[Vertex Ninja]

I've been really busy lately and haven't taken many pictures . But with the holidays coming up, I new I wanted a relatively fast auto focus lens for my sons first Christmas. I already have a A50 1.7(which is great), but felt I needed something a hair wider for indoor shots, plus it's manual focus. I heard the FA35 was a great lens and sharp wide open... well, I took the plunge and couldn't be happier!!!

Here are some test shots from around the house the first few hours with it. I just wanted to test it's sharpness wide open and see how it rendered out of focus areas. I also had to take some photos of the little guy, as I'm sure he'll spend a lot of time in front of it!

All K10D FA35 f/2 AL
Imported into Lightroom, resized for the web, and exported. I also adjusted the white balance on a few.

Yeah not too exciting, but it sure is buttery!


My wife sure was impressed at it's ability to render cobwebs and dust !


Surprised at the sharpness of this one considering it's hand held, wide open, and ISO800.










I consider the sharpness and contrast equal or better than the A50 1.7. It's gonna stay on my camera for some time to come.

What do you guys(and Girls) think of this lens? Got some pics to share?

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Last edited by Vertex Ninja; 12-17-2007 at 01:34 PM.

[egordon99]

That last shot is great!

I too have the FA 35mm f/2.0, and it's great lens. Need to use it more, as my Tamron 28-75mm and DA* 50-135mm have been getting most of my attention lately...

[Vertex Ninja]

egordon99:

Ha ha thanks. He sure does like his bubbles!

I'm soon to have a love affair with the 50-135 myself... well I hope, it's next on my list. Very cute dog, is that wide open?

[egordon99]

Don't remember what f-stop, EXIF should be intact, I can check when I get home.

This one was at f/4.5 -


I think you'll LOVE the 50-135mm, it really is a great piece of glass.

[RBellavance]

Very nice shots ! I absolutely love my FA35/2 as well.


K10D + Pentax-FA 35mm f/2.0 AL
f/2.0, 1/50s, ISO400

[igowerf]

I would love mine more if it didn't backfocus so horribly.

[Vertex Ninja]

Great pics everyone, keep them coming. Has anyone had the pleasure to compare this lens to the awesome 31 ltd.? I know the limited has great build quality and 9 blades, but I'm curious to see how different the images turn out.

RBellavance: Thanks for reminding me how sleepy I was. I'm supposed to be working you know?

igowerf: Bummer your lens back-focuses. I was worried mine did the same, but after testing with a chart and tripod and spending more time with it, I realized I was rocking slightly forward or backward after I locked on focus. My solution was to pay more attention to my posture and use af.c(especially when the subject moves). Have you sent the lens back for warranty repair?

... I think you'll LOVE the 50-135mm, it really is a great piece of glass.

Now to figure out how to justify 2 new lenses with the wife, hmmm...

[Duplo]

And to be perfectly honest, yes it did produce some great shots and is by any standard a fine lens, that said, it does not compare to the FA31ltd.
The latter has something more to it, I never tested them face to face, but I just got more from the 31 in ways of keepers than I ever did from the 35.

Being real nitpicky I would say it lacks "soul" compared to the 31.
Something in its out of focus renderings that I never got quite along with too(Click here to see an extreme example), but it is all very personal. and I even prefer the 43 rendering wise over the 31, but then again easily the 31 over the 35.

A few 35 samples where it actually did good:

[creampuff]

Comparing FA35 vs FA 31 Ltd is really an apples vs oranges comparison. The latter has an aspherical front element which accounts for the image quality and also the stellar price it commands. For the price, the FA35 performs quite well.

[Flaco]

Damn Iwant this lens.

[jbcampbell]

Those are great images... I love the last one of the little guy in the sink. Not only is his expression priceless but the image is technically great as well. Was that all available light or wee you using a flash?
I just got the 31 F1.8 limited & I can't wait to try it out.

Cheers.

[vievetrick]

All very nice !!! If only I had unlimited funs to buy all the limiteds

[Vertex Ninja]

All very nice !!! If only I had unlimited funs to buy all the limiteds

Me too!

I'm envious of all the people that have limiteds. For the money the 35 is a steal, it just doesn't have quite the allure of those metal beauties.

[Vertex Ninja]

jbcampbell:
I used a flash for fill on the Cow thingy and the photos of my son. All the oterh images are available light. I have a sto-fen diffuser on the 360 flash and I point it up at the ceiling or slightly angled. I probably could have got away with ISO100 on those shots, but I had auto ISO on and the camera thought I needed 400.

BTW, I'm jealous of all the great glass you have in your signature!

Duplo:
Thanks for the comparison. You've got some great images on your site. If I had to choose I'd say I like your 77 gallery the most. That lens has always been on my list, but unfortunately I can never justify it's purchase.

[alib99]

My most used lens.
Lowlight capability, small size, fast focus, sharp, normal FOV, reasonable price.
What can a lens provide more than this?