It seems that fisheye zooms are like proverbial buses… not too long after Canon announced an RF fisheye zoom, Sony has come along and done exactly the same thing.

　　Well, not quite exact – but very similar nonetheless.

　　Very often, fisheye lenses are primes, but zoom lenses like this give you the option to shoot a fully circular image, or an 180 degree (covering the whole frame) angle of view, all from within the same lens.

　　This one from Sony is designed to work with full frame cameras, such as the Sony A7V, but you can also use it with APS-C models, such as the Sony a6700, where you can use it at around 9.5mm to get a full-frame fisheye view (it’s not possible to shoot a full circular image with it on an APS-C body).

　　A lens like this is far from general purpose. It’s about as niche as it’s possible to get, and is usually popular with certain genres or types of photographer. Alternatively, they can be used for purposes they’re not wholly suited for to create unusual or creative effects, for example for portrais and so on.

　　This lens is now the widest in Sony’s full-frame line-up and apparently comes after years of “many, many requests”. With it, Sony now claims it has a lens for every occasion.

　　It may be Sony’s widest lens, but the new Canon zoom, which covers 7-14mm is a little bit wider, but we’ll take a closer look at the Sony’s specifications shortly .

　　At A Glance £1500/€1700 f/3.5 constant max aperture 8-16mm focal length 0.15m close-focusing distance (constant) Features Given the high price of this lens, you’re going to really, really want what it does to buy it. It’s very much a niche lens, but just as I found with the Canon equivalent, there are perhaps more uses for it than you might first imagine.

　　Action photographers are often keen on fisheye lens, particularly those that are able to shoot from certain vantages points – such as underneath. Picture a snowboarder flying through the air while also including the mountains in the background, that kind of thing.

　　Plenty of people, and that includes me, will also just use them for the gimmick and fun of creating those ultrawide images, particularly the circle “marble” images.

　　This is designated as a Sony G series lens, which Sony says means it is “built for excellence”. In practice, it means you get superior image quality (and pay the price for it). That comes in the form of reduced chromatic aberration and flare – which we’ll take a look at in closer detail in the image quality section.

　　There is a 7-blade circular aperture, with the promise of nicely rendered background bokeh. The maximum aperture here is f/3.5, which you’ll get constantly throughout the zoom range. This is another difference when compared to the Canon fisheye zoom, which has a maximum aperture of f/2.8 (but only at the widest end).

　　Unlike several cheaper fisheye lens (usually primes), this lens comes fully equipped with autofocus, boasting two linear motors, and there’s a 0.15m close-focusing distance – again throughout the zoom range. Being able to quickly focus – and closely – makes it ideal for subjects such as portraits or other moving subjects, like action sports. There’s a 0.22x maximum magnification.

　　Build and Handling The reward you get for this lens being slightly narrower and not having such a wide aperture as the Canon equivalent is that it’s significantly smaller.

　　Weighing in at just 314g, the Sony 8-14mm lens really is “just in case” type of lens that you can happily pack in a bag and not worry about it too much. I said the same thing about the Canon lens, but this is even smaller and lighter so I’m going to double down on that opinion.

　　A lens hood comes with the 8-14mm lens, but you will need to remember to take it off when you want to shoot fully circular images.

　　The lens design comprises of three rings. There’s a traditional aperture ring, which makes for quick and convenient changing of the aperture value. You can either set it to “click” when turned, or have it completely silent – the latter being useful for video work (or just if you want to be discreet).

　　A zoom ring moves you from the wide angle end to the slightly less wide angle end, and there’s also a manual focusing ring. Both zoom and focusing are completely internal so the dimensions of the lens won’t change.

　　You’ll notice a dot on the zoom ring, at just before the 10mm mark, which you can use if you want to shoot with an APS-C camera.

　　A switch marked “Zoom Lock” can be used to keep the lens at either 8mm or 14mm, or at the APS-C setting, to ensure it doesn’t slip out from that zoom setting. This can be useful for making sure your fully circular images are indeed fully circular, or that your full-frame images are also indeed covering the full frame.

　　Another switch is marked AF/MF/FH. With this you can move between autofocus, manual focus and “focus hold”, which can be useful if you want the autofocus to be locked into a specific place in the frame for several shots in a sequence. A function button can be used to control the same thing, or alternatively customised to other settings via the main menu.

　　Autofocus On the whole, autofocusing with this lens is not only very quick, but it’s also extremely quiet too. That makes it great for both stills and video work.

　　I used it to photograph portraits with Eye-Focus turned on and it was very quickly able to lock on and produced some great, fun results. While it’s true I didn’t use it for photographing high-intensity action sports, it gives you an indication of what it would be like in that situation.

　　I was also impressed with the close-focusing distance. Being just 0.15m enables extremely close-focusing, to the point where you’re almost touching the subject and still getting things sharply in focus.

　　Image Quality It’s probably safe to say that writing the image quality section of a fisheye lens review is going to be hugely subjective.

　　You can’t claim it’s not distorted, because that’s the whole point of the lens – but it’s whether or not you like it that’s the point.

　　In terms of doing what a fisheye zoom does well, this is excellent, being easily on par with the Canon equivalent, and perhaps even sharper.

　　It’s sharp across the frame and at different focal lengths, and the G series designation seems to be well-earned with no obvious signs of chromatic aberration or ghosting in the main subject area of the image.

　　Bokeh is nicely rendered in out of focus areas, with some attractive bokeh shapes if you happen to have highlights in the background.

　　As I said in my Canon fisheye zoom lens review, the best thing I can suggest is to have a look at the sample images here and judge for yourself whether you think it’s the kind of image quality you’ll be looking for.

　　Verdict It’s basically impossible to deny that a fisheye zoom is a niche optic, and it won’t be to everybody’s tastes.

　　Whether it’s true or not that Sony has received numerous requests for this kind of lens, the fact that two have been released this year from big brands shows that there must be some kind of demand for it regardless.

　　I found I had a lot of fun shooting with the lens, and it can get quite addictive making creative and quirky images in this way. Would I pay such a high price to be able to do this all the time – probably not, but if you really, really like it and have the money, then why not.

　　Alternatively, if you’re into something where a lens like this goes beyond a gimmick – such as for astrophotography, architecture or some landscape shots, it’s certainly worth looking at. If you’re going to get quite a lot of use out of it, the expense starts to look less problematic.

　　I wouldn’t write off a fisheye zoom if you’ve never used one before – take a look through the sample images here and see how much fun you could have with one.

　　Full specifications

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　　Canon RF 7-14mm F2.8-3.5L Fisheye STM lens review – does anyone really need an expensive, niche, fisheye zoom? The best Sony lenses for photography and video These are the best Sony cameras to buy for photography and video creators Do you want to win some great prizes for your photography? Enter your photos in our International Amateur Photographer of the Year competition. Free entry for photographers aged 13-21.

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