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08-29-2011, 06:30 PM   #16
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I myself love 50mm on APS-C for portrait, and any f1,4 / f1,7 50 from Pentax will be excellent. Most people are likely to recommend the 77mm, some might choose the 70mm. I have also had luck with a 135mm lens for candid portraits, the K135 f2,5 comes to mind as a good choice.

08-29-2011, 06:38 PM   #17
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Only ever tried Pentax lenses, but to me portraiture is best captured by the FA 77 (head+shoulders), FA 43 (half-body) and FA 31 (three-quarter to full body). If you were to pick one, I would pick the FA 77, but the FA 43 comes in very closely behind it.
08-29-2011, 07:05 PM   #18
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probably the DA* 55mm f1.4
08-29-2011, 07:14 PM   #19
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As a reasonably cheap left of field choice, Leica 90/2 or 60/2.8 are very good portrait lenses because they render the skin tones beautifully and have oodles of microcontrast and that 3d feeling. As for the best of all time, probably the Leica M 75mm would be close to the top of most lists. Pentax would be 85/1.4 and 77/1.8, probably not too different to the Leica 75mm.


Last edited by DanielT74; 08-29-2011 at 07:28 PM.
08-29-2011, 08:00 PM   #20
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If 58mm is your focal length of choice, and manual focus is your preference--I can recommend the Voigtlander Nokton 58mm f/1.4

Comes in PK/A mount and is relatively inexpensive compared to the other choices mention so far. A lovely lens.
08-29-2011, 09:31 PM   #21
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QuoteOriginally posted by Designosophy Quote
What's your budget?
Gee, I would love to say price is no object... but I would hesitate to spend more than the price of the body, especially for an APS-C limited lens...

Having said that, when I do invest, it will be a work tool for a long time - so I am not shy about spending money either.
08-29-2011, 09:53 PM   #22
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Then I'd consider the FA 85 f/1.4 as already mentioned - if you don't mind the added size.
Otherwise, the FA 77 ticks all the boxes (other than being f/1.4).

08-29-2011, 10:33 PM   #23
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DA*55 f/1.4 and FA77 f/1.8 are two of the best Pentax portrait lenses currently in production.

Or FA*85 f.1.4 and A*85 f/1.4 are also another two of the best portrait lenses but not in production and can be hard to find and fetch big prices.
08-30-2011, 12:29 AM   #24
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QuoteOriginally posted by ronpyke Quote
Gee, I would love to say price is no object... but I would hesitate to spend more than the price of the body, especially for an APS-C limited lens...

Having said that, when I do invest, it will be a work tool for a long time - so I am not shy about spending money either.
In this case, you are on the path to heaven. Pentax offers the best AF primes collection around. I'm not an AF guy, but if I'm about to go AF and have no mortgage to worry, I'd go with the FA 50mm F1.7 for appetizer, before really going into the stars

Cheers!
08-30-2011, 03:11 AM   #25
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FA43 - not really a portrait lens.....but i really like portraits done with it more than with genuine portrait lenses. But that's personal taste i suppose...
08-30-2011, 06:04 AM   #26
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QuoteOriginally posted by vrrattko Quote
FA43 - not really a portrait lens.....but i really like portraits done with it more than with genuine portrait lenses. But that's personal taste i suppose...
I'm inclined to agree. The focal length and speed work well to create a good comprimise between working distance and subject isolation. And of course it has amazing image characteristics.
08-30-2011, 07:04 AM   #27
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Before you discount this russian beauty, keep in mind that it is very easy to adjust the infinity on this lens by about 0.8 mm. (by taking the front ring off and loosening the adjusting screws underneath while adjusting for proper infinity).

This means that it can be used with the flanged ebay m42->pentax adapters while mounting and locking like a normal pentax lens while retaining the ability to focus to infinity. This procedure also makes them work on Nikon bodies with plain m42->F mount adapters.

This is a DIY, and due to the low price of the Helios you can afford to try a few of them before you succeed.

Look at the following link for more info, or google "helios infinity adjust":

Helios 44-2 adapted to Nikon F - No-glass adapter and infinity focus (Page 1) - Maintenance & Repairs - Manual Focus Forum

If you are looking for a cheaper alternative to the lenses other members posted, I would recommend the following (rough used prices listed beside):
- Pentax-K 55mm f1.8 ~$75
- Pentax-M 50mm f1.4 ~$120
- Pentax-A 50mm f1.4 ~$180
- Pentax-K 85mm f1.8 ~$400
- Pentax-DA 70mm f2.4 ~$450

Cheers.

QuoteOriginally posted by ronpyke Quote
I am a relatively new Pentax user and I need some advice on which portrait lens is the best in Pentax history...

I am a prime user and I most often have a manual focus lens on the front of my K-5 (M42, M, K...), but, my favourite portrait lens is a Helios 44 (58mm). Unfortunately, this Russian beauty mounts upside down and won't quite make infinity. I am used to using this quirky little devil, but I have a quite important assignment coming up and I was just wondering if there might be a little easier lens in the Pentax world...

I should say that I am an experienced photographer, but way inexperienced with Pentax glass.

Any suggestions?

Last edited by photocanadian; 08-30-2011 at 07:10 AM.
08-30-2011, 10:57 AM   #28
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vw_michael: Wow! Thanks for that... I may well give it a try!

In the mean time, I do have an SMC-M 50mm f1.7 and I will give that a serious work out just to see if the answer has been lurking in the bottom of my camera bag all along...
08-30-2011, 06:42 PM   #29
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QuoteOriginally posted by ronpyke Quote
vw_michael: Wow! Thanks for that... I may well give it a try!

In the mean time, I do have an SMC-M 50mm f1.7 and I will give that a serious work out just to see if the answer has been lurking in the bottom of my camera bag all along...
You're welcome.

That may very well be an excellent lens to get you started - you can shoot it wide-open at f1.7 in the Av mode (without having to use the green button to meter like in the M-mode) for a nice bokeh and thin depth-of-field. It is also quite sharp at that aperture but not too sharp.

I also really liked the old Takumar 105mm/f2.8 (sub-$100, needs an adapter) and Pentax-K 135mm/f3.5 (~$50) for portraits when I had no other lenses - a little more challenging due to the separation from your subject, but I got some fine upper torso and head shots with it, wide open. The bokeh was not as nice as the 50/55/77/85 lenses, but those taught me how to use longer focal lengths a little and how to choose "calmer" backgrounds.
Enjoy ...

Last edited by photocanadian; 08-30-2011 at 06:57 PM.
08-31-2011, 12:55 AM - 1 Like   #30
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The best lens is the lens you use. The worst is the lens you don't use. The best portrait lens is whatever you are using for portraits -- depending on how you define 'portrait'. Portraiture is about portraying a persona, not just framing a face photographically.

And the lens is less important than *how* you use it, and where. I shoot 'portraits' at focal lengths between 10-500mm, at distances between 30cm-50m, depending. Shooting portraits at a Mafiya funeral, I'd use a 1000mm mirror from about 200m away, thanks!

Formal headshots: I prefer a Schneider Comporon 75/4.5 on extension, or a Jupiter-11 or Nikkor 85/2. For 3/4 body shots, FA50/1.4 or Petri CC 55/1.8. Context shots: Zenitar 16/2.8 or Kiron 24/2. For couples, the SuperTak 35/3.5. For just eyes, the SuperTak 135/3.5.

And for a general portrait-people zoom, an old M42 Sears-Tokina 55-135/3.5 can't be beat. But what's the best portrait lens ever? It's like when a medic asks me, "Are you allergic to any drugs?" My answer: I dunno, I haven't tried them all yet. Your mileage may vary.
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