p.1 #4 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
You used it and depending on your post you were glad of it, so why get a different one?
Mine one is a wonderful lens on any body I have: 20D, 1DMk3 and 1DsMk2.
Colour, contrast, sharpness are all really astounding and I must say that this lens neither distort so much with portraits: try it to believe this...
I have been having and using a Sigma 12-24 for four years now and I'm really glad with it, so nothing against Sigma but the Canon Fisheye is a wonderfull lens.
p.1 #5 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
i had the sigma one 3 years ago.
i dont remember too much about it but i didnt have any problems with it.
especially cause of the price, its a great deal.
now i have the canon one and its a nice lens as well.
i cant give you a side by side cause i didnt own at the same time and had a cropped body then.
I've had the chance to play with both, on separate occasions so I could not directly compare the two. The canon costs about 50% more than the Sigma, but based on my brief play with those borrowed lenses, I wouldn't be able to justify the premium for the Canon 15/2.8. The Sigma has an excellent build and optically it's a very flare resistant sharp contrast monster. The same can be said about the Canon. Canon has a slight edge when it comes to CA resistance.
p.1 #7 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
Sigma non-DG is 359 Euros here.
Sigma DG for around 480 Euros.
Canon for 680 Euros.
Thats why...
I heard the Sigma has same great color-rendition and sharpness. And the DG-version has nearly nothing to do with flares. But what about the non-DG-version? And the Canon-one?
p.1 #9 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
At the moment I have both, the Canon is much sharper overall. The Sigma (EX-DG) has great color rendition but i think my copy needs calibration as it is really soft at most apertures.
btw using 5D.
Provided you've got a good (or calibrated) copy, the Sigma will be tack sharp. And the DG version is a contrast-monster. (I haven't used the older non-DG version, so I can't tell how effective the special coatings are at getting the high contrast.)
p.1 #11 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
They're all very good lenses. It's kinda like the whole macro choice thing.
I prefer the Canon edge sharpness/lack of CA and am brand loyal for the resale value.
p.1 #12 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
Well, here's a dubious claim of merit for the Sigma; I've dropped it twice and it works perfectly. It rolled out of my bag and onto the floor both times, I'd forgotten it was in there - fortunately, the lens cap provides a lot of protection on the fisheyes.
Not sure how i picked up a suicidal lens, it's the only piece of gear I own that has ever seen even the slightest bit of rough treatment (well, except for the time I fell off a cliff with my 600mm and dinged the hood :-) - it was otherwise unharmed, not so me.... )
p.1 #13 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
trenchmonkey wrote:
They're all very good lenses. It's kinda like the whole macro choice thing.
I prefer the Canon edge sharpness/lack of CA and am brand loyal for the resale value.
Ditto...I use the Canon 15mm fish on my 5D. Images are tack sharp, no CA, and very good color/contrast. All that's missing is the red ring
p.1 #14 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
I have the Sigma and my partner has the Canon, and there is no discernable difference between the two (except for price of course). The Canon should have USM for what they're asking for it, but as it stands now the Sigma is the smart buy... FWIW, I buy Canon lenses almost exclusively, and the Sigma 15mm is the only non-Canon lens I currently own (and I own a lot....) I this particular case Sigma seems to be one up on Canon. As soon as Canon gives us a USM 15mm fisheye, I will retire my excellent Sigma.
p.1 #18 · Which Fisheye? Canon or Sigma (with/without DG)?
The biggest improvement for DG is that it reduces flaring and ghosting. Among other things, the DG lens has an anti-reflection coating on the rear element to reduce reflection between sensor and rear element. Less internal reflection means better contrast.
Given that you'll be shooting quite a lot with the sun in view, because of the wide field of view, I'd go for the DG version. But it's a close call.
I've found a direct comparison at pbase which pits a DG TC against a non-DG TC. The contrast is definately better for the DG version. But the color cast is different between the two, the non-DG is colder than the DG version, so there is a bit of personal preference involved. http://www.pbase.com/miljenko/dg_tcs
