Nikon AF-S Fisheye 8-15mm f/3.5-4.5e ED

Maximum viewing angle 180 degrees aperture range f/3.5-4.5 to f/22-29 elements/groups 15/13 autofocus Ultrasonic (ring-type) Minimum focus distance 0.16m diaphragm blades 7 diameter x length 78x83mm weight 485g price £1299/$1249

You usually have to choose between a circular fisheye lens, which produces circular images using the central region of the shot's frame, or a diagonal fisheye, which covers the whole frame but with a less extreme viewing angle. This zoom lens delivers both.

There’s no beating a fisheye lens for extreme viewing angles. At the 8mm zoom setting, this one delivers full 180-degree viewing angles on both the horizontal and vertical planes. At 15mm, you get a 180-degree viewing angle measured on the diagonal.

Curvilinear lenses are notorious for their extreme barrel distortion, which gives images their trademark ‘fisheye’ look. It can be a useful creative tool and you can also tune out the distortion in image-editing software, for a more natural ultra-wide effect.

Most fisheye optics are prime lenses and have a surprisingly compact and lightweight build. This zoom lens is rather larger and heavier but it’s still much smaller and lighter than the competing Sigma rectilinear lens.

Fast autofocus, a very short minimum focus distance and sharp shot quality make this a high-performance lens, while its circular/ diagonal fisheye options add versatility. For resolving power and, naturally, for low-distortion images, it can’t match the Sigma.