For quite a while now I’ve been looking for a camera lens with a wide focal length. My widest to date is my Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 which, don’t get me wrong, is an incredible lens and that 24mm length is fairly wide. But as I found in my recent trip to Switzerland, I just needed something that little bit wider to really get the kind of landscape photography I want to achieve.
So what are my options? Well, I’d narrowed it down to 3:
Canon 17-40mm f4 L lens
This has been on the list as a strong contender for a LONG time, ever since I saw what kind of photography my friends,and
were achieving with theirs. 17mm is a lot wider than my 24mm and the draw of that red line around the L lens is a huge factor purely for my ego. Every time I see another photographer with that red ring around their lens it does make me a little jealous...
Canon 16-35mm f4 L lens
As above, that ‘red ring’ aspect is a huge draw. Also, I managed to find this lens used at the same price as a new 17-40mm lens. I have no problem with used equipment, as well as it has been looked after and cared for just as I would, that’s not an issue at all. Plus that extra 1mm of focal distance at the lower end, while doesn’t sound like a lot, was a bonus.Irix 15mm f2.4 lens
The lesser know manufacturer, the relatively new-to-the-market Irix is a Swiss designed lens which is then built in Korea. I was drawn to this for the f2.4 aperture as I fully intend on getting out at night to do some astrophotography. My goal is to take a photo of the Milky Way, so the fact that this lens can let it several stops more of light was a huge factor. Plus, that 15mm is a very wide focal length without being a fish-eye lens.
And the winner, the new addition to my lens collection is...
Irix 15mm f2.4
OK, I know I banged on about the red-ring pull of the Canon L series lenses, but after comparing all 3 lenses, reading several reviews and comparisons, watching videos on YouTube (I watched LOTS) and comparing images taken by each I decided on the Swiss lens.
The Canon lens, while having that L series quality, in everyone’s opinions and review were incredible lenses but did both struggle with issues of barrel distortion in a way that was not too much of an issue for the Irix. I am not in any way, shape or form saying that there IS any major barrel distortion on the Canon lenses, but from what I saw in other people’s reviews the Irix performed better.
Plus, the aperture of the Irix was a huge pull. While I know you can get some incredible astrophotography shots with an f4 lens, after seeing what was possible with the Irix at f2.4 I knew I had to go for the wider aperture. While I know that for landscape photography I probably won’t be going that low and would likely stay within the f4-16 range, knowing I have that option is a bonus.
One slight downside to the Irix is that it’s a manual focus lens, but to be perfectly honest at the focal range of 15mm and the kind of photography I’m wanting to do with it, I’m not expecting to have that much of an issue with focusing. After all, for astrophotography I will likely be keeping the focus at infinity anyway which the Irix offers a little support for as the focus ring has a little ‘click’ when you get to infinity which is going to prove invaluable when shooting in the dark. Not to mention the ability to lock focus to avoid accidentally moving the focus ring when adjusting.
Not to mention, the packaging that this lens comes in is just incredible. It is some of the nicest packaging I have ever seen on a lens. Not only is the cardboard, outer box really nicely designed but within that there is a metal tin container. Within that is the lens pouch, a really robust and well padded case, which holds both the lens and it’s lens hood.
So there we have it, my new toy. I look forward to getting out there and giving it a try to see just how wide this thing is!
I will, of course, report back and do my own review of this lens once I have been out with it for a few photography shoots and let you know my true thoughts on this lens.
Wish me luck!
