Raynox 180 fisheye lens

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Austin L

I just heard that the Raynox fisheye adapter lens with 62mm threads will be shipping in about two weeks. * I want to get one of these for my D7 - BADLY. * I read that the lens gives 180 degrees side to side (landscape) for the Minolta D7 as opposed to 180 degrees diagonally.

I found this lens in Japan at:

http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/dcr/dcrfe180pro/dcrfe180proindexeg.htm and in the USofA at:
http://www.Don-Sara-Parsons.com

The Don-Sara-Parsons site is a USA distributor. He's not shipping yet but is taking orders on a first-come basis.

I sure hope it works since all the other WA lenses I own and I have seen, and have read about, have great problems with distortion.

Any pricing yet? Also noticed the DCR-1800 1.8xTelephoto Conversion Price? Time frame when they will become available in the USA? Like to see reviews of these two lenses. Thanks for posting this info.
Tony

Austin Lindsey said:

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Austin L

I just heard that the Raynox fisheye adapter lens with 62mm threads
will be shipping in about two weeks. * I want to get one of these
for my D7 - BADLY. * I read that the lens gives 180 degrees side to
side (landscape) for the Minolta D7 as opposed to 180 degrees
diagonally.

I found this lens in Japan at:

http://www.raynox.co.jp/english/dcr/dcrfe180pro/dcrfe180proindexeg.htm and in the USofA at:
http://www.Don-Sara-Parsons.com

The Don-Sara-Parsons site is a USA distributor. He's not shipping
yet but is taking orders on a first-come basis.

I sure hope it works since all the other WA lenses I own and I have
seen, and have read about, have great problems with distortion.

Click to expand...

Tony said:

Any pricing yet? Also noticed the DCR-1800 1.8xTelephoto
Conversion Price? Time frame when they will become available in
the USA? Like to see reviews of these two lenses. Thanks for
posting this info.
Tony

Click to expand...

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$452

Bob Sheldon

Austin Lindsey said:

I sure hope it works since all the other WA lenses I own and I have
seen, and have read about, have great problems with distortion.

Click to expand...

There is no way to get a full 180 degree (or more) view onto a flat piece of film or silicon without distortion; it is inherent in the fisheye concept. Even if you could, how would you view such an image on a flat surface without introducing distortion there? What you are asking is for is mathematically impossible.

For landscapes an alternative is the panorama shot with a regular semi-wide or wide-angle lens. You won't be able to get an especially comprehensive vertical field of view, but for many landscape shots this is comparatively unimportant. You can then make your horizontal field of view as wide as you want, up to and including 360 degrees, without distortion. For distortionless viewing, you can then bend the panorama into a cylinder - or however much of a cylinder encompasses your original field of view - with the viewer at the center.

Hi Alan,

I agree. What I want is to try some sphericals. I see them all the time having been stitched with Nikon fisheye equipment. Some time there are 2 images and sometimes 3 or 4 images plus a zenith and a nadar.

Is $450+ bucks a pretty stiff price? I have not bought a quality lens for some time. Where did the forthcoming price come from?

Alan Ball said:

Member said:

I sure hope it works since all the other WA lenses I own and I have
seen, and have read about, have great problems with distortion.

Click to expand...

There is no way to get a full 180 degree (or more) view onto a flat
piece of film or silicon without distortion; it is inherent in the
fisheye concept. Even if you could, how would you view such an
image on a flat surface without introducing distortion there? What
you are asking is for is mathematically impossible.

For landscapes an alternative is the panorama shot with a regular
semi-wide or wide-angle lens. You won't be able to get an
especially comprehensive vertical field of view, but for many
landscape shots this is comparatively unimportant. You can then
make your horizontal field of view as wide as you want, up to and
including 360 degrees, without distortion. For distortionless
viewing, you can then bend the panorama into a cylinder - or
however much of a cylinder encompasses your original field of view

• with the viewer at the center.

Click to expand...

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Austin L