[xsb00st]

I apologize for my ignorance. Is a fisheye lens a separate lens, or is it an lens attachment? I'm seeing a lot of these on eBay and was thinking of purchasing one. Any help with this is greatly appreciated.

TIA

[vachss]

A fisheye lens is a wide angle lens that is not corrected for rectilinear distortion (so straight lines in the scene will appear curved in the image). Not having to correct for this distortion allows for such lenses to be wider in field of view than non-fisheyes of similar sharpness/quality/cost (or sharper/faster than non-fisheyes of similar field of view and cost). They are available both as standalone lenses for SLR interchangeable lens cameras and as add-on adapters that fit on the front of fixed lens point-and-shoot cameras.

[UdubBadger]

^ what he said... can't explain it much better than that.

[xsb00st]

Originally Posted by vachss

A fisheye lens is a wide angle lens that is not corrected for rectilinear distortion (so straight lines in the scene will appear curved in the image). Not having to correct for this distortion allows for such lenses to be wider in field of view than non-fisheyes of similar sharpness/quality/cost (or sharper/faster than non-fisheyes of similar field of view and cost). They are available both as standalone lenses for SLR interchangeable lens cameras and as add-on adapters that fit on the front of fixed lens point-and-shoot cameras.

Thanks for the great information; however, which is better, interchangeable lens or add-on adapter? Or will they both generate similar images?

[vachss]

Originally Posted by xs*****

Which is better, interchangeable lens or add-on adapter? Or will they both generate similar images?

The field of view and general appearance of the image may be pretty similar, but you can expect a lot better sharpness/resolution from a good standalone fisheye lens then from an add-on adapter. Of course, you'll pay a lot more for one too.

If you haven't used an SLR camera before it might make more sense to play around with the less expensive point-and-shoot + adapters for a while to decide what effect you want to achieve. If you do go the SLR route the saving grace is that specialty lenses (like fisheyes) can usually be resold for a good fraction of their purchase price should you decide they are not to your liking.

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

i agree with what's been said... very well put!!