Hey everyone, an upcoming return trip to Truk Lagoon has got me looking at adding an ultra-wide option to my kit and would love to hear from anyone with firsthand experience shooting the Nauticam FCP-1.

I currently shoot an A1 II and A1 with the WACP-2 and WWL-1B respectively, both of which I love. I'm looking to supplement them with an ultra-wide perspective for megafauna, wreck interiors, and CFWA as well as to mix things up creatively.

I've always been intrigued by fisheyes, but committing to that perspective for an entire dive has held me back. Commitment issues? lol. Enter the FCP-1. The ability to go extremely wide and then tighten up the composition without changing optics seems like a real advantage. Is it too good to be true?

My biggest questions are about optical performance throughout the zoom range. Some reviews suggest stopping down to f/11–f/16 for acceptable corner sharpness, while others seem happy at f/8. Does sharpness improve as you zoom in? And at the narrower end, do you find yourself happy with the results?

I'd also be interested in hearing how it performs for video.

I understand that the FCP-1 isn't a replacement for the WACP-2 or WWL-1B, and I'm not looking for a do it all optic (would be nice though). I'm also realistic about the tradeoffs involved in such an extreme field of view. What I'm trying to understand is whether the FCP-1's flexibility makes it a genuinely versatile addition to my existing kit, or whether the new Sony fisheye would be the better performer at substantially less cost.

Would really appreciate any real-world feedback, particularly from anyone who's spent significant time shooting the FCP-1.

Worth a read through here for another, possibly better, option:

Hi @Grantmac, thanks for your reply. I'll give it a read. Do you shoot video as well as stills? I've heard Fisheye-TC-Metabones can introduce video AF challenges.