LBA strikes again!

[2techsans]

At the prodding of my wife (I *almost* passed up on it), I picked up a new old lens this weekend from a sea of Canon and Nikon lenses...

I found an old SuperTak SMC 85mm f1.8 M42 - not mint - but the glass is clear and clean, the aperture snappy, and the focusing smooth.

I have seen this go for a lot more, so I initially thought of it as an investment. I figured I could resell it and trade up to something I do want - like a tamron or fa 28-70 2.8, or 300mm * 4.5, or even a tokina 400mm 5.6 for outdoor sporting events.

However, after playing with this lens yesterday, I discovered why this SuperTak deserves it's stellar reputation. After changing the settings in my K100d to focus indicate for screw-mount lenses (which also enables the shake reduction for M42 lenses!), I snapped some portraits of friends and their kids. I was blown away by the sharpness - even wide open.

IMHO, this lens is sharper than the much revered 50mm 1.4!

I don't believe I can let this lens go to trade up!