Of all the lenses that I considered keepers in the past, I have sold about 3/4 of them so I dont feel qualified to this task. One thing that surprises me is to see at least one lens among somebody's keepers that I couldnt buy to that somebody cos I hadnt got money at that time .

Maybe if I had one of the new zeiss 85 f1,4 or 100 f2 macro, a 31 or 77limited or a voigtlander 125 macro I would consider them keepers cos they are money in the bank and they can only increase their value. I predict that the voigtlander will cost twice the money it costs now in 3-5 years.

[eurostar]

I wouldn't part with my Hartblei Super-rotator 120/2,8 T&S, used with Nikon diopters for close up is excellent, with a smooth bokeh I simply love.

[madisonphotogrl]

If you are giving me a choice about how many I can keep; then all of the lenses in my sig.
If I can only choose 1; my M 85 f/2.

where did you obtain that lens?

[azcavalier]

Where do you guys even find these Zeiss lenses? I have never seen one in person, and I can never seem to find them on any of the internet stores. When I do a Google search, I get lots of links to forum discussions, and even a release by Adorama saying that they have been released, but yet Adorama doesn't sell them on their site...

But i'm out of the market anyway. I just coughed up the $$$ for the DA* 50-135, and it should be here Friday! So, that's enough lenses for me for a while.

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Last edited by azcavalier; 04-02-2008 at 07:28 AM.

[aegisphan]

BH carries some of them. If you want to get the entire line, I guess eBay would be the only place. Since these are manual focus lenses, coupling with the Zeiss tag, they're not the hot sellers to be widely stocked.

[NaClH2O]

My "for now" keepers. If my shooting habits change, or if for some reason (someone gives me a million dollars to switch to Canikon) I change systems, this list might change. But for now I won't part with them.

Pentax K50mm F1.2
Pentax K135mm F2.5
Zenitar 16mm F2.8 fish eye
Tamron 90mm F2.8 macro
Pentax FA77mm F1.7 ltd
Pentax DA 12-24mm F4.0

Many of my other lenses I like a lot, but if something else better comes along I would replace it if possible. The above lenses would require a gun to the head to get me to part with them.

NaCl(what never? no never!)H2O

[jsherman999]

where did you obtain that lens?

There's an SMC-M 85 f/2 used at Adorama right now ---> Lenses




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[Ash]

Can somebody please explain why the Voigtlanders are so special to a lot of you?
Is it bokeh? Build quality? The exotic name?
(Sorry for the ignorance...)

[JJJPhoto]

Can somebody please explain why the Voigtlanders are so special to a lot of you?
Is it bokeh? Build quality? The exotic name?
(Sorry for the ignorance...)

The Voigtlander SL 125/2.5 is an amazing lens ... but the reason I think it's so popular here is because Pentax hasn't gotten off their rear ends and built a good DA 120mm or 135mm Limited prime.

If Pentax engineers wake up and release a high quality DA 120mm Limited or DA 135mm Limited with an 2.5 or 2.8 aperture then I think a lot of people who currently own the Voigtlander SL 125/2.5 will sell that lens and buy the Pentax lens.

Please listen to us, Pentax! This is like the third or forth time this subject has come up in a different thread in the last week.

Can somebody please explain why the Voigtlanders are so special to a lot of you?
Is it bokeh? Build quality? The exotic name?
(Sorry for the ignorance...)

German names are exotic and tend to create the feeling of quality items Imaging yourself driving a voigtlander lanthar convertible and compare that feeling to the one you would have driving a Sigma APO ex.

[aegisphan]

Can somebody please explain why the Voigtlanders are so special to a lot of you?
Is it bokeh? Build quality? The exotic name?
(Sorry for the ignorance...)

For my macro, the Voigtlander is the sharpest among the macros that I've tested/used. I like the color rendition too. And with the APO elements, the CA control capability of this lens is amazing. What really makes this lens special for me is the focal length. I believe 100ish macro is the most versatile focal for most macro works. Personally, I've not used this lens for any other purposes beside macro.

To be honest, I don't like the lens's form factor at all, but that's just a minor factor. The name is certainly cool, but I prefer Zeiss better.

For macro, this would be the go to lens for me. But for other shooting, I would pick up my FA* or the 31LTD instead, since 125mm is quite long for my shooting style at the moment.

[Buddha Jones]

DA*'s and every VIV S1 I own.

My Tammy's are on their way out.

[RBellavance]

"Forever" is a long time... Let's just say that among my current lenses, I consider the Vivitar Series 1 105mm f/2.5 macro irreplaceable. The FA 35mm f/2.0 AL is just behind (it *is* still available new, but pretty hard to find).

[jsherman999]

Can somebody please explain why the Voigtlanders are so special to a lot of you?
Is it bokeh? Build quality? The exotic name?
(Sorry for the ignorance...)

In my case, the Voigtlander 180 is simply sharper than anything else I've used in the 200mm range. It's sharper than my Tamron 18-250, sharper than the DA 50-200 I used to own. My M 200 f/4 was almost as sharp, but had slightly more CA issues. The Voit has almost no CA/fringing.

The bokah is near-perfect, and I can focus it very precisely, it's dampened quite a bit.

Then there's the tactile goodness of a quality 'limited-like' metal lens, and of course, the race-car name

Plus - it was only $375 - IQ-to-buck ratio is way up there.


Here are some shots from the 180 - keep in mind that these are walkaround handheld jpegs shot mostly with a K100D, minimal PP - the Voit makes sharp "easy"

---> Picasa Web Albums - Jay - voigtlander_1...




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[Magnus W]

I have a K85/1.8 that I won't sell until I can afford a 77/1.8.
I have a K28/3.5 that I won't sell until I can afford a 31/1.8.
I have a K135/2.5 that I won't sell until Pentax make a good, fast 135.
I have a K18/3.5 that I won't sell.

-- MW