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Sigma MF 12mm F/8 Fisheye Type 1 (Accura, Cosinon, Regnon, Universa, Upsilon, Vemar)

Fisheye lens • Film era • Discontinued

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Abbreviations

FISHEYE An ultra-wide angle lens with strong uncorrected barrel distortion and extreme 180-degree angle of view.

Features highlight

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Extreme AoV
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T
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Fixed focus
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MF
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Manual
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Compact

Specification

Production details:
Announced:1968
Production status:● Discontinued
Original name:SIGMA FISH EYE ULTRA-WIDEANGLE 1 : 8 f=12mm
System:-
Optical design:
Focal length:12mm
Speed:F/8
Maximum format:35mm full frame
Mount and Flange focal distance:Interchangeable mount (T)
Lens construction:7 elements in 5 groups
Fixed focus
Diaphragm mechanism:
Diaphragm type:Manual
Aperture control:None
Number of blades:-
Focusing:
Closest focusing distance:<No data>
Maximum magnification:<No data>
Manual focus control:None
Physical characteristics:
Weight:300g
Maximum diameter x Length:⌀84×58mm
Weather sealing:-
Fluorine coating:-
Accessories:
Filters:Removable front filters are not accepted
Lens hood:Not available
Teleconverters:<No data>
Source of data:
Manufacturer's technical data.

Manufacturer description

Ultra-Wide Angle 180° Fish Eye Lens Adaptable to Most Popular 35mm SLR Cameras

Sigma FISH EYE 12mm f/8

Ideal for both specialized field of photography and shooting within a restricted space. The unique curvature of the field assured by the ultra-wide angle coverage doubles the pleasure of photography.

The Sigma FISH EYE 12mm f/8 LENS provides a coverage of 180° on the longitudinal plane of the horizontal format of the 35mm picture size, and assures a unique curvature of the field. Through application of the highest technique in engineering, and the most up-to-date theory in lens designing based on the use of high capability optical glass, chromatic aberration has been eliminated almost completely, giving superb definition not only at the center but also on the marginal area. Besides its superb performance, the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS features an interchangeable mount adapter, enabling use with practically all models of 35mm single-lens reflex cameras providing lens interchangeability.

As mentioned already, the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS provides an angle of view of 180° on the longitudinal plane of the 36x24mm format, and 120° on the vertical plane. With the aid of an adapter which can be mounted on the lens in the same manner as a lens hood, moreover, a circular coverage restricted to 120° can be obtained. Actually, therefore, the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS is a dual-purpose optic which can be used to good advantage in all photographic work.

The optical design of the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS is characterized by a considerably long back focus which eliminates the need to lock up the mirror of your single-lens reflex and enables effective preview of the curved field of view through the finder as in the case of all other lenses. Because of this original design, the distance from the front element of the lens to the lens mount of the camera is made as long as possible, preventing any part of the body of the photographer to be accidentally included in the picture.

Since the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS features an interchangeable mount adapter, it can be used with any 35mm or half-frame single-lens reflex or rangefinder camera with lens interchangeability. In case of a rangefinder camera, the field of view cannot be previewed through the finder, but its coverage can be determined effectively by standing in front of the camera and observing the image reflected on the front element.

Because of its extremely short focal length of 12mm, the SIGMA FISH EYE LENS has an extremely extensive depth of field; consequently, focus adjustment is practically unnecessary.

The SIGMA FISH EYE LENS features a revolving disc type iris stop with three clickstops at f/8, f/11 and f/16. Because of this, intermediate stops are unavailable and the aperture must always be adjusted at the clickstop position.

Because the front and rearmost elements of the lens jut out of the lens frame, utmost care should be taken to prevent scratching or leaving fingerprints on the surfaces. Always see to it that the lens cap is covered when mounting or detaching the lens or when the lens is to the left unused.

The screw-in type lens cap consists of two separate parts. By removing the top section, it converts instantly into the 120° circular field adapter which resembles a conventional lens shade. With the aid of this adapter, a circular field of 120° will be reproduced on the film plane, assuring even higher definition on the marginal area than in case of the 180° coverage.

From the editor

Designed and produced by SIGMA.

This page describes the first type. It was marketed under the following brands:

  • SIGMA FISH EYE ULTRA-WIDEANGLE 1 : 8 f=12mm
  • fish-eye accura 180° F : 8
  • COSINON fish-eye ULTRA-WIDEANGLE 1 : 8 f=12mm
  • REGNON FISH-EYE 180° 1:8 f=12mm
  • UNIVERSA SUPERWEIT 1 : 8 f=12mm
  • UPSILON FISH-EYE 1:8 f=12mm
  • VEMAR fish-eye ULTRA-WIDEANGLE 1 : 8 f=12mm

It was always accompanied by a two-piece cylindrical cap.

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Fisheye lens

A fisheye lens is a type of ultra-wide angle lenses with extreme 180 degree angle of view. Unlike conventional wide-angle lenses, fisheyes are not corrected for distortion - strong barrel distortion is a characteristic of all lenses of such class.

Fisheye lenses are normally used for specialized purposes and unusual special effects in advertising, commercial, scientific, surveillance, meteorologic and astronomic photography, but also popular for shooting extremely wide landscapes, interiors, action sports and even funny close-up portraits.

There are two types of fisheye lenses:

  • a circular fisheye produces a 180 degree angle of view in all directions (horizontal, vertical and diagonal) and the image circle of the lens is inscribed in the image frame;
  • a diagonal fisheye produces a 180 degree diagonal angle of view and covers the entire image frame. For this reason diagonal fisheyes are often called full frame fisheye lenses.
Table of contents
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Class
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Pros and cons
Recommended slowest shutter speed when shooting static subjects handheld
Genres or subjects of photography
Instruction manual
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35mm full frame

43.27 24 36
  • Dimensions: 36 × 24mm
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Diagonal: 43.27mm
  • Area: 864mm2

MF

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Image stabilizer

A technology used for reducing or even eliminating the effects of camera shake. Gyro sensors inside the lens detect camera shake and pass the data to a microcomputer. Then an image stabilization group of elements controlled by the microcomputer moves inside the lens and compensates camera shake in order to keep the image static on the imaging sensor or film.

The technology allows to increase the shutter speed by several stops and shoot handheld in such lighting conditions and at such focal lengths where without image stabilizer you have to use tripod, decrease the shutter speed and/or increase the ISO setting which can lead to blurry and noisy images.

Original name

Lens name as indicated on the lens barrel (usually on the front ring). With lenses from film era, may vary slightly from batch to batch.

Format

Format refers to the shape and size of film or image sensor.

35mm is the common name of the 36x24mm film format or image sensor format. It has an aspect ratio of 3:2, and a diagonal measurement of approximately 43mm. The name originates with the total width of the 135 film which was the primary medium of the format prior to the invention of the full frame digital SLR. Historically the 35mm format was sometimes called small format to distinguish it from the medium and large formats.

APS-C is an image sensor format approximately equivalent in size to the film negatives of 25.1x16.7mm with an aspect ratio of 3:2.

Medium format is a film format or image sensor format larger than 36x24mm (35mm) but smaller than 4x5in (large format).

Angle of view

Angle of view describes the angular extent of a given scene that is imaged by a camera. It is used interchangeably with the more general term field of view.

As the focal length changes, the angle of view also changes. The shorter the focal length (eg 18mm), the wider the angle of view. Conversely, the longer the focal length (eg 55mm), the smaller the angle of view.

A camera's angle of view depends not only on the lens, but also on the sensor. Imaging sensors are sometimes smaller than 35mm film frame, and this causes the lens to have a narrower angle of view than with 35mm film, by a certain factor for each sensor (called the crop factor).

This website does not use the angles of view provided by lens manufacturers, but calculates them automatically by the following formula: 114.6 * arctan (21.622 / CF * FL),

where:

CF – crop-factor of a sensor,
FL – focal length of a lens.

Mount

A lens mount is an interface — mechanical and often also electrical — between a camera body and a lens.

A lens mount may be a screw-threaded type, a bayonet-type, or a breech-lock type. Modern camera lens mounts are of the bayonet type, because the bayonet mechanism precisely aligns mechanical and electrical features between lens and body, unlike screw-threaded mounts.

Lens mounts of competing manufacturers (Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony etc.) are always incompatible. In addition to the mechanical and electrical interface variations, the flange focal distance can also be different.

The flange focal distance (FFD) is the distance from the mechanical rear end surface of the lens mount to the focal plane.

Lens construction

Lens construction – a specific arrangement of elements and groups that make up the optical design, including type and size of elements, type of used materials etc.

Element - an individual piece of glass which makes up one component of a photographic lens. Photographic lenses are nearly always built up of multiple such elements.

Group – a cemented together pieces of glass which form a single unit or an individual piece of glass. The advantage is that there is no glass-air surfaces between cemented together pieces of glass, which reduces reflections.

Focal length

The focal length is the factor that determines the size of the image reproduced on the focal plane, picture angle which covers the area of the subject to be photographed, depth of field, etc.

Speed

The largest opening or stop at which a lens can be used is referred to as the speed of the lens. The larger the maximum aperture is, the faster the lens is considered to be. Lenses that offer a large maximum aperture are commonly referred to as fast lenses, and lenses with smaller maximum aperture are regarded as slow.

In low-light situations, having a wider maximum aperture means that you can shoot at a faster shutter speed or work at a lower ISO, or both.

Closest focusing distance

The minimum distance from the focal plane (film or sensor) to the subject where the lens is still able to focus.

Closest working distance

The distance from the front edge of the lens to the subject at the maximum magnification.

Magnification ratio

Determines how large the subject will appear in the final image. For example, a magnification ratio of 1:1 means that the image of the subject formed on the film or sensor will be the same size as the subject in real life. For this reason, a 1:1 ratio is often called "life-size".

Fixed focus

There is no helicoid in this lens and everything is in focus from the closest focusing distance to infinity.

Internal focusing (IF)

Conventional lenses employ an all-group shifting system, in which all lens elements shift during focusing. The IF system, however, shifts only part of the optics during focusing. The advantages of the IF system are:

Manual diaphragm

The diaphragm must be stopped down manually by rotating the detent aperture ring.

Preset diaphragm

The lens has two rings, one is for pre-setting, while the other is for normal diaphragm adjustment. The first ring must be set at the desired aperture, the second ring then should be fully opened for focusing, and turned back for stop down to the pre-set value.

Semi-automatic diaphragm

The lens features spring mechanism in the diaphragm, triggered by the shutter release, which stops down the diaphragm to the pre-set value. The spring needs to be reset manually after each exposure to re-open diaphragm to its maximum value.

Automatic diaphragm

The camera automatically closes the diaphragm down during the shutter operation. On completion of the exposure, the diaphragm re-opens to its maximum value.

Fixed diaphragm

The aperture setting is fixed at F/8 on this lens, and cannot be adjusted.

Number of blades

As a general rule, the more blades that are used to create the aperture opening in the lens, the rounder the out-of-focus highlights will be.

Some lenses are designed with curved diaphragm blades, so the roundness of the aperture comes not from the number of blades, but from their shape. However, the fewer blades the diaphragm has, the more difficult it is to form a circle, regardless of rounded edges.

At maximum aperture, the opening will be circular regardless of the number of blades.

Weight

Excluding case or pouch, caps and other detachable accessories (lens hood, close-up adapter, tripod adapter etc.).

Maximum diameter x Length

Excluding case or pouch, caps and other detachable accessories (lens hood, close-up adapter, tripod adapter etc.).

For lenses with collapsible design, the length is indicated for the working (retracted) state.

Weather sealing

A rubber material which is inserted in between each externally exposed part (manual focus and zoom rings, buttons, switch panels etc.) to ensure it is properly sealed against dust and moisture.

Lenses that accept front mounted filters typically do not have gaskets behind the filter mount. It is recommended to use a filter for complete weather resistance when desired.

Fluorine coating

Helps keep lenses clean by reducing the possibility of dust and dirt adhering to the lens and by facilitating cleaning should the need arise. Applied to the outer surface of the front and/or rear lens elements over multi-coatings.

Filters

Lens filters are accessories that can protect lenses from dirt and damage, enhance colors, minimize glare and reflections, and add creative effects to images.

Lens hood

A lens hood or lens shade is a device used on the end of a lens to block the sun or other light source in order to prevent glare and lens flare. Flare occurs when stray light strikes the front element of a lens and then bounces around within the lens. This stray light often comes from very bright light sources, such as the sun, bright studio lights, or a bright white background.

The geometry of the lens hood can vary from a plain cylindrical or conical section to a more complex shape, sometimes called a petal, tulip, or flower hood. This allows the lens hood to block stray light with the higher portions of the lens hood, while allowing more light into the corners of the image through the lowered portions of the hood.

Lens hoods are more prominent in long focus lenses because they have a smaller viewing angle than that of wide-angle lenses. For wide angle lenses, the length of the hood cannot be as long as those for telephoto lenses, as a longer hood would enter the wider field of view of the lens.

Lens hoods are often designed to fit onto the matching lens facing either forward, for normal use, or backwards, so that the hood may be stored with the lens without occupying much additional space. In addition, lens hoods can offer some degree of physical protection for the lens due to the hood extending farther than the lens itself.

Teleconverters

Teleconverters increase the effective focal length of lenses. They also usually maintain the closest focusing distance of lenses, thus increasing the magnification significantly. A lens combined with a teleconverter is normally smaller, lighter and cheaper than a "direct" telephoto lens of the same focal length and speed.

Teleconverters are a convenient way of enhancing telephoto capability, but it comes at a cost − reduced maximum aperture. Also, since teleconverters magnify every detail in the image, they logically also magnify residual aberrations of the lens.

Lens caps

Scratched lens surfaces can spoil the definition and contrast of even the finest lenses. Lens covers are the best and most inexpensive protection available against dust, moisture and abrasion. Safeguard lens elements - both front and rear - whenever the lens is not in use.