Why everyone needs the 15mm Super Wide Heliar

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Taken yesterday in King Ferry, NY. M2, Neopan 400 in D-76. A normal lens wouldn't have given a sense of how FREAKING HUGE this pumpkin patch is. I nearly ran off the road when I saw it.

Color film would have been nice, but you can't have everything.

 

[ray*j*gun]

wow! nice pic and i love that super wide look.

Ray

 

[mfogiel]

One step closer...

 

[stefan_dinu]

I have it and never use it. So, why do I have it?

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

I have it and never use it. So, why do I have it?

For pumpkin photography, of course.

 

[Al Kaplan]

I love the desolate feeling I get from that huge field, the dead vines, and the lonely pumkins scattered about. I know that it would be a daunting task but imagine that field at dusk filled with smiling jackolanterns ;-) Ain't that 15 Heliar a killer of a lens? I sure love mine.

 

[Roger Hicks]

I'm inclined to agree with the OP. It's silly-cheap; it's very good; it's tiny. Even if you don't need it very often, it's still a bargain and very easy to carry around.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Krosya]

What Roger says sums it up nicely. I too have one and dont use it as often as I should, really. But I dont plan to sell it as those few pics that I use it for make me really enjoy it.

 

[Krosya]

Oh - and I really like the OP's photo. I actually like it in B&W - gives it a whole different feel. I dont thik it would have it in colour.

 

[capitalK]

One step closer...

I find I do the same thing with the 21mm f/4, I often wish I had gotten one step closer.

This one is really nice.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

One step closer...

I was only like 2 feet from that pumpkin, and it looked large in the finder, but it came out looking a bit puny. I was initially disappointed, but after thinking about it, I'm glad to have those withered vines in the foreground.

 

[cosmonaut]

Yes, I agree. I have one and use it more than any other lens I have. Great picture. I like it in B&W.....

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

A couple of others from that roll...a strange square woods near my house, and a self-portrait on the lake...

 

[jwhitley]

I have it and never use it. So, why do I have it?

Marketing?

Wide-angle lenses are wonderful for embracing and emphasizing space -- space itself as the subject. The pumpkin photo is a brilliant example of that. Perhaps that simply isn't what currently attracts your photographic vision?

 

[Livesteamer]

Thanks for the great photos. I am torn between the CV 21 and 15 but now I'm thinking I should get the 15. Thanks. Joe

 

[sam_m]

I was only like 2 feet from that pumpkin, and it looked large in the finder, but it came out looking a bit puny. I was initially disappointed, but after thinking about it, I'm glad to have those withered vines in the foreground.

The finder is quite misleading in that regard - especially if you wear glasses like me. When I owned the lens I would slightly crop the foreground, knowing it would still be there, but I certainly wouldn't be disappointed with this sort of result! Great shot, contrast is maybe a bit high but that might just be my monitor, would make a great big grainy print I think!

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

It's not your monitor--I like the contrast! I might decrease it a bit if I make a print of that pic.

I agree, this isn't just an excellent lens--it's absurdly cheap. It still stuns me that it exists at all. 15mm on a Rangefinder! On a sunny day, on the M2, it's practically point and shoot.

 

[Ron (Netherlands)]

Here's another example (route 66 near Holbrook): it even works nicely with a crop factor of 1,5 on the R-D1: you get a nice 22,5 mm lens.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Yeah, those are great! Sometimes it does something interesting to people's faces.

Ron's car shot looks terrific, too.

 

[rbiemer]

I like the BW pumpkin patch. I suppose you could try hand coloring a print of it.
Pretty good job keeping your horizon level; much better than I usually do with the CV 21mm that is my widest lens. Thanks for sharing these!
Rob