[charleychen]

I have the 21, 40, 77 ltd lens right now. I would like to another compact lens to my kit greater than 77mm. My preference is for the lens to have AF, but I'd like to see all the options out there.

Thanks.

[steve1307]

DFA100WR springs to my mind.

1:1 macro ability
49mm filter
essentially "limited" build quality
very sharp (well it's a macro)
nice bokeh and a decent portrait lens too
WR

[bdery]

The only compact AF lens longer than 77 is indeed the 00 macro. Otherwise you fall into DA* territory and they are not "compact". You could also find a used F or FA 135mm, not too big.

In the MF world, you have more options. The most ludicrously compact is the M150 f3,5 probably, but it's quite rare (one just sold in the marketplace). Any M prime will be quite small, so you could look into that. K lenses will be quite larger for the same specs, A lenses a tad larger.

[Marc Sabatella]

Given the fact that the M100/2.8 isn't much longer than your 77 and lacks the AF and macro that would make the D-FA100 attractive, I'd rule that out. The M120/2.8 and M150/3.5 are both fine lenses, but rare enough to not be worth the effort or cost unless you really know one of those is the exact focal length you want. That leaves M135/3.5 among M lenses, and it's a great choice - amazingly compact (same 49mm filter size as your other lenses), very good IQ, widely available, cheap.

There are of course plenty of other lenses out there, but when one uses the word "compact" in the requirement, the M series is the obvious place to start. There is also the A135/2.8, which is probably somewhat more compact than other 135/2.8's, if the extra half stop over the M135/3.5 or the aperture automation is worth the extra cost and size/weight to you.

[dave9t5]

I have the 21, 40, 77 ltd lens right now. I would like to another compact lens to my kit greater than 77mm. My preference is for the lens to have AF, but I'd like to see all the options out there.

Thanks.

Voigtlaender APO-Lanthar 90mm f/3.5 SL - tiny, incredible build/optics, close-focusing, 49mm filter, KA mount, not AF too similar to 77mm, difficult to find.

Voigtlander APO-Lanthar 180mm f/4 SL - teeny-tiny (for 180mm), incredible build/optics, close-focusing, 49mm filter(!), KA mount, not AF, difficult to find.

SMC Pentax-DA 50-200mm F4-5.6 ED WR - comparable size/weight to smallest 135mm primes, 49mm filter, close-focusing, WR, KAF mount, economic, average IQ

[axl]

Depends how long do you want to go. If 100 is enough then DFA100WR is indeed the best option overall, it's partially metal built, has AF, WR and rounded blades.
If you want to go longer then F/FA135 would be good.
And if you don't mind MF.... Well, there's a lot to choose from

[charleychen]

Thanks for all the suggestions. The DFA100WR seems like a great lens to add. I'm not crazy about it extending so much during focus. For someone that has it, is full extension during close up or infinity?

For the manual lens, which mounts would I need the green button to meter? Which mounts will meter automatically?

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Last edited by charleychen; 04-30-2011 at 11:38 AM.

[dgaies]

Thanks for all the suggestions. The DFA100WR seems like a great lens to add. I'm not crazy about it extending so much during focus. For someone that has it, is full extension during close up or infinity?

If you want AF, either the 100WR or the FA135 would make good options. Both are pretty small and would be nice additions to your kit.

FYI, the 100WR is longest at close focus. Also, the hood attaches to the lens barrel itself so all the extension takes place within the hood. The total length of the lens plus hood doesn't change.

[kaipa]

I add my vote for F/FA 135/2.8. 100mm does not add too much reach comparing to your 77 lim. 135mm is a good tele already, it is quite compact, excellent build quality (the only bad is manual focus ring), fast AF and built-in hood. Image quality is great to my taste as well.

[dgaies]

Here's a quick size comparison of the FA77, 100WR and FA135 (both with and without their respective hoods).

[Marc Sabatella]

M & K lenses require Green button metering - which is *not* a big deal. "A" lenses and all lenses with AF can use the full automatic exposure modes; no Green button required. FA135 is quite a big bigger than M135, and a lot more expensive, too. As a point of comparison, M135 is (slightly) smaller than the kit lens; D-FA 100 and FA135 are both larger. but if AF is more important than compactness or price, I'd go with FA135 if I wasn't a heavy duty macro shooter. For light macro use, the FA135 plus a Raynox 150 is good for 1:1 macro; use it with the FA77 for 1:2.

No doubt the DA50-200 is not up the others in terms of IQ, but it's still not bad at all (despite what some say), and it is also wonderfully compact for a lens that goes to 200mm.

[selar]

The M 135/3.5 comes to mind. Quite compact, good optics, easy to find and inexpensive. Love that sliding hood.

[TOUGEFC]

Both the F/FA 135 and DFA100 are also on my LBA list.
Sorry to go slightly off-topic but whats AF speed like on the 100?

[pinholecam]

For AF lenses, the 100mm macro or a used F/FA135mm.
The 100mm macro does add in the new option of macro photography.

[axl]

Both the F/FA 135 and DFA100 are also on my LBA list.
Sorry to go slightly off-topic but whats AF speed like on the 100?

Problem with both versions of DFA100 is missing limiter. If the lens misses the focus it takes a bit.
On the other side, the older FA100 has limiter at 70cm. And the AF between 70cm and infinity is very fast. Faster than FA ltds I'd say. Price to pay? Size...but I'm rebuying it anyway