The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye and the Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED is the longer of the two lenses at 83mm. The Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye with a length of 77mm, is 6mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED also has a larger diameter of 83mm compared to the Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye's 75mm diameter.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED weighs 370g, 16% (73g) lighter than the Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye's weight of 443g.
Lens Mounts
The Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye has the Nikon F (DX) lens mount whereas the Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED has the Nikon F (FX) lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with these mounts are Nikon D3500, Nikon D7500 and Nikon D5600 for the Nikon F (DX) Mount and Nikon D6, Nikon D780 and Nikon D3500 for the Nikon F (FX) Mount.
Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye is also available in the Canon EF , Four Thirds, Pentax KAF, Sony Alpha and Samsung NX mounts.
Focal Range
Samyang 8mm F3.5 Fisheye is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 8mm which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of
12mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
On the other hand, the Nikon 18-35mm f3.5-4.5D IF ED has a focal range of 18-35mm and 1.9X zoom ratio . When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides a 35mm (FF) equivalent of 27 - 52.5mm.
