[SpecialK]

Best to worst:

Adorama 500mm/6.3 mirror
Tele-Tokina 800 f8-32

Both are pretty cheap and crappy, and fun. The 500 is light and compact. The 800 is basically a 27" long telescope.

[laissezfaire]

Have you checked the lens review section of this site?

Do you have a budget?

A specific focal length you'd like to have?

What kind of subjects? etc?

they all look good - would like to hear some opinions. I think going a bit wider than 50 make sense... sometimes I feel it's too "in between".

[Blue]

This is based on what I currently have, previously owned or have used.

If I rank them for AF:

1. (tie) FA 77mm ltd
1.(tie) DA 35mm ltd macro
3. DA* 300mm
4. DA 21mm ltd
5. Sigma 105mm EX DG Macro
6. FA 50mm f1.4

Manual Focus PK/PKA:

1. A 50mm f1.2
2. Tamron 180mm f2.5 SP
3. A 400mm f5.6
4. Tamron 90mm f2.5 Macro (52BB)
5. Tamron 24mm f2.5

M42

1. 50mm f4 Macro Takumar
2. 55mm f1.8 Auto Tak 'Zebra'
3. 105mm f2.8 Tak/Auto Tak
4. 35mm f2.3 Auto Tak
5. 58mm f2.4 Asahi Kogaku Takumar

There are a couple of K lenses and A* lenses that I would like to try as well as the FA* 600mm. The FA 43mm ltd, DA 15mm ltd, 70mm ltd, DA* 200mm f2.8 would likely make my list as well.

[mtngal]

It's very subjective! It's also how you "see" things in photography.

My "ranking" - which is just which lenses I like the best tonight:

1. DA*200 (tie)
1a. FA 77 Ltd (tie)
2. Viv 105 (tie)
2a. DA*300 (tie)
3. A*300
4. M 50 1.7 (hardly ever use it though)
5. 24 2.8 (used it a fair amount before I got the 12-24, it's a nice lens even though it's a K lens)
6. K-mount Takumar 135 - this lens is low contrast but very sharp. It's actually useful when I want detail instead of saturation/contrast, can be useful for flowers but makes sunsets look like mud).

[axl]

Rank my primes?

OK: (out of 10)

31ltd: 9,5 - 0,5 deducted for the size
43ltd: 9,5 - 0,5 deducted for MFD
50/1,2: 9,5 - 0,5 deducted for lacking A contact
55/1,8: 8,5 - 0,5 deducted for lacking A contact, 1 deducted for jaggedy 6 bladed bokeh when slightly stopped down
85/2: 9 - 0,5 deducted for lacking A contact and 0,5 for 6 bĺaded bokeh

(I took only 0,5 from 85 because it´s OOF seems smoother compared to 55 maybe because of extra 30mm of FL)

BR
Peter

[Class A]

31ltd: 9,5 - 0,5 deducted for the size

Do you think it is too big?
It really is a small lens for this focal length. If I'm not mistaken, making it small was one of the design objectives. Make it smaller and you lose IQ.

[8540tomg]

Rank my primes – tough call and highly subjective. They are all very good in different ways. For myself I guess the lenses I reach for most often would be the easiest way to determine a ranking order. Using that as my criteria my list would look something like this:

M 400/5.6 – Some might consider this an odd choice given its CA/PF issues but my best birding lens. Under right conditions can produce excellent results

K 200/2.5 – Very sharp fast telephoto, beautiful optic with that great K series build, a joy to hold and use

DA 70/2.4 – Excellent portrait lens.

A 100/2.8 macro – Brutally sharp, versatile optic with 1:1 macro.

K 24/2.8 – my widest prime at this time. Great K series build, sharp vivid colours.

I have several other primes but the above list ranks the ones I use most often.

Tom G

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Last edited by 8540tomg; 08-21-2010 at 09:47 AM. Reason: typo

[Pentaxor]

RANK:

A50/1.2 = this goes to 11. . fantastic portrait and lowlight lens

Sigma 70 = 9.5 (minus for the slow AF). great Macro

K28/3.5 = 9.5 (minus for the speed). great wide lens

FA35/2 = 9.8. great sharp lens for the money and perfect focal length for walk-around.

FA50/1.7 = 9.5. sharpest lens at wide open. truly useful AF under lowlights. 2nd only to the FA35/2. I don't use it much but worth keeping due to rarity.

K55/1.8 = 9.5. great bokeh 2nd to the 50/1.2.

Jupiter-9 85/2 = 8.9. (minus for the speed) great short telephoto portrait with character and pleasing character bokeh. sharp enough.

FA100/2.8 = 9.2 (minus for not being the sharpest). great color and bokeh.

FA135/2 = 9.2 (minus loosely AF and MF). great telephoto for candid. sharp and contrasty.

Pentacon 135/2.8 = 8.9 (not as contrasty as other 135 lenses). outstanding bokeh all over.

V-S1 90/2.5 = pending

[SylBer]

1-Pentax FA 31mm f1.8 Ltd (Tack sharp, excellent bokeh, great FL, outstanding built quality)
2-Pentax DA*200mm f2.8 (Sharp and excellent for indoor sports and landscape)
3-Tamron SP 90mm f2.8 Di Macro (Outstanding macro lens, period)
4-Pentax K 28mm f3.5 (My sharpest lens and outstanding colors. If this lens was AF, I think I would rank it second on the list)
5-Pentax FA 50mm f1.4 (Great bokeh but not very usefull FL)

[Nick Siebers]

DA40
Bokina
FA50 macro
A 16/2.8 fish eye
DA35
F 50 1.7
A 50 1.2
K35/2
SMC Tak 135/2.5
Mamiya 58 1.7
Macro-Tak 50/4
M 50 1.7
Sigma mini-wide II 28/2.8
Tele-vivitar 85 1.8
Vivitar 24/2.8
M 28/3.5 (ranks much higher on film for some reason)
Tokina 500/8 mirror
R Travenon 135mm f/4.5 (effectively a bellowslens, so hard to use)
MIR 45mm f/3.5 (Pentacon 6 on tilt adapter)

Another night an dthe ist would look diffrent but similar. Gee, it is hard to use all those lenses at once.

[axl]

Do you think it is too big?
It really is a small lens for this focal length. If I'm not mistaken, making it small was one of the design objectives. Make it smaller and you lose IQ.

Yes, I mean it´s tad big. I know it´s designed as ultrafast wide angle for FF and I keep it in mind.
But still, it´s my 2nd biggest lens (right after my 10-20)
And as such it´s bit big

[axl]

RANK:

A50/1.2 = this goes to 11. . fantastic portrait and lowlight lens

I wish my had A settings, would rate it the same as you then

FA50/1.7 = 9.5. sharpest lens at wide open. truly useful AF under lowlights.

I agree on this, one of the very few lenses I regret selling is F50/1,7... it was absolutely marvelous lens

K55/1.8 = 9.5. great bokeh 2nd to the 50/1.2.

Agreed again, but only wide open... once stopped down, I really dislike the hexagons and the 50/1.2 pulls away quite a bit (even my 8 bladed version)

[Recercare]

1: K35mm F3.5
2: (tie) K28mm F3.5
2: (tie) M85mm F2
3: K135mm F2.5

Kind regards
.lars