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07-17-2011, 02:11 PM   #1
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Sigma 50mm f/1.4 or Pentax 70mm f/2.4?

The title pretty much explains most of it! The lenses will be paired with the Pentax K-5, and I am mostly doing portraits and newspaper photos! Any opinions will help.

If you can suggest anything cheaper that is still good, that would be fantastic!

07-17-2011, 02:14 PM   #2
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only cheaper would be FA50/1.4
And I'd suggest DA*55. Excellent lens for what you need it for...
07-17-2011, 02:56 PM   #3
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You may need to ask yourself a few questions:
- do you shoot in low light? do you need f1.4 ?
- do you need AF?
- what is your budget?

There are many other lenses that you could suit you, but it is difficult to answer without more specifics.
07-17-2011, 03:07 PM   #4
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I'm gonna go real cheap and suggest the K55 f1.8. Very nice for portraits.



07-17-2011, 03:23 PM   #5
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70 feels odd, but is small, light and quite good at AF (e.g. compared to F50/1.7 or S30/1.4 - last one was total AF fail on k200d). Dont know bout sigma, but F50/1.7 lets get more blurry BG, but is too short for head only (makes you push the camera in subjects face).

For Head+torso/shoulders i'd say 50, for head only - 70 or even more (85...100). Also depends if shooting indoors/outdoors.
07-17-2011, 03:40 PM   #6
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What focal length do you think you would want? There is a big difference between 50mm and 70mm. DA 70 is considerably smaller, has all metal construction, is screw driven and is a stop and half slower than the Sigma. Other than that, they are really about the same.

For newspaper stuff, 70mm might work better (thinking street photography). For in door stuff, truthfully, even 50mm would be a bit too long. Might consider a DA 35 to go with that if you don't have something in that focal length.
07-17-2011, 04:15 PM   #7
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I would go with the Sigma.... Actually, I did go with the Sigma. It is a great lens on an APS-C body. Very sharp at f/2 and great contrast and bokeh.

I personally think there is enough difference to justify having a 50mm, 70mm, & 85mm. If I stay with Pentax I will probably go with the 31mm LTD, 50mm Sigma, 70mm DA, 85mm Sigma, 135mm Sigma (rumored), 150mm Sigma macro, & DA* 200mm.

07-17-2011, 04:24 PM   #8
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These are on the higher end of my price range, but I do believe that the Sigma 50 is a little sharper than the 70.

What is the avg price of a DA* 55mm anyone?
07-17-2011, 04:27 PM   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by hcc Quote
You may need to ask yourself a few questions:
- do you shoot in low light? do you need f1.4 ?
- do you need AF?
- what is your budget?

There are many other lenses that you could suit you, but it is difficult to answer without more specifics.
Budget is 600 and below. No more than that!

I would LOVE to have Af, but I can do without if necessary.

f1.4 would be great because I do have some concerts and such
07-17-2011, 05:35 PM   #10
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I'd go with the DA70 if that focal length is what you need. If you haven't already done so have a read of the photozone review of the lens, it's one of the very few Pentax lenses that gets a "highly recommended".
07-17-2011, 05:47 PM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by nick52 Quote
These are on the higher end of my price range, but I do believe that the Sigma 50 is a little sharper than the 70.

What is the avg price of a DA* 55mm anyone?
$200.00 more than the Sigma.
07-17-2011, 05:58 PM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by nick52 Quote
but I do believe that the Sigma 50 is a little sharper than the 70.
I find that hard to believe to be honest, the DA70 is one of the sharpest pentax lenses available, unfortunately though photozone.de hasn't tested the Sigma to compare directly....
07-17-2011, 06:04 PM   #13
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One of the old Rikenons or Helios lenses for portrait, Color and tonal rendition is much more important than sharpness. The worst thing you can do is have every little defect in someones skin show up like a magnifying glass !
07-17-2011, 06:15 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by twitch Quote
I find that hard to believe to be honest, the DA70 is one of the sharpest pentax lenses available, unfortunately though photozone.de hasn't tested the Sigma to compare directly....
At f/2.4 you are not going to see any difference between the two lenses. Obviously the Sigma is better at f/1.4 - F/2.4 and it has less vignetting and a faster AF. Since there is 20mm difference between the two it is hard to really compare apples to apples. You wont go wrong with either.

If you need wider and faster then the Sigma is the clear winner.
If you need longer and smaller then the DA 70mm is the clear winner.

Nobody is going to tell the difference in IQ between the two. Photozone has tested the Sigma on the Canon 50D, but since that is a slightly smaller sensor with a slightly lower resolution the numbers will be slightly lower.
07-17-2011, 10:24 PM   #15
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I've been using an old pentax m 50mm 1.4 for portraits and it rocks my world. Very easy to focus, just use live view and zoom all the way in. Much more difficult to capture moving targets wide open though.
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