Looking at the Canon 14mm f2.8

Taken with Panasonic TS4 point and shoot

I recently borrowed the 14mm f2.8 wide angle prime lens from Canon Canada for a little test drive.  While I'm pretty sure this lens doesn't fit well into my paid work that I use my Canon cameras for, I have to admit I enjoyed having it for a few days.  Extreme wide angle lenses are really a lot of fun.

Before I get into it, I've been thinking about gear talk on this blog and all the gear talk I read on the web, see in magazines and hear about on podcasts.  I wanted to add a little caveat to my participation in this phenomenon and that is just a little nudge for you to remember that this (photography) is a business.  A big business, and while the gear is cool just remember, you are the customer and whether someone (like me) is writing a review or talking about gear, or someone (like Canon) is selling equipment they aren't necessarily always doing it for pure love.  Sometimes they are doing it for (or for the hope of) profit.  

If you are a pro, before you buy equipment, consider if it is going to make you money in return.  Is it a worthwhile investment.  If you are doing this for fun consider if it is something you really need to advance your craft and art.  Remember you can't buy skill, you have to earn it.  And the lens you already own is probably not the barrier to getting where you want to go.  Whatever you do, if you have to borrow money (pull out that credit card) to buy equipment, then stop and seriously consider if it's worth it.  

OK, that is enough of that.  Now, onto the awesomeness of a lens.  

Taken with Panasonic TS4 point and shoot (review of that camera coming soon)

I really just borrowed this lens because I wanted to try it.  I don't think that a 14mm lens on a full frame camera fits well into my wedding and portrait business.  Then again, a 14mm lens on a crop sensor is a bit of a waste isn't it?  My Canon cameras are really my work cameras for a very specific type of work, my Olympus cameras are my fun cameras, and this lens is all fun.

Canon 14mm f2.8 version II on 5D Mark ii at f22 ISO 100 1/25 of a second

First up, I just want to explain that when I look at lenses or equipment I don't feel the need to get overly technical about specs because that information is so readily available from people that are way more qualified than I am to pixel peep and study the slight variations of photography equipment.  I'm more interested in the functional use of equipment and the feel of it in practical use.

I had the lens for 3 days and took it out 3 times in total.  One on a walk through downtown Nanaimo, another a walk around a swamp and once more on a family portrait session where my partner in crime used it for a couple of images.  I will say right away that this is not the ideal portrait lens, and one that you don't need if that's your bread and butter.  But we couldn't resist since it was in the bag anyway and, like a fisheye lens, it can give a fun alternative look for your client for a couple of images.

f22 ISO 100 1/15 of a second

Given that this lens is so wide you can hand hold it at incredibly slow shutter speeds even without image stabilization.  The shot above was done without a tripod much slower than I'd try with a long lens.  The small size of the lens (I was using the newer version, version II) feels comfortable on a DSLR without a battery grip.  It isn't tiny or light, but it's a nice medium size similar to the 35mm f1.4.

The really large front element is curved in an extreme way (see the photo on the top) so using screw in filters is out of the question.  Given that this would seem to be a great architecture and landscape lens this is a rather serious limitation.  I do know that the Nikon version of this lens has some expensive glass filters that can be added on by Lee but I don't think there is an option for the Canon except for the 31mm gel filters that sit on the back of the lens if need be.  

f14 ISO 100 1/40th of a second

While distortion is evident with the lens in that it exaggerates everything close to the edge of the frame while making what's in the middle appear considerably smaller the lines are kept straight due to the rectilinear nature of the lens (it's not a fisheye) Once you get used to it, it's a fun lens to use.  I wouldn't say this is a lens to use when you're just wanting a wide field of view, it's more of a lens to use when you plan on bringing the subject of interest close (like the parking meters above) and releasing the background around it to stretched out awesomeness.  That seems to me to be the most engaging way to use the lens.

Keeping the camera reasonably level helps to keep things looking as normal as possible, if that is what you are going for, but the drama of the edge distortion is kind of fun once you get used to it.  Adobe Lightroom 4 doesn't seem to have a built in correction profile for the lens, though I'm sure there would be one to download if you looked for it (I didn't).  The auto correct in stock lightroom treats it like the 15mm fisheye and does bad things.  See the corrected and uncorrected versions below.

Auto corrected in Lightroom 4 for distortion

The image appears blurry, and out of sorts.  A manual correction would work better to control the bulbous horizon.

No auto correction applied.

Given the extreme wide angle nature of the lens you will also run into issues where the exposure variation throughout the frame makes it impossible to capture both highlights and shadows without clipping.  Not having the option to use filters doesn't help.  It's nice that the Canon files out of the 5D have so much latitude in post processing to ease this pain, but some use of bracketing exposures is going to be helpful if you are a regular user of this lens.

f7.1 ISO 800 1/40th of a second

Each time I took the lens out I had a hard time adjusting to it's use.  I found that I had to get really close to my subject to compose what I wanted and often I was challenged in reconciling the framing between what I thought I wanted and what I was being shown.

f2.8 ISO 160 at 1/20 of a second

Once I started to get the feel for it though I noticed I was smiling a lot.  The lens was a challenge, but brought me some enjoyment that I haven't had in a long time with a single lens.  It was a bit like trying to control a puppy on a leash while strapping a pair of coke bottle glasses on your face.  But in a good way.  The lens absolutely forced me to consider what I was doing and to experience my surroundings in a way that my eyes did not agree with.

The box the lens came in from Canon.....and some feet

Like a fisheye, you have to be aware of what you are including in the frame.  Your feet, people or objects beside you and other things will appear in your frame constantly forcing you to reconsider your composition.

A cottage straight out of camera

I think for architectural photographers this lens would be a dream in that even with the elongating perspective all lines are kept ruler straight.  Regular use and some judicious correction in post (along with using a level tripod) would provide for a very nice lens for capturing urban buildings.

f22 ISO 100 1/30 of a second

For a walk around street photography lens though, this is a blast.  Once you get used to the field of view and decide that the people and objects that are important are best captured very close to the lens, it will begin performing for you in unusually fun ways.  I found myself when I was downtown wishing the weather was nicer and more pedestrians were on the street so I could stand still and photograph them walking around me.  You can pretty much set your scene with this lens and wait for your subjects to walk right into it.  Despite the size it makes for a surprisingly ninja-like street photography experience where people assume you are pointing at things other than them.

f22 ISO 100 1/6 of a second

And so for me, a photographer that primarily uses his Canon gear for weddings and portraits, I was left with a bit of a regret that this lens wouldn't fit into my workflow.  Mostly because I found it to be a lot of fun.  But at about $2040 in Canada the lens isn't going to give me the bang for the buck that I need for the couple of fun images it might provide for my clients.  If I were a landscape or architectural photographer I'd be all over it in a minute.

f22 ISO 100 1/8 of a second

Interestingly though it had me thinking about the Olympus 7-14 mm f4 lens which at about $1800 new (it's easy to find at about $1200 used) is a similar beast with the 2X crop factor and just as legendary on sharpness and control of straight lines.  Given Olympus is used more often as my fun camera it seems like a better fit for a few hundred dollars less.  The slower aperture isn't really an issue either as I found myself preferring to shoot the Canon pretty much closed down all the way and only shot it wide open to test it for this post (the auger photo above).

f22 ISO 100 1/15 of a second

The bubble like front element did make me nervous a times as it seems like it would be easily scratched and the lack of ability to use filters is a small problem (saved by the use of HDR or bracketing).  The lens also takes some time to get used to, certainly more time than I had with it.  But it was a blast to use.  It was one of the most joyful pieces of equipment I've had in a long time and there is no arguing it is also purpose built for a specific audience.  If that audience is you, then I say jump on it.  If not then try and borrow it for a walk around your town.  I think you might enjoy that.

f22 ISO 800 1/8 of a second straight out of camera

Most of the images in this post (though not all) were shot right from the camera and resized for this blog.  I shot them all in jpg as well.  I hope you've enjoyed reading this post and if you decide to buy the lens I hope you enjoy it and buy it through one of the links on this page so I can be rich and famous.

Mostly, thank-you for stopping by.  I appreciate your visit.  I'm now off to get all my plug-ins to work in CS6 which I just finished installing.  Wish me luck.