At one point or another, budding photographers get the idea that adding a fish-eye lens to their kit is the logical next step. Shooting ultra-wide images certainly set photos apart, but it also offers challenges in composition. The Olympus M.Zuiko ED 8mm F1.8 Fisheye PRO ($999.99) is priced a bit high too high for shooters who may be considering dipping their toes into the proverbial water, but it's an excellent choice for photographers in search of a premium fish-eye lens with a wide aperture, weather-sealed design, and the ability to focus very close. If you don't want to spend as much, consider the Panasonic Lumix G Fisheye 8mm F3.5 or the Lensbaby Circular Fisheye, both of which are available for Micro Four Thirds camera systems.

Design
The 8mm F1.8 is on the large side for a Micro Four Thirds prime. It measures 3.2 by 2.4 inches (HD) and weighs 11.1 ounces. That's bigger than the Panasonic 8mm, which is just 2 by 2.4 inches and 5.8 ounces. Its bulbous front element precludes the use of lens filters, but it does capture a full 180-degree field.

The metal barrel gives the lens a pro feel, and a large, knurled manual focus ring is available for those times when you want to wrest control from your camera's autofocus system. There's no optical stabilization—that's not something you often find in a lens this wide—but if you pair it with an Olympus camera you'll benefit from in-body stabilization. I did use the lens a bit with the Panasonic G7 ($447.99 at Amazon) , which doesn't stabilize it, but found that the ultra-wide field of view really negated the need for a stabilization system, even when recording handheld video.

A snap-on lens cap is included. It's something you won't want to lose, as the front element is sure to pick up fingerprints and dust if it's not protected. The built-in lens hood does offer some protection. An o-ring sits around the lens mount, and internal seals complete the dust- and splash-resistant design.Fisheye

Image Quality
A fish-eye with a wide aperture is a rare thing. Thankfully, you can shoot at f/1.8 and still capture crisp images. I'm not able to run a full edge-to-edge sharpness test on a lens this wide, but Imatest does show that the center and midparts of the frame score an average 2,339 lines per picture height at f/1.8 when paired with the 16-megapixel OM-D E-M10 Mark II. The midparts do lag a bit behind the center, showing 1,949 lines, but that's still a fine result.

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Stopping down to f/2.8 improves that average to 2,429 lines, and there's modest improvement at f/4 (2,469 lines), f/5.6 (2,560 lines), and f/8 (2,760 lines). Even when you shoot with the M.Zuiko at its widest aperture, it's sharper than the 2,179 lines that the Panasonic 8mm shows at f/3.5 in a similar test.

The image quality makes the M.Zuiko an appealing option for landscape photographers as well. Those that are turned off by the fish-eye look can straighten out images using the tools in Photoshop or specialized software like PTLens. The close focus capability—the lens can lock onto subjects as close as 4.7 inches from the sensor, almost touching the front element—also makes it a strong contender for underwater photography, where shooting wide and getting as close to your subject as possible is imperative. Olympus does recommend using a $35 accessory to prevent the writing that identifies the lens from being reflected in the plastic dome of an underwater housing.

Conclusions
The Olympus M.Zuiko ED 8mm F1.8 Fisheye PRO is an appealing lens for photographers who are looking for a serious fish-eye. Its wide aperture, excellent build, and close focus capability are all pluses. But it's a big lens when compared with other Micro Four Thirds primes, and an expensive one. If you're looking for a fish-eye for occasional use, the manual focus Lensbaby Circular Fisheye may be a better fit at $300. But if you're willing to spend the money, the M.Zuiko will in no way disappoint you.

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