Super lens, but with drawbacks

[Folkmann Photo]

Purchased this lens for my full-frame 5DmkII for landscapes, cityscapes and dramatic urban and nature shots, and since I already was aware of its drawbacks, I wasn’t disappointed.
The lens is quite sharp in the center at f/2.8 – but only at the center. Towards the corners it gets softer, but not soft enough to blur out stars or anything. I shot many great night sky photos at 2.8 with decent sharpness – especially after post-processing in Lightroom or what you have. However, when shooting at f/2.8-4.0 in bright daylight, the softness towards the corners bothers you quite a bit. When possible, I shoot at f/8-16, where you will find excellent sharpness across the frame!
Another drawback is the heavy amount of lens flare produced by the spherical outer lens element, which tends to catch moon, sun, or street lights event if the light source is at 90˚.
Despite the drawbacks, this is a magnificent lens – the widest you can find for full-frame sensors and pretty fast too with its f/2.8.
All in all, a great lens if you can work around the drawbacks!

 

[gmcooper]

Are you talking about version I or version II?

 

[maiaibing]

the widest you can find for full-frame sensors and pretty fast too with its f/2.8.

Its actually the 16mm fisheye lens (there may be even wider for all I know).

 

[Drogba88]

Have you not heard of the Rokinon 14mm??? Read the reviews. A superb lens at a fraction of the cost of the Canon.

 

[gmcooper]

There is a Canon 8-15 L

 

[rbarta]

The 15mm fisheye f/2.8 (no longer sold new) does 180 corner to corner.

The 8-15mm fisheye f/4 does 180 corner to corner at 15mm and 180 circle at 8mm.

If the OP is referring to rectilinear lenses, the new 11-24 f/4 is 126.5 at 11mm, where the 14mm f/2.8 is 114 degrees field of view.