Will Sony (finally!) Launch a proper fisheye lens ?

[yaronad]

Will Sony Launch a proper fisheye lens this year ?
any one knows ?

[Reinhold_1]

Of course I don´t know, as the lens-roadmap for Sony APS-C looks.
To my knowledge, the last Sony APS-C lens has been presented (E PZ 18-105 G) in the year 2013!

I personally do not believe that Sony has in planning a "proper fisheye lens" in the APS-C range
and for the following reason: Sony apparently pursued both APS-C area as the FF-range strategy, this
focal-range with converters (E 16mm + converter and FE 20 mm + Converter).

 

I use occasionally even the Sony E 2.8/16 mm + Fisheye-Converter VCL ECF2 and am quite satisfied with the results.
Sacrificing imaging performance in the edge region (which can be annoying, but does not have to!) You have to take into account.

[Golem]

Fisheyes do not sell well, and there are

non-Sony-brand alternatives available.

  

Makes little sense for Sony to compete

in a negligible market segment. I'd get 

kinda worried about Sony's brain trust if

they actually bothered with it.

[rsj]

I would seriously doubt a fisheye is in the works. Sony as only pushed out the over the last couple of years exclusively Full Frame lenses for the the A7x line. The best crop sensor lenses have been released by Sigma and Samyang during that period. Zeiss has followed their lead as well. 3 Touit lenses were released in 2013 and Zeiss has focused on creating the Batis line of lenses since then. This is logical since, FF can be used on crop sensors, but, APS-C cameras have been neglected by Sony with new lenses. They have feelers out there but they are more or less for something in the "normal" FoV range with quicker glass.

 

Mind you, they have the A6300 that is supposed to shoot really fast action sports, but, there isn't a lens that takes advantage of the AF capabilities. So they need a better long zoom. The 55-210 just doesn't cut it. They need an affordable and compact zoom. Sony created a 18-200 with a power zoom that nobody wanted. Sony's fix was to licence the Tamron's less complicated and smaller version of that zoom. Something with a constant aperture is needed for the A6300. Zooming in on sports is very annoying if the lens gets darker because the lens is stopping down.

 

But to be honest, what they really need is an upgraded zoom with the same focal range of 16-50 kit lens. A constant aperture of f/2.8 would be a blessing. If they are going to be slow in releasing lenses, at least give the people who are upgrading their camera bodies a good all around lens. I have the kit lens, but, it just isn't useful to me. It's horrible for low light, so I just don't put it on the camera. If a new 16-50 f/2.8 were the size of the orginal 18-55 kit lens and $400, it would be perfect. On the FF side, they still need a 135mm (which will probably be announce at Photokina this weekend). Thankfully, this is probably the last really needed lens that hasn't been announced for FF. So maybe Sony can refocus on crop sensor lenses. In my mind, Sony needs to release these 2 zooms. I'm not holding my breathe, but they absolutely need these lenses with the next camera body. There is absolutely no reason to get a 36 MP camera with 500+ focus points, shooting 13 frames per second without better glass. They make these upscale "G" lenses and now "Master G" lenses for FF. Sony needs to a lens for APS-C. It would be nice to have the 2 zoom lenses and since Sony is making a cheaper macro for FF, it would be nice to see a $500 APS-C macro in the 70mm f2.8 range as an upgrade over the 30mm they have had forever. I absolutely don't understand the 50mm FF macro, a 58mm would have added some distinction and gave a nod back to the old Minolta Rokkor lenses. Really Sony? Another FF 50? But a 70mm APS-C macro could be used for portraits. Outside of a zoom, there is nothing in for the Axx00/NEX cameras in that focal length. Really, Sony? No primes longer than 50mm for APS-C. If you want 70mm, you have to 1 of 6 zooms, all save the kit lens start at 16 or 18mm. Of those 5, the one that makes sense to me is the co-branded Zeiss 16-70 f/4 but it's $1K.

 

Regarding Fisheye lenses in particular, I don't this as an immediate need. It's a crappy solution. I admit it, but, Sony does have the conversion addon lens. The overriding thing is that Samyang has released their version and can be had for $200. I myself bought a Canon one with a mount converter for about $100. It's going to be hard for Sony to justify making a native lens when the 3rd party solutions are so cheap. I'll be honest, it's a pretty decent lens. You really don't need AF for it either. Stopped down to f/8 everything is in focus from about 4ft to infinity is in focus. You just slam the focus ring to infinity and back it down a little bit until focus peaking tells you everything is in focus. This is the older 3.5 version probably why it's discounted, but still, it's a hundred bucks. Why did I buy it? Well it was $100 and for that much, I was willing to buy a lens that I will hardly ever use. Sony's Converter is $175 and you still need to buy the either the 16mm ($225) or 20mm ($325) pancakes to mount it. I tend to think Sony would wasting their time creating a proper fisheye that nobody will buy. The Samyang solution is too cheap and well regarded. Even if it's better, it would overpriced and only marginally better and therefore a market loser. They have a solution, again it isn't good, but it all ready exists. If Sony came out with a new Fisheye, Samyang would just add a chip to get EXIF data to the camera and people would still prefer it. The chip with auto-exposure functionality exists on the Nikon version, so this isn't an unrealistic upgrade for the Samyang 8mm f/2.8 Mk3 for e-mount.

[Golem]

.......  If a new 16-50 f/2.8 were the size of the orginal

18-55 kit lens and $400, it would be perfect. ........

  

2 to 3 stops faster, same size, similar price ?  

   

ROTFLMFAO. Even if Sony could warp the

laws of physics, don't ever dream that they'd

also bend the laws of marketing: $400 ? ! ? !  

  

I'd love to see them perform such economic

miracles across their entire product line :-)