Registered: May, 2007
Posts: 9321
Location: East Coast Canada
Lens Review Date: November 19, 2007
I can recommend the SMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8: Yes |
Price (U.S. Dollars): $100.00
| Rating: 8
Pros:
Size, large focus ring image quality
Cons:
a little CA a bit soft at wide open
I thought I'd add a review of this lens as there are none here. I no longer own it (I got the FA version) but it served me well on both film and digital. Some don't like the lens for some reason but I found it a good lens overall. It's fast although there are faster primes around (77mm, 85mm etc) that are sharper wide open. The lens was always sharp above f4. Showed great bokeh and was easy to focus in both formats. Images were nice and bright in the viewfinder.
It did exhibit a bit of CA on a DSLR with high contrast scenes. The CA is easily correctable but the softness at wide open requires some stopping down.
Registered: May, 2007
Posts: 2591
Location: Singapore
Lens Review Date: May 11, 2008
I can recommend the SMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8: Yes |
Price (U.S. Dollars): $150.00
| Rating: 8
Pros:
Pretty compact. Large focusing ring
Cons:
Moderate sharpness wide open
This lens isn't that easy to find and has the very useful A setting that allows full auto exposure control at every mode. This lens seems to be underrated at some reviews but my copy is acceptably sharp. At maximum aperture, it can appear a little soft but image quality improves when stopped down. Build quality is first rate and it makes for a useful focal length on DSLRs due to the crop factor.
Registered: December, 2008
Posts: 32
Location: NJ, USA
Lens Review Date: January 3, 2009
I can recommend the SMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8: Yes |
Price (U.S. Dollars): N/A
| Rating: 8
Pros:
Fast (2.8) and Light
Cons:
CA
Funny thing about this lens... I have had it since 1985 and I thought it was one of the best lenses at this FL. But when the internet showed up, I kept reading about how this lens is one of the biggest disappointments in K mount history. But I still used it for digital imaging since I needed to shoot stage events in dark environments. Then the DA* 50-135 2.8 shows up and everybody says how great this lens is. I buy it and do a comparison to the old A 135 via the newsprint test.
Much to my surprise , the A 135 lens at 2.8 had better edge peformance and about equal sharpness at the center. However, by f4 the DA* seems to surpass, but not by much. On other dimentions, the DA* did better (contrast, color, CA, etc). The A 135 has a bit of PF on digital. Ironically, my assement (not scientific) was consistent with the results on photozone for the 135 f2.5 -> even performance across the frame.
Not bad for a 25 year old lens that has not been designed for digital.
I can recommend the SMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8: Yes |
Price (U.S. Dollars): $20.00
| Rating: 9
Pros:
sharpness, color, easy to focus, aperture
Cons:
minimum focusing distance
I got this lens for almost free (someone who just wanted to tidy his mess).
It is said to be not as good as the different 135mm f3.5 versions.
However, the lens I have really surprises me each time I use it.
Pictures are very sharp, even wide open. Pictures are colorful, very bright. There is some 'pop' inside.
The lens is relatively compact.
The cons: minimum focusing distance is 1.2m, so it's hard to use it indoors. The focusing ring is very very long. It's quite easy to focus on static objects, but if you want to shoot people or animals, you have to be reactive!
Registered: October, 2007
Posts: 804
Location: Port Townsend, Washington State, USA
Lens Review Date: June 25, 2010
I can recommend the SMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8: Yes |
Price (U.S. Dollars): $140.00
| Rating: 9
Pros:
Compact, sharp, easy to focus, build
Cons:
MF
If you compare a tele like this to a Tamron zoom like the 18-250, you would find that the length of this lens is like 1/2 the length of the zoom at this FL. Much lighter, faster and more discrete than any comparable zoom.
The only manual lens i carry. Bokeh is very nice and i find focusing is easy with my Katz eye split focusing screen.
To test my DA50-135 when i bought it, i compared both lens for sharpness at 135mm. I couldn't tell any difference in sharpness between the two at 100% crop, at 200% crop, the A 135 was slightly sharper. And i consider the DA*50-135 a professional quality lens.
Built-in hood is fast and easy to use. Don't know what else to tell you except i just like this lens for its reach, size and IQ.
, the A 135 lens at 2.8 had better edge peformance and about equal sharpness at the center. However, by f4 the DA* seems to surpass, but not by much. On other dimentions, the DA* did better (contrast, color, CA, etc). The A 135 has a bit of PF on digital. Ironically, my assement (not scientific) was consistent with the results on photozone for the 135 f2.5 -> even performance across the frame.