It's not often that we get a new fisheye lens, but this 7Artisans AF 10mm f/2.5 Max isn't just exciting because it's a novelty.
With an ultra-wide 185° field of view, fast aperture, full autofocus and 0.15m close focusing, it's going to be one of the most creative tools to keep in your kit bag.
Launching for Sony E, Nikon Z and L-Mount, the 7Artisans AF 10mm f/2.5 Max offers full-frame coverage – which is to say, you get a corner-to-corner (diagonal) image rather than a circular "peephole" perspective.
At 10mm you get a crazy-wide perspective (which is punched in slightly to 15mm, if you mount it to an APS-C body) that delivers truly unique spatial expression.
As a pure fisheye it's ideal for everything from agonized landscapes and wraparound vistas to phantasmagoric portraiture and shooting action sports like skateboarding.
However, by applying the official lens correction profile, you can transform the lens into a traditional wide-angle for more conventional architecture, astro and landscape photography.
The fast aperture makes it especially suited to low light situations, whether that's indoor skateparks or shooting starscapes. Combine it with the ultra-close focusing distance and you can even achieve surreal subject separation.
As far as the lens itself goes, it's an all-metal affair with weather sealing to make it a robust performer in all conditions (providing, of course, that you have a weather-sealed body). The bulbous lens also boasts an anti-smudge coating to repel fingerprints, water stains and oil residue.
Unlike a lot of fisheyes, the 7Artisans AF 10mm f/2.5 Max promises exceptional image quality – being, as the name suggests, part of the company's top-tier Max series.
The manufacturer says that it is capable of resolving 60MP, thanks to its optical formula that features 11 all-glass elements in 8 groups – including a pair of extra-low dispersion and an aspherical lens to control chromatic and spherical aberrations.
It has a dedicated, clicked aperture ring along with a pair of function buttons – and it even has a USB-C port on the lens mount to facilitate straightforward firmware updates. Far from making this a bulky lens, though, it weighs just 504g (on E-mount) and measures a 94mm in length.
The 7Artisans AF 10mm f/2.5 Max is available now, priced $449 (approximately £330 / AU$625) for E, Z and L-Mount – but be aware that there are some compatibility issues with certain camera models.
Per 7Artisans, in the below list, fully compatible means all functions work, basically compatible means "normal shooting works; some features are being improved" and not compatible means the lens cannot be used:
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Fully compatible |
Basically compatible |
Not compatible |
Sony |
FX2, FX3, A1, A1 II, A9 III, A7 V, A7 IV, A7 III, A7R VI, A7R V, A7R IIIa, A7R III, A7S III, A7S II, A7CR, A7C II, A7C, ZV-E1, ZV-E10, A6700, A6400, A6300, A6100 |
FX30, A9 II, A9, A7 II, A7R IVa, A7R IV, A7R II, A7R, A7S, A6600, A6500, A6000, A5100, NEX-7 |
A7 |
Nikon |
Z9, Z8, Z7 II, Z7, Z6 III, Z6 II, Z6, ZR, Z5 II, Z5, ZF, Z50 II, Z50, Z30, ZFC |
Row 2 - Cell 2 | Row 2 - Cell 3 |
Panasonic Lumix |
SIII, S1IIE️, S1RII, S1, S1R, S1H, S5IIX, S5II, S5, S9 |
Row 3 - Cell 2 | Row 3 - Cell 3 |
Leica |
SL, SL3, SL3-S |
SL2, SL2-S |
Row 4 - Cell 3 |
Sigma |
fp L, fp |
Row 5 - Cell 2 | BF |
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