findings: - range as a fish-eye: + 1 for Samyang
- variability: +1 for Pentax
- resolution @3.5: +2 for Pentax
- resolution @8: deuce
- contrast and colours: +2 for Pentax
- vignetting: +1 for Pentax
- aberrations: +1 for Samyang
- build quality: +1 for Pentax
- Price-Value: +1 for Samyang
Pentax wins for the better IQ. See a stitched comparing sample from the backyards below.
 | | | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: February, 2014 Posts: 421
7 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 14, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Fun, small & light, great results | | Cons: | Can't think of any | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-5 IIs
| |
Everyone should have one of these. It's fun to use, it's small and light so you can carry it in your bag at all times, produces wonderful photos.
And when you compare to other manufacturers, it's also reasonably priced. I got mine from B&H when it was on sale, for $300. It's the most expensive lens I have and I absolutely love it.
If you use it right, the distortion is barely visible. But when you want it, it's certainly there.
Some samples (some of them stitched in MS ICE )
 | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2013 Posts: 796
5 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 11, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $430.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Small, light, versatile zoom range | | Cons: | Purple fringing, not WR | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 9
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-30, KP
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This lens is a special effect lens, it has a 180 degree diagonal FoV and close focusing capability. Zoomed to 17mm it's near rectilinear. The lens has a built in hood and the hood is visible with any composition adjustment, so with the astrotracer it will show up at the edges.
The lens is very sharp even after using the FA limited other primes, but the much worse purple fringing (CA) makes the overal resolution worse.
Here are some images:
 IMG0139_150228 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG0071_150404 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG0612_141003 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG0222_141002 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG170414_0004 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG170319_0060 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG170626_0083 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
 IMG170627_0094 by Benjámin Czétényi, on Flickr
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: June, 2011 Location: Gotland Posts: 169
5 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 5, 2016 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Super wide view and keeps round objects round | | Cons: | None considering the special purpose | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 10
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K10D to K3II
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When going digital this lens was part of the reason to choose Pentax! I have used it for ten years by now.
Invaluable for photographing rainbows and haloes. Good for cramped interiors i e cars. Sharp enough for most purposes.
I had to learn how the fisheye works. Radial lines are rendered straight. Tangential lines are bent a lot, more the further off-centre they occur. Round objects are rendered round.
By keeping this in mind (and with practise) I find this lens quite useful. In Photoshop CS6 and newer (and some special programs) the pictures can be de-fished easily. After ten years, I often keep just this lens in the bag along with the camera and a standard zoom.
With all cameras up to the K3II metering was no problem. With the K3II overexposure can be a problem in some unevenly lit scenes.
This link is to a photo showing a halo above my medieval parish church.
http://www.atoptics.co.uk/fza126.htm | | | | | | | amateur dirt farmer Registered: December, 2014 Location: probably out in a field somewhere... Posts: 41,678
4 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 31, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $237.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | color rendition, quick AF, solidly-built | | Cons: | none | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K-50, K-3
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I used this lens for the Single in November Challenge and what I have found is nothing short of amazing..
First, the elephant in the room: it is a fish-eye lens; those aren't distortions in the lens' ability.... that's how it is supposed to look... the nice thing about the DA 10-17mm, however, is that by 14mm, the FE effect is lessening and by 17mm, it is pretty much gone... the FE effect will also depend upon how you use the lens and how you learn to control it...
That being said, the DA 10-17mm is simply amazing - great color rendition, quick autofocus, great build quality... with it being such a close-focus lens, do not expect great bokeh from it; it's possible, just not readily so.
Although not a macro lens, it's close-focusing ability is great! Many interesting angles and shots taken with this lens at very close distances....
My Flickr album for this lens: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pepperberryfarm/sets/72157659032799212
My final thought: this one is a no-brainer; if you can find one at a reasonable price, buy it...
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: April, 2010 Location: Calgary, AB Posts: 4,884
4 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 25, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $500.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharp, light for a zoom, bright colour, extraordinarily versatile | | Cons: | CA can be bothersome | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K 20, K-5
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When I went to purchase this lens after seeing great results and hearing such positive reviews, the salesman tried to discourage me suggesting it would be a one trick pony. I have used it on a daily basis for a challenge on the forum and regularly heard comments like "I don't normally like fish-eye but I like this" or "I can't believe this is a fisheye!" This is a brilliantly versatile lens with nice crisp colours. Autofocus is fast and accurate allowing you to hold the camera in unusual positions, shoot and get very unique images. CA can be quite significant but no worse than my DA* 16-50. As well, filters cannot be used so you will want to look after the front element, keeping it covered and clean.
A fish-eye is a great creative addition to a photographer's arsenal. Composition is very important to make the most of the results but it often breaks many of the rules that may be dragging you into a rut. Some examples:
At 10mm
The morning after by jmschrei, on Flickr
At 17mm
Red fin by jmschrei, on Flickr
Playing up the fishiness
Spring returns to the concrete jungle by jmschrei, on Flickr
Or not
Along the rails by jmschrei, on Flickr
And getting in close (you can get up to 13mm from your subject)
Pussy willow by jmschrei, on Flickr
Nature in abstract by jmschrei, on Flickr
| | | | | Pentaxian Registered: October, 2014 Posts: 613
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 20, 2021 | Recommended | Price: $450.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Versatility; Color rendition; Flare resistance; Maximum Magnification | | Cons: | Chromatic aberrations | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 9
New or Used: New
Camera Used: Pentax K-3
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The versatility provided by this unique lens is unparalleled, a true standout in the Pentax APS-C ecosystem (although a Tokina branded version also exists for Nikon). I will list some of the salient features of this lens, both positive and negative aspects:
- At 10mm it approaches a 180° field of view. Distortion can still be controlled (sometimes even hidden) with careful framing and tilting of the camera.
- At 17mm it can be used as an almost rectilinear wide angle lens. The field of view is significantly larger than a rectilinear lens of comparable nominal focal length such as a 16mm or 18mm zoom at its widest end.
- At the longest end, defishing is viable with raw development software. Given the low amount of distortion, the loss in IQ is no more dramatic than with a typical rectilinear zoom lens that might still require a certain amount of distortion correction in postproduction.
- The lens is capable of almost 0.4x magnification, approaching true macro territory. Consider that at the closest focusing distance you would almost be touching the subject with the front element, therefore the practical usability (i.e. actually lighting the scene) is fairly limited. Nevertheless, the lens is capable of stunning ambient close-up shots of medium-sized subjects such as flowers.
- Contributing to the usefulness for close-up shots with interesting backgrounds is the huge depth of field of the lens. Focusing will rarely be a problem even wide open (given the type of lens, focal length and aperture, it would be rather pointless to discuss bokeh, subject isolation, etc.)
- Sharpness, microcontrast, is excellent in the center of the frame at all focal lengths when stopped down. Decent wide open, more than usable for all intents and purposes. This is not a lens for those who strive for corner-to-corner sharpness.
- Amazing flare resistance, you can shoot straight into the sun with no issues (which would happen more often than not, given the massive field of view). However, the starburst effect resulting from such shots is rather harsh and might not be very pleasant to the eye.
- There are significant chromatic aberrations at the edges of the frame, likely requiring some postproduction efforts.
When travelling this lens is always in my backpack together with a standard general purpose zoom (currently 18-135).
I have taken some of my best shots with this lens and made some large prints with no issues whatsoever.
The general image quality you can achieve in the right conditions is very high, surely comparable to any ultrawide lens offered at a similar price point (and far superior to a consumer-class zoom like the 18-135 at its widest end, for that matter).
As mentioned above, if one is after corner-to-corner sharpness at all apertures and focal lengths, there are more suitable (and significantly more expensive) alternatives such as the new DA* 11-18.
| | | | | Pentaxian Registered: January, 2011 Location: Skĺne, Sweden Posts: 482
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: August 5, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $220.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Relatively compact, sharp, fun! | | Cons: | CA, no filters | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 6
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 9
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K-3 II, K-01
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This review is for a good condition DA10-17 bought second-hand in Sweden, serial nr in the 5856xxx-range.
PROS- Fun to use
- Relatiively compact for a fish-eye zoom (not to many of those around anyway)
- Usefull both uncorrected (fish-eye) and corrected (rectilinerar)
- Sharpness
- Close-focus capabilities
- Flare resistant
CONS- Aberrations in backlight, also a bit difficult to correct fully
- No filter thread (common for this type of lenses)
I USE IT FOR- Travel
- Indoors
- Creative fun
I mostly use prime lenses and in particularly I shoot portraits with the FA 43 & 77 Limiteds. I have the DA15 as well, which has been my go to wide angle since I bought it maybe five years ago. I'm very happy with the DA15, but it is just borderline to ultra-wide and the last year or so I realized that I wanted to try out the creative side of a fish-eye as well. When it came up for a good price second hand in Sweden I went for it! Firstly, filling the frame with a 10mm fish-eye is a challenge. I noted this already with the DA15, and it is even more so with the DA10-17. This is of course no fault of the lens, but as a portrait shooter it is a (fun) challenge! 
I got familiar with this lens during a 10 day trip in Scotland, where I only previously had been playing around with it around the house. It is a bit of dual-purpose, since at 10mm you get the full fish-eye effect, but you can both correct it in post (and loose a whole lot of frame) or zoom towards 17 to minimize the fish-eye effect and end up with a regular wide angle. This is very handy during travel, and it is great for landscapes, indoor and close-up fun. It is not a large lens, similar to the kit lens in size, weight and handling. It does not extend much when zooming and has internal focusing. No filter thread, as is the norm for this type of lens.
Image quality is generally good. Sharp enough wide open, corners a bit soft but that's probably not where you place your subject anyway Being such a wide lens it is hard to say if it is field curvature, distortion effects, lack of sharpness.. it hasn't bothered me anyway. What can be a bit of pain is CA, which is plentiful in backlit scenarios. Usually it is a sharp purple or green border, a few pixels wide, but on the DA10-17 it is a more gradual smear.. and that is a bit more challenging to correct. It is not a deal-breaker for me, as dramatic wide angles has plenty of going on usually and that is what catches the eye.
For the price I paid I could hardly complain about anything. The build quality is lacking a bit compared to Limiteds or DA* lenses, but nothing else is expected really. It is a good lens for fun, travel, indoors that for the price has great value. It is probably the person behind the camera that is the limiting factor for creating that impressive fish-eye/wide angle shot, can't blame the DA10-17 for that
Pentax K-3 II, SMC Pentax-DA 10-17mm F3.5-4.5 Fish-Eye ED [IF]. 10mm, 1/1000 sec at f/5.6, ISO 100.
Pentax K-3 II, SMC Pentax-DA 10-17mm F3.5-4.5 Fish-Eye ED [IF]. 17mm, 1/40 sec at f/4.5, ISO 400.
Pentax K-3 II, SMC Pentax-DA 10-17mm F3.5-4.5 Fish-Eye ED [IF]. 10mm, 1/1000 sec at f/8.0, ISO 100.
My pictures on flickr with this lens | | | | | Senior Member Registered: February, 2007 Location: Hasselt , Belgium Posts: 224
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: March 28, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $407.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Good Build , Light , fishEye + Wide , Sharp , Price | | Cons: | none | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
New or Used: New
Camera Used: k3
| |
Very affordable lens with good AF and sharp results.
Practical because of size and weight.
You sort of get 2 lenses in one , if you want special and creatif effects then fisheye at 10mm is real fun , once you open up to 12-13mm you just get classic wide-angle results.
All taken with this lens :
https://philippeluyckx.smugmug.com/Salvador-Dali-Expo-Liege/ | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: September, 2010 Location: MD Posts: 1,030
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 28, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $270.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Small size for UWA, zoom flexibility, FE to near rectilinear, solid build | | Cons: | Purple CA (especially at 10mm end and in corners); lens susceptible to scratching? | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-30
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I love Pentax lenses like this. A small, well-built lens that offers great quality and a whole range of perspectives and fun.
I have tried the Rokinon 8mm Fisheye and the Sigma 10-20 f4.5-5.6 lenses. Both are fine lenses, but they are rather large. The DA 10-17 FE almost replaces both of them and in a much smaller package. Yes, the Rokinon 8mm FE offers a different (stereoscopic) kind of fisheye, and the Sigma is a rectilinear UWA, but if I want to travel light, this DA 10-17 is the lens I'll bring.
It's a bit soft wide open at 10mm and at f16 or higher. At 17mm, it's pretty good up through f16. Best results are f5.6-8 across the zoom range. (Note: at 10mm and f8, hyperfocal is 2'; at 17mm and f8 it's 6' >> i.e., it's easy to get a lot of everything in focus.)
The only real issue is the significant purple fringing, especially at the 10mm end and the closer it is to wide open. It's mostly fixable in post.
The fun thing about it is such a huge range of perspective depending on whether you are at 10mm or 17mm and whether you are shooting level or angled. I've attached two straight on pics at 10mm and 17mm to show the difference.
From 14-17mm it can almost function as a rectilinear lens by correcting (or applying the lens profile in LR) the perspective.
All in all, a fun and versatile lens.
10mm at f5.6; slight straightening but no other lens correction. Some exposure adjustments applied. (the curved lines are floor and ceiling lines)
17mm at f5.6; some straightening but no other lens corrections; crop is about 2/3 size of original; some exposure adjustments applied
 | | | | | Banned Registered: March, 2013 Posts: 360
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 27, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharpness, colors, contrast | | Cons: | cannot protect front element | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K-5
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Maybe I am a little bit subjective but I think that this is a brilliant lens.
After just a month of using this lens I've sold my DA12-24mm which I've been used for 2 years.
Why?
Because I wasn't used DA12-24mm for architecture and because DA10-17mm is better in almost everything except image distortion.
Let me explain:
1. DA10-17 is very sharp wide open at f/3.5, DA12-24 is acceptable sharp wide open f/4
2. DA10-17 has much better colors then DA12-24 which has a little bit muted colors when light is not perfect
3. DA10-17 has better contrast then DA12-24
4. DA10-17 has better autofocus in low light then DA12-24 (less hunting)
5. DA10-17 virtually has no flare which could be a problem with DA12-24 even with it's huge hood
6. DA10-17 is much smaller and lighter then DA12-24.
7. DA12-24 is not so great at 24mm end so it's loosing some advanteges over DA10-17.
CA on DA10-17 is similar to DA12-24
There are only 2 disadvantages of DA10-17 in compare to DA12-24:
1. Usage of filters is impossible and front element could not be protected except with lens cap.
2. Huge disortions. DA10-17 is definitely not for architectural photography like DA12-24. But DA10-17 is much more fun because of distortions. Distortions could be minimized during shooting (and removed later in Lightroom) if you know how to use this lens: proper point of view, no tilting, no important objects close to edges in foreground...
Some says that it has a limited usage, but it is limited only with your creativity. Off course DA10-17 is not a lens for bokeh lovers but I recommend this lens to everyone as primary super wide lens.
| | | | | New Member Registered: May, 2017 Location: Kiev Posts: 12
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 23, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Sturdy metal case. Small sizes. Original photos. Universality (two in one: both a fisheye and a wide angle). Not afraid of backlight. It gives bright, rich colors in the photo. It has no analogues in other systems. | | Cons: | It is easy to scratch the front lens of the lens on the objects being photographed. Chromatic aberrations are very strong. Especially at extreme focal lengths and wide open aperture. | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 3
Bokeh: 6
Autofocus: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 8
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-5
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This is a very good lens! There are no analogues to it. Can also be used as a 10mm fish eye. And as a normal 17mm wide-angle lens.
The lens is firmly assembled. Metal reliable design. Not afraid of backlight. Excellent and bright colors. It has small dimensions, as for such a wide constructive.
At 10mm, this lens distorts space. It is necessary to get used to build a frame profitably so that the distortions of this lens create an interesting picture favorably. At the center point of the frame, everything remains almost without distortion. Distortion appears to the left and right of the center. The farther from the center of the frame, the more pronounced they are. But the most intense distortions appear up and down from the central horizontal frame. The farther from the central horizontal up or down frame, the stronger the distortion will be expressed. In accordance with this, as soon as you change the angle regarding the subject of shooting, the picture itself will change a lot. If you learn to choose the most favorable angles with this lens, you will get original and beautiful photos.
The lens has a very wide field of view of the image. At 10mm, you can easily get into the frame with your shoes. It will be visible at the bottom of the picture. Consider this point when taking a picture and do not lean back while taking a picture.
The disadvantages of this lens include strongly pronounced chromatic aberrations. Which occur on all borders between light and dark objects in the frame. To the edges of the frame, the aberrations are enhanced. They can be completely removed using image processing in Photoshop.
Also, when shooting, be careful. The front lens of the lens is so convex that it is very easy to scratch it against hard objects (metal, stone) during the shooting. To remove this lens is capable of being very close to the subject. The image in the viewfinder is moved back due to distortion. And you can easily and imperceptibly rest against the front lens in the object being photographed. And to scratch both the lens itself and the antireflection coating applied to its surface. The lens hood protects it poorly.
I recommend this lens! But when I save a message, it automatically appears "no" instead of "yes." I can not fix it. I do not know what it is connected with.
 | | | | | Loyal Site Supporter Registered: November, 2014 Location: Michigan Posts: 6,005
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 14, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Size, build, sharpness, color rendition, zoom | | Cons: | Chromatic aberrations, protruding front element, can not use filters | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 7
Handling: 9
Value: 9
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K10D, K50, K-01, K3
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I have not written many lens reviews but I feel this lens deserves one. This was the first DA lens I ever owned purchased used back in 2008. This was also the last lens I ever purchased from a brick and mortar store. The two stores here will not carry any Pentax merchandise. Now on to the review.
This is a special lens and most likely not something you will use every day. Mine sat idle for a very long time till I rediscovered it. Lately I have been using it for cityscapes and night shots. The sharpness of this lens has really amazed me. In night shots I have found the star bursts to be really nice. The fisheye effect diminishes after around 14mm. The angle of the lens to the subject dramatically enhances the fisheye effect as well. If you would like you can defish your shots to some extent in post processing. Chromatic aberrations can a problem in high contrast situations. Stopping the lens down helps alot, of course this makes it slower. Most purple fringing can be fixed in post but this still the major downfall of this lens. Most of my shots with lens are between f8-f11.
The size of the lens makes it easy to carry in your bag anytime. The lens is surprisingly heavy for the small size, but there is a lot of glass packed into this little guy. The lens barely extends or retracts while zooming or focusing. I find manual focus to be quite easy especially using focus peaking. The extremely close focusing ability of this lens makes for some very dramatic shots.
Conclusion
I have almost sold this lens a few times. I am very glad I did not. This a lens for the creative photographer. There are so many possibilities. It really is a fun lens to use once you get used to it. I had a difficult time rating this lens. I really feel 8.5 was the right rating, but I can not rate 8.5 overall. If not for the aberrations I would rate it a 9, but the aberrations are there and they can not be ignored. Here are some examples.
10mm f8 K3
i
Fredrick Meijer Gardens-2015-1.jpg by Michael, on Flickr
13mm f8 K3
Fredrick Meijer Gardens-2015-2.jpg by Michael, on Flickr
17mm f10 K50 defished
Moon Over The Blue Bridge-2015-1.jpg by Michael, on Flickr
13mm f8 K3
Downtown Grand Rapids At Night-1.jpg by Michael, on Flickr
| | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2012 Location: Pamulang, Tangerang Posts: 1
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 8, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $545.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Quite small, well built, good overall IQ | | Cons: | Rotating focus ring, so-so color rendition | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 8
Handling: 8
Value: 9
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-5 IIs
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Fish eyes lenses are always fun, and I love this one too. Being a "Zoom FE lens" is such a star!. Well there's nothing perfect tho. It's has a very nice built with solid barrel. Optics provide a quite sharp with well CA controlled for medium aperture. Aberration is in good controlled for it's kind, I found it become useful for wide-angle shot with minimum distortion only at 16-17mm. AF speed & accuracy are excellent on my K-5 IIs. With a short focus path, this lens will be a perfect one if they just could use an "internal focus" system, rather than annoying rotating focus ring (I often misplace my grip on that one  ). Comparing with other wide SMC lenses, I found color rendition is so-so..Final words.. Still the best Fish-eyes lens in market, yet affordable with superb performance. | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: February, 2019 Posts: 2,009
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: October 13, 2019 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Light, Extreme Field of View, FishEye Effect Optional, Proxy Photo | | Cons: | Chromatic Aberrations | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 6
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 10
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K-S2
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I've seen several photos of FishEye effect, including on the official Ricoh website, something that was supposed to attract customers into buying this lens. Most were with a subject in the center, heavily distorted. But those kind of photos are really unappealing for me. In my little head I thought I would never buy or need such a lens.
I have never been so wrong about something.
This lens is truly a gem, a lens that every photographer should have in his or her bag.
Why such a drastic change of mind, you may ask?
Well, first, this lens is in fact 3 lens in one :
- A true fisheye at 10mm, with 180° field of view
- An almost rectilinear ultrawide angle at 17mm (equivalent in terms of field of view of a 10mm rectilinear wide angle, like the Sigma 10-20 f/3.5 at 10mm)
- A proxy photo capable lens at 17mm and close focus (0.39x magnification)
Besides, you are completely free to dose the FishEye, in different ways :
- The zoom ring (most at 10mm, minimal at 17mm and of course all the intermediate settings)
- Composition (fisheye effect is especially visible on the sides, and also in the center if the subject is close)
- The way you tilt your camera (upwards, downwards, leftward and rightward)
You can really make all kind of photos with all those parameters. Distorted, or not. Even at 10mm, one can make a photo with the fisheye effect almost invisible by clever composition. On the other hand, you can really make weird shots by tilting and composing carefully, while being far from the classical well-known FishEye effect.
You can use this lens for most photos, except portraits and wildlife. Of course you'll need to be careful how you use it, it's not a point-and-shoot lens. When I take my K-S2, I always wonder if I really need another lens, or if the DA 10-17 FishEye will be the only one.
About other characteristics, the lens has OK Bokeh, but that's not something important for an ultra wide angle. Focus is screw-driven, not really noisy. The distance scale is nice, and Quick Shift is nice to have, even if it's not really that important on an ultrawide. At 10mm there are chromatic aberrations on the side of the image, and the image is less sharp, but do not forget that the lens is trying to put 180° of field of view on your tiny sensor.
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