Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 3,5/18

The Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 3,5/18 is an ultra-wide angle lens for Canon and Nikon cameras. Its 18mm focal length is extremely wide, but not as tricky to use as the 12mm-equivalent wide end of the Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 DS HSM zoom.

This shot and the others in the slideshow were taken with the Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 3,5/18 and the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III digital camera.

Even though it's a manual focus lens, you won't have to pay too much attention to getting the focus dead on. Any object beyond 10 feet is going to be in focus if you set the lens to infinity.

I used Imatest to check the sharpness of images captured with this lens. At its widest aperture it is just a tad soft when paired with the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, recording 1,767 lines per picture height.

You can focus down to about a foot, which makes it possible to us the lens for dynamic wide-angle compositions.

If you're a wide-angle fan who doesn't mind a prime lens, you'll find that the Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 3,5/18 to be a rewarding optic.