100* wide vs 160* fisheye add-on lens?

[Tassie_Rohan]

Anyone able to post photos taken with a fish eye vs a standard wide angle to help me decide which add-on lens to get?

I've been using an Inon 105AD wide angle add-on lens (105 degree view) with my oly SP350/PT30 with good results, but as that lens now resides on the bottom of the Andaman Sea I need a replacement.

I'm considering going for the Inon 165AD fish eye lens (165 field of view) but am wondering if it would be overkill or too specialist a lens?

Opinions?

[Edit: hmm - going over old photos taken with the 105 its clear a fish eye will allow me to get much closer to my foreground subject, get better colours, and still get more background in. However vignetting and image quality could be issues. I'd appreciate a few fish eye photos to get an idea of the coverage]

Cheers,
Rohan.

 

[azcaddman]

take a look here it doesnt compare the 165, but it does show the 105+dome

 

[pakman]

oooh, how did the old lens get to the bottom of the Andaman?

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

I don't want to talk about it.....


(the lens was attached to its AD mount on the strobe arm when I handed the camera to a buddy so I could shoot a SMB, but when it was returned at the boat, after deco and a surface swim, the lens was gone...)

Still - if you're not prepared to loose it don't take it diving...

 

[Gilligan]

Sorry to hear about the lens loss.

I can't tell you how many times I dropped my lens while taking it on and off underwater.
Having a leash on it that is attached to the tray is what saved it every time.

You may not have access to this product at your location but you can make a similar leash from fishing gear and a plastic cable tie so long as the lens has a collar on it to attach the cable tie.

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

Thanks for the great leash idea Gilligan - I'll definately make one for my lenses.

Anyone have links to any to fish-eye photos?

I'm going on break back to Tasmania tomorrow so will need to order a new wide angle lens in the comming few days....

Cheers,
Rohan.

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

BTW: if I get the fisheye will I need two strobes for close up macro work? That would be a deal-killer for me.

 

[pakman]

Rohan, somewhere in my Similan trip album, I think I shot some of them borrowing my friend's Inon dome on my Canon S70. I'll try to figure out which one's they are.

2 strobes would be nice, but I've seen some pretty good work with just one on close up/ wide angle.

edit: OK, I think this shot was done with the UWL-100 28AD + the dome unit which I was borrowing from my buddy during the dive, not the 165 fisheye. On the Canon S70, there is vignetting so I remember I had to zoom in a bit. According to the Inon specs, this combo on a S70 equates to around 150 degree. Was lit with a single Inon D-2000 placed directly overhead.

 

[bladephotog]

All of the wide angle photos in my gallery here were taken with the Inon fisheye, in dark, limited viz conditions. It worked pretty well.

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

Great photos Andy! Can't wait to get over there sometime to dive those wreaks, and your other galleries are very impressive as well.

Looks like I'll grab the fisheye and see how it goes.

Cheers,
Rohan.