[Don From The Radio]

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The F 50 1.7 has been mentioned more than once. I'd put it on any list as well. And the DA 70 Limited is still my favorite lens that I've ever used. The DA* 55 is also up there for me. I really wish I hadn't had to sell them all. I don't have 10, but here is my list in no particular order.

DA 70 Limited
DA* 55
F 50 1.7
Super Takumar 200mm f/4

and I'll probably catch hell for saying it, but my personal experience has been nothing but excellent with the DA* 16-50. There's a reason it was the only lens I kept when I was forced to downsize.

[slackercruster]

I made a few modifications to my previous list, in order to include a wider range of lenses of all kinds.

Here's my revised top 10 (only among the lenses I own, and in focal length order):

1. Pentax DA 10-17/3.5-4.5 FE: for all the wide end needs. I prefer fish-eyes to rectilinear ultra wide angles, because I feel their circular distortion is more acceptable than the linear elongation that happens on the borders of pictures taken with rectilinear lenses.

2. Pentax DA 18-250/3.5-6.3: the mother of all lenses. Champion for versatility and more useful than ever, now that there are DSLRs capable of delivering good quality high ISO pictures and correcting the aberrations on the spot!

3. Arax 35/2.8 Tilt/Shift: a lens that rocks and rolls! Initially designed for a short lived Ukrainian 4.5 x 6 SLR, this 35mm lens has a large coverage, allowing an impressive range of shifts ans tilts when mounted in front of an APS-C sensor.

4. Pentax DA 35/2.8 Macro Limited: we need at least one Limited here, don't we? To my taste, this is the best of the bunch: punchy colors, useful focal length, great contrast and macro icing on the cake!

5. Porst 55/1.2: a fast lens for those low light situations. Its focal length of 55mm makes it a perfect lens for portraiture on an APS-C sensor (83mm equivalent). Il's quite dreamy when used close up and wide open -- which is great for portraits -- but much sharper at a greater distance or at infinity, even at F/1.2, which makes it a great lens for low light stage shots!

6. Pentax FA 85/2.8 Soft Focus: for those pictorial shots. I love soft focus lenses and this one is a great one. Autofocus is a big plus.

7. Meyer-Optik Görlitz Trioplan 100/2.8: a fun short telephoto. Wide open it's quite dreamy with a rather unusual bokeh, but it sharpens nicely when stopped down. Good looking lens too!

8. Voigtländer 180/4: great telephoto in the pocket. A compact telephoto with superb optical quality and close focusing ability. Of course, the 125mm is a tiny bit better optically and also focuses closer, but it's much bigger and heavier too, making it a shelf queen... This 180 is my favorite landscape and nature lens!

9. Pentax F* 300/4.5: for the reach. My best telephoto and one of the most compact 300s. Works great with teleconverters too.

10. Tamron Adaptall SP 350/5.6: a mirror telephoto for doughnuts lovers. Light and compact telephoto of high optical quality. Very useful close focusing ability.

Cheers!

Abbazz

Great collection Abbazz!!!

Yes, hard to get them in some sort of order. Was not looking for that anyway. I didn't even know Pentax made a soft focus lens. There is a shift lens on ebay now...$1000.

[Abbazz]

Great collection Abbazz!!!

Yes, hard to get them in some sort of order. Was not looking for that anyway. I didn't even know Pentax made a soft focus lens. There is a shift lens on ebay now...$1000.

Thank you slackercruster. In fact, Pentax made a few soft focus lenses :

The K 85/2.2 Soft, a doublet ressembling the original Kodak Vest Pocket lens:

Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page

The F 85/2.8 Soft:

Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page

The FA 85/2.8 Soft:

Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page

And what might be the wierdest of all Pentax lenses, the FA 28/2.8 Soft -- a soft focus wide angle, for those fuzzy landscapes :

Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page

Cheers!

Abbazz

[elho_cid]

Interesting thread, first about the lenses I own and consider legendary:

DA14/2,8 - I love it's FOV, the great perspective supported by close-up capability like no other wide angle.
FA24/2 - Very sharp, I like the bokeh, the angle seems very natureal to me on cropped sensor.
FA85/1.4 - I cannot believe how often I use this lens. Much more than I expected when I bought it.
Sigma 180/3.5 - I bought it in a shelf clearing sale for quite a good price. Great macro and outstanding telephoto.
DFA50/2.8 - the sharpest
M20/4 - my favorite wide pancake

And now for lenses I had a chance to try, but I never owned:
DA55/1.4 - Probably much more practical on cropped sensor than the FA85 is. And equally sharp IMO.
DA200/2.8 - I didn't expect to like it, though I did. I'd buy it in a minute if my Sigma 180/3.5 was not so close in contrast and sharpness.
FA43 - this would stay welded to my MZ film camera..., not so exciting on digital IMO.
DA35 - both of them actually

[bilybianca]

I'd say Jim King is the only one that's really qualified to answer in this thread.
But here's my go at it. Disclaimer: I haven't tried other brands (except a few good Chinon lenses and some really awful Makinons and such). I have not by far tried all Pentax lenses, and even less been in a position to compare them. My list is based on what I have and what I'd like to have. No sophisticated bokeh comparisons between fifteen 85mm lenses and all that.

So this is my very personal top ten Pentax list

Have's:
FA 35mm f2
F 50mm f1.4
A* 85mm f1.4
A* 200mm f2.8
F* 300mm f4.5
A* 600mm f5.6

Want's and I drool over reviews':
A* 135mm f1.8
A* 200mm f4 Macro
FA* 200mm f4 Macro
DA* 10mm f2.8 rectilinear (still only materialized in my dreams)

Kjell

[mtngal]

It's fascinating to see what people consider "legendary", especially since some people think some of the lenses I have are "legendary" where I've always thought of them as "very good".

The lenses I have (or have used) and consider legendary in any sense of the word:

FA31 Ltd
FA77 Ltd

Lenses I own and think are either very close to legendary or will be considered legendary in the future:

DA*50-135
DA*300 (can understand why some consider the A*300 legendary because of its size and weight, though mine is just slightly below the DA in quality)

Lenses I have (or had) that are legendary to me but will probably never reach legendary status generally:

DA*200
F 70-210

Lens I've used, don't have, but think has the potential to become legendary:

DFA 100 Macro WR

Two lenses I've seen more than once here, that I own, like very much, but don't think are legendary:

Vivitar Series One 105 Macro - undoubtedly a very capable macro lens, I love mine and understand it's cult following. However, I don't put it in the legendary category.

K24 f2.8 - I must not "get" this lens. There's nothing at all wrong with mine but I've never thought it was more than just very nice. I wasn't much of a wide-angle person when shooting film, so I only used it a couple of times after I bought it new. I've used it more often since I got a digital camera, but still don't think it has that extra something I see with the two FA limited lenses, and what I think I'd see with most of the Zeiss lenses that would put it on the legendary list. I still own this lens and have no intention of selling it since it is small and easy to store away if I'm not using it.

I have other, well-loved, very good lenses, but wouldn't put any of them into the legendary category.

[isaacc7]

I think a lot of the Vivitar series 1 cult grew around the performance for the price. I would put any of Pentax's macro lenses against anyone out there. The 100 mm f4 is the I ky one I can think of that is merely decent, the rest are top performers. There were a handful of series me lenses that were very good for the money, I don't think I'd ever put them into the legendary status though. Does anyone know who made them? Vivitar was notorious for not making anything themselves with the possible exception of their flashes and I'm not even sure about those.

I've always been a sucker for "normal" lenses and on 35mm that usually ment 50mm. The 50mm f1.4 was what got me into Pentax. Would love to have tried out the 43mm on a film camera. I think the 35mm macro will be my next Pentax lens unless the new mystery lens is. 28mm,that would probably be an ideal normal. Probably a little early to put it into the legend category just yet I suppose

[rvannatta]

Regarding the K-15, I personally did not find it very good, The DA15 is simply better in my opinion.

I haven't regarded a 'legend' to necessarily be the best lens on the planet. ---- I see it as one that people 'oooh and Ahhhh' about and pay fancy prices for on the second hand market. I think the fact that it creates a stampede supports the conclusion that is is legandary.

to me the DA*300 is a perfect example of a 'non-legend'. It is a completely competent lense of good quality, but that is the problem.
It's a good piece of pipe, with good black paint on it with good glass in it. It is exactly what you expect of a good quality 300mm lens, no less
but likewise no more. A Mercedes 4 door Sedan perhaps, but no Bugatti.

[Ikarus]

I think a lot of the Vivitar series 1 cult grew around the performance for the price. [..] Does anyone know who made them?

Yes, we do!

[NaClH2O]

Since everybody else has their list I'll put out mine. All of these lenses I own, or have owned except for the *200 Macro.

In no particular order
The three amigos: FA ltd 31, 43, and 77
FA 20mm F2.8
K 135 F2.5
K 50mm F1.2
FA*/A* 200mm macro
DA 100mm macro WR

there are others that have achieved cult status but I'm not sure about "legendary".

NaCl(the only lens I'm still lusting over is the A*/FA* 200 macro)H2O

[Ikarus]

I haven't regarded a 'legend' to necessarily be the best lens on the planet. ---- I see it as one that people 'oooh and Ahhhh' about and pay fancy prices for on the second hand market. I think the fact that it creates a stampede supports the conclusion that is is legandary.

I fully agree. Any lens that has a handful of copies available on E*ay at any point in time, or is even still available new, does not qualify in my book. It has to be rare, it has to have unique qualities, and people must be ready to pay top dollar for a used specimen, even if it has some blemishes or defects. According to this definition, I don't own a single lens that qualifies (and I own a few, some mentioned in this thread). An example for one that certainly does, is the Pentax-A* 85mm f/1.4, which I would love to get my hands on, but then again, who wouldn't?

[Col]

I fully agree. Any lens that has a handful of copies available on E*ay at any point in time, or is even still available new, does not qualify in my book. It has to be rare, it has to have unique qualities, and people must be ready to pay top dollar for a used specimen, even if it has some blemishes or defects. According to this definition, I don't own a single lens that qualifies (and I own a few, some mentioned in this thread). An example for one that certainly does, is the Pentax-A* 85mm f/1.4, which I would love to get my hands on, but then again, who wouldn't?

Oh dear, then the A* 85 f1.4 doesn't qualify as its available for less then $1,600 on E*bay as you write
eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace

[Ikarus]

Oh dear, then the A* 85 f1.4 doesn't qualify as its available for less then $1,600 on E*bay as you write
eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace

Yeah, I saw that. That's one, hardly a handful of them, and I don't think anyone would disagree that this is an insane amount of money for a used lens with easily visible dust inside. Clearly, a true legend!

[Col]

Yeah, I saw that. That's one, hardly a handful of them, and I don't think anyone would disagree that this is an insane amount of money for a used lens with easily visible dust inside. Clearly, a true legend!

Yes especially as there's 2 FA* versions for half the price... hmmm... and I've not bought an expensive lens for 10months now... every day I'm getting stronger and stronger.

[stevebrot]

Only one legend:

• Pentax-FA 77/1.8 Limited

...and a ton of cult classics!

• Pentax-FA 35/2
• LZOS MC Jupiter-9 85/2
• KMZ MC Zenitar 16/2.8 Fisheye
• KMZ Helios-44M 58/2
• Vivitar 28/2.8 CF
• .
• .
• .

Steve