[q10]

Staff note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means Pentax Forums may earn a small commission if a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. If you would like to support the forum directly, you may also make a donation here.

---

so, according to rumor, pentax has made a few 28mm f/2 lenses over the years. on paper, this sounds like a pretty interesting proposition as a normal lens for an APS-C DSLR, since you get a quite respectable aperture and a focal length quite close to the sensor diagonal. the A and M incarnations (which appear to share the same optical formula, which is in turn different from that of the K variety) are also characterized as being fairly lightweight and compact.

i have, however, been able to find no information on the actual performance of these lenses or on their price, and relatively little on how hard they are to find (just a general "not common but not once-in-a-lifetime collectibles" impression). does anybody out there have experience buying, selling, or (most importantly) using either the A or the M version?

there are, after all, a number of other fairly well-regarded options in the world of lenses in this focal length range for Pentax, both premium (Pentax FA31, Zeiss 35 and 28), and budget (Pentax FA35, Sigma 28), so the competition in both price and performance is substantial (although the competition in portability is more limited).

[architorture]

First Post!

I have no personal experience with these lenses, but the information i could find, in case you missed it:

Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page notes that the A version comes up several times a year while the M one several times a month.

Stans Pentax comments site only has a couple of comments, but they're quite favorable.

The two reviews of the original k-version on this site are very good - both 9's, but that's a different lens than the A/M ones.

J. L. Colwell's lens price database has the K-version going for anywhere from $279-800!

and there's a k-version on ebay selling for ~130 australian dollars right now with 3days 9hours left


I hope some of that is helpful
--

[GaryML]

... pentax has made a few 28mm f/2 lenses over the years.

... does anybody out there have experience buying, selling, or (most importantly) using either the A or the M version?

I have the SMC-A 28mm f/2 lens and I like it a lot. You can read my comments on this thread (my very first post on Pentax Forums from November 2006):

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/1024-anyone-using-a28-2-a.html

[Abbazz]

so, according to rumor, pentax has made a few 28mm f/2 lenses over the years. on paper, this sounds like a pretty interesting proposition as a normal lens for an APS-C DSLR, since you get a quite respectable aperture and a focal length quite close to the sensor diagonal. the A and M incarnations (which appear to share the same optical formula, which is in turn different from that of the K variety) are also characterized as being fairly lightweight and compact.

i have, however, been able to find no information on the actual performance of these lenses or on their price, and relatively little on how hard they are to find (just a general "not common but not once-in-a-lifetime collectibles" impression). does anybody out there have experience buying, selling, or (most importantly) using either the A or the M version?

One of the most interesting Pentax lens is the rare and expensive SMC Pentax-K 28/2:

Picture linked from Marco Cavina's website

This lens began its life when the Carl Zeiss Optical company was triying to recover from the demise of Zeiss Ikon. At that time, Zeiss had signed a cooperation agreement with Pentax, hoping that the Japanese camera maker would provide the cameras to mount the superb Zeiss lenses designed for the defunct Contarex SLRs. Zeiss helped Pentax design the K bayonet mount and provided the knowhow for two revolutionary lenses: the 15/3.5 super wide and the 28/2 fast wide. Then the two companies canceled their agreement and Zeiss partnered with Yashica, but this is another story.

The 28/2 was later released by Zeiss in Contax mount:

Picture linked from Marco Cavina's website

The later Pentax M and A lenses were different designs and have nothing to do with Zeiss.

Cheers!

Abbazz

[Abbazz]

In my previous post, I said that the SMC Pentax 28/2 lens was rare and expensive. In fact, it is indeed rare, but it's not so expensive, considering the fact that the new Zeiss ZK 28/2 lens -- which is basically the same lens -- sells for $1000...

Cheers!

Abbazz