Originally posted by rparmar Through this varied life of ours there're very few things one can hold onto as consistent and true.
No-one's ever going to find a better lens than the FA31.
I think that's one.
I've owned the FA 31 for quite some time, and it's one of my favorite lenses, but it's far from perfect. There are plenty of obvious ways it can be improved.
For instance, mechanically it would really benefit by adding Quick Shift, better AF and a better designed hood (preferably removeable, or at least retractable). Optically, it has a fair bit of purple fringing and longitudinal CA ("bokeh fringing"), which become pretty obvious when shooting wide open (necessary for shallow DOF) in high contrast conditions, even when viewed at normal sizes. In all these ways the Sigma 35 has a distinct advantage over the FA 31.
If Pentax could address these issues I mentioned, and add WR, making a DFA 31, that would make it a near-perfect lens. Oh and release a FF camera to mount it on.