Ask a photographer about fisheye lenses and you're likely not to get an apathetic response. Aficionados love the unique curved perspective that they bring to imagery, but there are some vocal detractors who wouldn't be caught dead using one. If you're in the former camp, and invested in the Micro Four Thirds camera system, the Panasonic Lumix G Fisheye 8mm F3.5 ($799.95) is an appealing, albeit expensive, lens. It's quite sharp, compact, and light, and it delivers a distorted view of the world that is in front of your camera—a full 180 degrees diagonally.

The lens($797.99 at Amazon) is compact at just 2 by 2.4 inches (HD), and it weighs a light 5.8 ounces. Its hood is built-in, and there's a rear filter holder that can house a 22mm gelatin filter if you have the need to use one. The minimum focus distance is just 4 inches; the closer you get to your subject, the more pronounced the fisheye distortion will appear. The focus motor is a stepping design, which is quiet for video use, but unless you're working very close to your subject changes in focus aren't going to be required due to huge depth of field that the lens captures.

A standard SFRPlus test chart isn't ideal for evaluating a fisheye lens. Images shot in the field at f/3.5 looked great, even at a 100 percent magnification. I did run an Imatest check to confirm this; a center-weighted result of 1,800 lines per picture height is what we look for in a lens. The Fisheye 8mm records a center-weighted score of 2,179 lines at f/3.5, with midparts of the frame hitting 1,669 lines. Stopping down to f/5.6 improves the score to 2,221 lines, and the midparts hit 1,844 lines. We weren't able to measure the edges of the frame with our chart.

As far as barrel distortion goes, there's about 37 percent; but that's what the lens is all about. But it doesn't have to be—software like PTLens can "defish" images, which makes 8mm a more classic wide-angle. If that's your desire, however, the Panasonic 7-14mm zoom ($1,199.95) may be a better starting place—but it's a bigger, pricier optic.

Fisheye fans with Micro Four Thirds cameras will be happy with the results that the Panasonic Lumix G Fisheye 8mm F3.5 delivers, but perhaps not at its price. At close to $800, it's a bit much to pay for a lens that may not get a lot of use. I did find that the using the lens forced me to rethink some compositions, work closer to subjects, and find interesting backgrounds, and any piece of gear that helps you see the world in a new way is a worthy addition to your camera bag.

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