[lesmore49]

Lately , I've been mulling over in my mind the prospect of buying a Pentax 40mm F2.8 Limited, prime.

I have been thinking of attaching it to my KM (K2000) as this pancake lens would make a fine, small DSLR carry around..... to my mind.

However, I am wondering is the 40mm F2.8:

• Capable of taking sharp, clear pix on par with say the Pentax 12-24 mm?
• All metal / glass construction ?
• If Pentax ever decides to bring out a Full Frame...will the 40 mm F2.8 be compatible with a FF camera ?
• Is the 40 mm F2.8 Pancake worthwhile to add to my repertoire or are there some problems with them ?

I have read the lens review of the 40mm in this forum, but I've also seen some comparison pix with other lenses/cameras that make me pause.

BTW, I've got a 50mm F1.4, 50MM F 2.8 ...all Pentax lenses...all work well....also very sharp. Is the 40mm as sharp as these lenses ?

Any opinions / recommendations ?

Thanks, Les

[yeatzee]

Lately , I've been mulling over in my mind the prospect of buying a Pentax 40mm F2.8 Limited, prime.

I have been thinking of attaching it to my KM (K2000) as this pancake lens would make a fine, small DSLR carry around..... to my mind.

However, I am wondering is the 40mm F2.8:

• Capable of taking sharp, clear pix on par with say the Pentax 12-24 mm?
• All metal / glass construction ?
• If Pentax ever decides to bring out a Full Frame...will the 40 mm F2.8 be compatible with a FF camera ?
• Is the 40 mm F2.8 Pancake worthwhile to add to my repertoire or are there some problems with them ?

I have read the lens review of the 40mm in this forum, but I've also seen some comparison pix with other lenses/cameras that make me pause.

BTW, I've got a 50mm F1.4, 50MM F 2.8 ...all Pentax lenses...all work well....also very sharp. Is the 40mm as sharp as these lenses ?

Any opinions / recommendations ?

Thanks, Les

From the samples I've seen it is very sharp.

and no it will not be as sharp as the 50mm macro.... macro's are always just about as sharp as they come.

[SOldBear]

[*]Capable of taking sharp, clear pix on par with say the Pentax 12-24 mm?

In my non-expert opinion, my DA40 is the sharpest lens I have. See my signature for the partial list of the lenses I have.

[*]All metal / glass construction ?

I think so. All DA Ltd. lenses are like that.

[*]If Pentax ever decides to bring out a Full Frame...will the 40 mm F2.8 be compatible with a FF camera ?

Don't think so. But I don't have plan for a FF camera.

[*]Is the 40 mm F2.8 Pancake worthwhile to add to my repertoire or are there some problems with them ?

The only possible weak point of the DA40 is its (lack of) close focusing capability (about 1:7 IIRC). Other than that, I don't think there is any problem. You are the only one who can say whether it's worthwhile to add to your repertoire.

[StephenMerola]

pretty darn good from everything I have seen. Getting that performance out of that small package is just amazing to me.

Check out images on the PPG to get an idea of what it can do.

[blackcloudbrew]

All DA lenses are optically designed to work on the APS-C sensor. While it would work on a FF sensor, the image area on the sensor would not be filled up.

The DA 40 is a gem. It is very sharp and that's that.

[RonHendriks1966]

The pancake 40mm should be a FF lens.

It is very sharp, but just a little harsh if I compare to my DA*55mm or FA*85mm.

It is as good as you can take pictures or can use photoshop.

Great combo with your little K-m (as we call it in europe).

[bigdog104]

Don't have the 12-24 but I think the DA 40 is a superb lens. It is a great lens to keep on your camera and the size can't be beat. I love it on my k-X.

From what I understand the DA series will only work on APS-C sensor camera so *IF* Pentax ever decides to introduce a FF DSLR, this lens probably won't be compatible.

If you want to see some examples, there are a couple good ones (and some more opinions and info) in this thread:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/101470-da-panc...ular-lens.html

Also check out photos tagged on Flickr with this lens:
Flickr: Pentax SMC - Official Tag Required content tagged with smcpda40mmf28

[LucyGoosey]

I've had the 40mm pancake on a k2000 for a couple of weeks. Very sharp, but I'm still learning to get used to the longer focal length though. Although the size is just right for walk around, esp. with the compact k2000, it's just not wide enough for street photography. Still trying to learn when to use this over my other lenses. I'm waiting on delivery of my 50mm, 1.4 so I'll have some decisions to make.

I keep asking myself, "when would I choose 50mm over 40mm and vice versa?"

However, I am wondering is the 40mm F2.8:

• If Pentax ever decides to bring out a Full Frame...will the 40 mm F2.8 be compatible with a FF camera ?

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/31629-da-lens-...ts-thread.html

[jjdgti]

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/31629-da-lens-...ts-thread.html

Thanks for the link. Very interesting stuff.

[deadwolfbones]

Yeah, the 40 is FF-compatible.

And yeah, it's an amazing lens. Get it.

Thanks for the link. Very interesting stuff.

Don't thank me - thank Falk for gathering the data in that thread/post. Very useful information.