These are the best fisheye lenses for studio photography when you want bold, controlled CFWA (close-focus wide-angle) drama—graphically curved sets, expansive seamless, accessories inches from the lens, and sunstar-clean highlights under strobes/LEDs—with strong flare resistance, inch-level minimum focus, and compact builds that play nicely with booms, stands, and cages—and here’s what to look for as you buy: prefer diagonal fisheyes on full-frame for edge-to-edge frames you can partially de-fish while keeping people/products flattering, circular options for graphic hero plates, fast or near-hyperfocal focus you can tape, coatings that shrug off speculars from glossy fabrics/acrylics, and lightweight barrels that won’t collide with flags; front filters are rarely usable—do your polarization on the lights (linear gels) instead of a lens CPL, and manage reflections with flags/negative fill/grids. Full-frame heroes: Canon EF 8–15mm ƒ4L Fisheye USM and Nikon AF-S 8–15mm ƒ3.5–4.5E (benchmark circular→diagonal zooms—save a custom stop around 14–15 mm for repeatable diagonal coverage that de-fishes cleanly; excellent flare control for metallics and sequins), Samyang/Rokinon 12mm ƒ2.8 diagonal (fast, featherweight, budget workhorse for moody low-power continuous light), and Sigma 15mm ƒ2.8 EX diagonal (compact classic that tightens corners at ƒ5.6–ƒ8). APS-C standouts for small cycloramas and tabletop bays: Tokina AT-X 10–17mm ƒ3.5–4.5 DX and Pentax DA 10–17mm ƒ3.5–4.5 (close-focus champs—perfect for shoes, handbags, and set details inches from the front element); on crop, the Canon/Nikon 8–15s behave as diagonal fisheyes across much of their range if you already own one. Micro Four Thirds winners for gimbal walk-throughs and BTS reels: Olympus M.Zuiko 8mm ƒ1.8 PRO (fast, sealed, superb into-the-spotlight behavior) and Panasonic Lumix G 8mm ƒ3.5 (tiny, sharp, cost-effective). Practical buyer tips: on full-frame grab an 8–15 and store two zoom stops—(a) circular for poster-style graphics and (b) diagonal “no-vignette” for people/products—then build a repeatable de-fish preset so lines stay consistent across the campaign; for price/speed the Samyang 12/2.8 is the value pick; on crop the Tokina 10–17 is size-to-coverage gold; choose rigid EF→RF/E/Z adapters with zero play, add a cage and top handle for low-angle sweeps, and consider a sacrificial protector only when liquids/powders are flying (remove if it ghosts). Studio shooting tips: level the camera to protect verticals (de-fish lightly for clean walls), work around ƒ5.6–ƒ8 (ƒ9–ƒ11 on high-res bodies) for edge discipline, and expose for highlights on glossy surfaces—lift shadows with flags and fill rather than raising ISO; place the front element 6–24 in from foreground subjects for scale and keep backgrounds 2–5 m back to maintain airy separation, curve seamless evenly to avoid kinks, and hide stands with careful framing; use cross-polarization on lights (linear gels) and rotate back slightly to preserve sparkle on jewelry/metal, grid key lights to prevent veiling flare, and add negative fill to sculpt faces/body lines; for team shots and fashion, center primary faces to minimize distortion and let limbs drift toward edges for intentional energy; for product, mount on a focusing rail for micro fore–aft tweaks and keep IBIS off on sticks; for video, lock a 180° shutter (no ND needed under strobes/most LED), set a fixed zoom stop before the take, move slowly—tiny wobbles read big on fisheye—and de-fish consistently in post; whether you’re crafting graphic lookbooks, playful brand campaigns, dramatic CFWA beauty, or immersive studio BTS, the best studio fisheye choices—8–15 zooms on full-frame, Tokina/Pentax 10–17 on APS-C, and Olympus/Panasonic 8 mm on MFT—deliver repeatable framing, manageable flare under hard sources, and a projection you can shape in post so your lines stay intentional, your highlights stay crisp, and your images land bold, modern, and unmistakably studio-polished.