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02-10-2017, 07:00 AM   #1
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DFA 28-105 - worth the purchase?

Thinking of getting a smaller walk around lens for travel after my recent trip to NYC) had to carry around a bag of lenses, including a 70-200 Tamron. Started to think of maybe getting the 28-105 for this kind of stuff, but not sure how it is optically? The in depth review here seems pretty positive, but some of the user reviews say otherwise. If anyone has this lens - what do you think about it? Is it sharp enough for a travel 1 lens kit (with maybe another faster prime for portraits or low light), or i should save up for 24-70? I understand that it's heavier, but carrying one lens instead of a whole bag would still be nice.

Thanks!

02-10-2017, 07:37 AM   #2
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I have been very pleased with mine. My 3 lenses for the K1 are the 28-105, FA77, and a wide-angle prime when it comes out (soon I hope). I have been impressed with the sharpness, and have even used it too take "macro" shots from a distance followed by heavy cropping. The lens is even on sale now - $100 less than I paid for it.
02-10-2017, 07:46 AM   #3
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Wasn't happy with my K-1 until I bought it.

From the series this image was part of


A pixel peeper

A tree branch pixel peeper


There's nothing wrong with this lens.
And just to cut off any excuses, this was hand held, so not even shot under optimal conditions.

I leave it to those who had complaints to show me they understand what went wrong for them. I'm betting it wasn't the lens. Although with any lens, some people are going to get bad copies, so that isn't entirely definitive.

Last edited by normhead; 02-10-2017 at 07:52 AM.
02-10-2017, 08:02 AM   #4
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My experience as an owner of the 28-105 but not the 24-70:

I think that the 28-105 is a great lens, it's weight and size is certainly well-balanced against the K1. Not as light as a prime of course, but fairly good. I find it has good autofocus for the K1, and really nice dynamic range - it manages to bring out a lot of colour, even in quite flat light situations.

It's downside is going to be that it's not a great lens for shooting indoors or in situations where the light is a little dim (unless you've got a tripod etc) This is especially the case for portaitsm and it's certainly more pronounced if you want to use it the longer focal lengths where minimum A is 5.6. This has been an issue for me at times, and I've had to use my 31mm ltd or similar in low light situations. In short, I would 100% recommend this lens as the default K1 walkabout, paired with a faster prime that can fit in your back-pocket. Together their weight and bulk will certainly be less than the 24-70mm

02-10-2017, 08:04 AM   #5
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So far so good) I guess it's a worthy lens to get, it's seems pretty light and compact for its range, and if sharpness is good I'd be happy to take it to any travel. I'm thinking to sell my smc 50 1.8 as soon as I get a zoom to walk around with, honestly my helios 44k-4 does better job wide open, and if I'm closing the aperture I'm hoping the zoom would do as good of a job.
02-10-2017, 08:05 AM   #6
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My 28-105 has fantastic image quality. Images have good sharpness, color, and contrast. It's a wonderful walkaround lens.

I wish the lens went to 24mm on the wide end, but I suppose that would have sacrificed compactness or some other quality.
02-10-2017, 08:09 AM   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by awscreo Quote
So far so good) I guess it's a worthy lens to get, it's seems pretty light and compact for its range, and if sharpness is good I'd be happy to take it to any travel. I'm thinking to sell my smc 50 1.8 as soon as I get a zoom to walk around with, honestly my helios 44k-4 does better job wide open, and if I'm closing the aperture I'm hoping the zoom would do as good of a job.
I always take my FA 50 1.7 to dark places. And I use my Sigma 70 2.8 for portraits. This lens doesn't replace either of those. My compromise lens is the FA 50 macro 2.8, which I will use as an all purpose does everything prime, and which I also often use as a walk around lens.


Last edited by normhead; 02-10-2017 at 08:40 AM.
02-10-2017, 08:10 AM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by Dericali Quote
My experience as an owner of the 28-105 but not the 24-70:

I think that the 28-105 is a great lens, it's weight and size is certainly well-balanced against the K1. Not as light as a prime of course, but fairly good. I find it has good autofocus for the K1, and really nice dynamic range - it manages to bring out a lot of colour, even in quite flat light situations.

It's downside is going to be that it's not a great lens for shooting indoors or in situations where the light is a little dim (unless you've got a tripod etc) This is especially the case for portaitsm and it's certainly more pronounced if you want to use it the longer focal lengths where minimum A is 5.6. This has been an issue for me at times, and I've had to use my 31mm ltd or similar in low light situations. In short, I would 100% recommend this lens as the default K1 walkabout, paired with a faster prime that can fit in your back-pocket. Together their weight and bulk will certainly be less than the 24-70mm
Yeah, that's how I intended to use it - paired with a faster prime for portraits or low light, hopefully Pentax will drop a 50 1.4 soon enough to round up my lens selection
02-10-2017, 08:17 AM   #9
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I think its impossible to beat at the current sale price ($399 at B&H ). Definitely my favorite lens on the K-1. The image quality is excellent, just need to compensate for the slower aperture and visible vignetting.

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02-10-2017, 08:19 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Adam Quote
I think its impossible to beat at the current sale price ($399 at B&H ). Definitely my favorite lens on the K-1. The image quality is excellent, just need to compensate for the slower aperture and visible vignetting.
$399 is a steal. The 28-105 has some limits, but within those limits it's a star performer!
02-10-2017, 08:22 AM   #11
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Odd, just read two reviews with completely different opinions on edge sharpness ephotozine says edge and center are almost identical in sharpness, while pc magazine (I know it's not the best photo resource, just something I came across in research) shows much weaker edge performance. Had anyone had any edge softness issues?

---------- Post added 02-10-17 at 09:24 AM ----------

Yeah it's 399$ in all major stores. Good timing i guess) I'm probably going to grab one today, just doing some last minute research
02-10-2017, 08:45 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by awscreo Quote
Odd, just read two reviews with completely different opinions on edge sharpness ephotozine says edge and center are almost identical in sharpness, while pc magazine (I know it's not the best photo resource, just something I came across in research) shows much weaker edge performance. Had anyone had any edge softness issues?

---------- Post added 02-10-17 at 09:24 AM ----------

Yeah it's 399$ in all major stores. Good timing i guess) I'm probably going to grab one today, just doing some last minute research
Lucky you. By the time I had a filter etc. mine was $800 Canadian, and I waited for 3 months for the price to go down, and finally gave up.
02-10-2017, 08:52 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by normhead Quote
Lucky you. By the time I had a filter etc. mine was $800 Canadian, and I waited for 3 months for the price to go down, and finally gave up.
Yup, universe seems to love me, gave me discounts just in time for birthday)

A thought - would a 28-75 2.8 Tamron be a worthy alternative? Price wise it's very close and it's 2.8

I do want to try the DFA focusing, just to see what a modern lens is capable of though. And weather sealing seems an awesome added value.. As always, my mind is racing before new purchase, decisions decisions
02-10-2017, 08:52 AM   #14
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Excellent quality, IMHO. Best bang for the buck. With the K-1, a 2.8 lens is not necessarily a requirement.
02-10-2017, 09:01 AM   #15
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