HD Pentax-D FA 645 35mm F3.5 Announced

New wide-angle lens for the Pentax medium format system

By PF Staff in Pentax Announcements on Nov 12, 2015

Ricoh Imaging has just announced the HD Pentax-D FA 35mm F3.5 AL [IF], a wide-angle prime lens designed for the 645 digital medium format system.  It is expected to start shipping in mid-December, 2015.

HD Pentax-D FA 645 F3.5 AL [IF]

The new 35mm is inspired by the film-era SMC Pentax-FA 645 35mm, though enhancements have been made to its optical formula.  Among these is a newly designed, high-grade glass-molded aspherical element.  As a D FA series lens, it covers the full 645 film image format.

From a physical perspective, the D FA 35mm appears to be very similar to the FA 35mm.   It has an aperture ring and is thus usable without limitations on film bodies.  The new lens is not weather-sealed, and it employs screwdrive autofocus, unlike other recent D FA and DA 645 lenses.

New features include the HD lens coating, which offers increased contrast and better flare control compared to the traditional SP coating. The front element is now SP (Super Protect) coated, which helps repel water drops and grease and easier to clean.  In addition, the aperture blades are rounded for smoother bokeh. 

The release of this lens was somewhat unexpected in that it never appeared on the lens road map, but it certainly underlines Pentax's commitment to the 645 format and thus to the professional market.

In the US, the D FA 35mm is available for pre-order for $1599 at B&H Photo.

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The FA 35mm lens has always been one of the more popular choices for wide-angle photography with the Pentax 645 system, and we are sure the D FA version will follow in its footsteps. The 35mm focal lens makes the lens well-suited for landscapes and it is of course much more compact and easier to handle than the current alternative, the HD Pentax-DA 645 28-45mm F4.5 zoom.  The 76° diagonal field of view of a 35mm lens on the 645D/Z is roughly comparable to that of a 19mm on APS-C or 27mm on full-frame.

Full specifications for the D FA 35mm are now posted in our lens database.

Press Release

RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD. is pleased to announce the launch of the HD PENTAX-D FA645 35mm F3.5AL[IF] wide-angle lens, a new addition to the PENTAX 645 medium-format digital SLR camera system.

The lens design is based on the smc PENTAX-FA645 35mmF3.5AL[IF], renowned for its crisp image description. Thanks to the incorporation of a newly designed high-grade aspherical optical elements, it has been optimized for digital imaging by minimizing various aberrations. It is also treated with the PENTAX-original HD Coating to deliver high-contrast, high-resolution images even under demanding lighting conditions such as backlight, making it ideal for scenic photography.


Main Features
1. Optical design supporting super-high-resolution images of medium-format digital SLR cameras

Combining a newly designed, high-grade glass-molded aspherical element with a high refractive index low dispersion glass element and a hybrid aspherical element in its optics, this lens effectively compensates for chromatic and spherical aberrations and assures a sufficient peripheral brightness level, while enhancing image resolution and crisp image description at edges of the image field. The lens coating and reflective material used for the interior of the lens barrel are optimized for the distinctive characteristics of digital imaging. This allows it to draw out the optimum performance of PENTAX medium-format digital SLR cameras, while minimizing flare and ghost images.

2. Wide-angle perspective perfect for scenic photography

This lens provides a focal length of 27.5mm (in the 35mm format; when mounted on a 645Z or 645D camera body) to capture wide-angle images of landscape and architecture. With a minimum focusing distance of 0.3 meters and a maximum magnification of 0.25 times, it can also be used for close-up photography, allowing the photographer to capture subjects such as flowers from a close distance, while retaining the scenery in the background to emphasize the sense of depth. What's more, its inner-focus mechanism keeps its total length unchanged during focusing, and allows the user to maintain the ideal balance during handheld shooting.

3. HD Coating for high-resolution images

This lens is treated with the PENTAX-original, high-grade HD Coating.* Compared with conventional multi-layer coatings, this innovative coating assures higher light transmittance and lower reflection to deliver bright, high-contrast images free of flare and ghost images, even under demanding lighting conditions such as backlight. (HD stands for High Definition.)

4. Rounded diaphragm for a beautiful bokeh effect

This lens features a nine-blade, rounded diaphragm to produce a smooth, beautiful bokeh (defocus) effect, while minimizing the streaking effect of point light sources.

5. Other features

  • Image circle covering the entire image size of 645-series film-format SLR cameras
  • SP (Super Protect) Coating applied to the front surface of the lens to effectively repel water and grease
  • Attachment of various filters, such as a C-PL (circular polarizing) filter, to the front end of the lens
  • PL filter window for easy control of a polarizing filter without requiring the removal of the lens hood

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