[leekil]

Regarding the PCMag reviews, I was surprised that the FA43 had such high resolution, I thought it was moderate, but those values seemed to be at the top of the range.

Also, I thougth they should have cited the apertures used for the sample photos.

[clackers]

You can see from these old tests it's not very sharp wide open, but when you stop it down, it's as good as any except the ridiculously sharp 50mm f2.8 Macro.

http://www.takinami.com/yoshihiko/photo/lens_test/pentax_normal.html

[Joshua A]

Geez it looks like I've unintentionally opened a huge can of worms here, here comes some replies by me!

I never thought I would see finding a suitable 50mm as an urgent concern.


A quick glance at your profile page and we see you have the DA 50/1.8 and M 50/1.4. It appears that the APS-C end of things is well covered at least for the interim and the same might be said for the FF, unless you might consider the arguably better M 50/1.7 or really, really need AF and/or something brand new.

Sorry my lens list on my profile is slightly out of date, since acquiring the K-1 I haven't had the DA 50/1.8 in my kit, and while the M 50/1.4 is a fantastic lens (especially coupled with my LX), it really isn't gonna cut it for reportage and event work due to its lack of AF coupled with long focus throw. Obviously eveyones mileage may vary, but it's been my experience that MF lenses on stock DSLR focusing screens can be difficult to use in the heat of the moment.

Thanks for the reply, I look forward to continued correspondence!

The obvious being stated, I just gotta ask, "What is the emergency?"

If you want a quality AF 50mm as a stop-gap until the D FA* releases, get a FA 50/1.4. It is a little better than your M 50/1.4 and harder to manual focus with the hood on, but will likely work just fine. For that matter, the D FA 28-70/2.8 already in the bag will do in a pinch.

Sorry about the sarcasm, but there is little that would nudge me towards purchase of the D FA* 50/1.4 at its projected price point and bulk. Regardless of the level of technical perfection attained, the fact is that most photographers, even the very serious and those that get paid and those who believe they should be paid, will ever see that perfection in their routine work.* I guess I just simply own and have shot with too many fast 50s and have used the focal length for too many years (many of those with a junk 50mm the really did suck), to get excited about exotic glass at the most common and pedestrian of focal lengths. Suffering angst is just way over the top.


Steve

* Most photos taken with normal lenses, even the good ones, suffer from mildly missed focus and/or camera motion. Both of these faults are traceable to lack of skill on the part of the photographer and are the frank realities of hand-held shooting. Either will very quickly negate even the best qualities of moderately-priced offerings and both are acceptable unless the subject is a sheet of postage stamps.

No need to apologise for the sarcasm, a little bit of banter on this forum is part of the appeal IMHO.

In regards to my need for a 50mm prime, I do a lot of work in low light, particularly in form of 'pub crawl' photography, and find that the 35mm doesn't quite give a tight enough FOV for my liking. As a general rule of thumb I try to keep my 'work' primes 1.5-2 stops faster than my zooms in the same range, outside of speciality lenses (Macros, 40mm "Body Cap" etc). Simply put, I'm concerned that the DA* 55/1.4 won't keep up AF wise with my other lenses, even though it does in every other characteristic fit my kit well (particularly in sharpness and WR)

On the note of focus accuracy, whilst I do agree that slight front and back focus due to photographer movement do account for sharpness loss a lot of the time, a faster AF speed along with the use of burst mode can considerably up the amount of in focus photos achieved, if you're willing to sift through the additional photos at a later date. I find with the K-1, the shutter vibrations in the 1/30-1/20th of a second range to be more of an issue in my personal use.

---------- Post added 04-30-18 at 04:17 PM ----------

DA*55 like a shot. I have the FA43 Limited too, and have had the DA40 Limited and FA50/1.4 in the past (but before the K-1 was released).

The focus speed has never been an issue, but I don't use it to shoot motorcycle racing. I would take decisive and accurate over sheer speed anytime.

Although you were let down by the release schedule of the DFA*70-200, I'm confident the DFA*50 will hit the market pretty soon too, if it can wait just a little.

Product shot, wide open



Landscape (Pixel Shift). Full size image downloadable from Flickr if you're interested (recommended ).



Pets. Tick.



Pixel level crop if you're interested in how sharp it is at f/5.6



Live music in challenging light

Thanks for the sample photos man!!! I'm gonna upgrade accounts tomorrow so I can post some samples of what I'm after in a lens!

Having the DFA* 70-200/2.8 for the last 2ish years, I've found myself more and more impressed with the AF speed, and more importantly the accuracy of the lens to focus under challenging circumstances, so now that we know Pentax can do both brisk and accurate AF, it really does make me hope for great AF down the track.

---------- Post added 04-30-18 at 04:31 PM ----------

Okay well I'm gonna give up trying to address everyone individually, but do know that I have read everyones posts and have taken some advice on board.

Pretty much what I've seen from those of you who have posted samples is that the lenses available from Pentax seems to able to produce top notch photos in the hands of capable photographers (which is no surprise, considering the most important part of a camera is the 8 inches behind it). What I want to know more is how consistently do you guys find these lenses producing excellent photos, particularly in the form of AF speed/accuracy. From the sounds of it both the DA* 55/1.4 and the FA 50/1.4 are capable lenses, and whilst waiting for the DFA* 50/1.4 will suffice for my uses, the question is now, which one to pick?

To simplify the question I boil it down into some dot points:

DA* 55/1.4 Pros:

A touch sharper

Weather Resistant

Silent and more accurate AF

FA 50/1.4 Pros:

Cheaper

No SDM motor

I'm leaning towards the FA 50/1.4, but it probably wouldn't take me much to swing either way. And no, as much as I do suffer from GAS, I don't think having two 50/1.4 makes sense when I could use that money for my next holiday

[robbiec]

For pup crawl photography, get an A50/1.2, fit an O-ME3 onto your K-1 learn to do it by hand. You'll call me every name under the sun for the first couple of gigs, then the penny will drop and you will be converted. ��

[Joshua A]

For pup crawl photography, get an A50/1.2, fit an O-ME3 onto your K-1 learn to do it by hand. You'll call me every name under the sun for the first couple of gigs, then the penny will drop and you will be converted. ��

Quick question though, IIRC, due to the combination of the Bayer colour filter and how the micro-lenses on a sensor are designed, the light gathering abilities of the f1.2 lens over a 1.4 lens isn't as drastic as one is lead to believe (no where near 1/2 a stop). If that is the case, wouldn't I just be better off with the A50/1.4 in this hypothetical situation, seeing that is cheaper, sharper and lighter?

[ZombieArmy]

Quick question though, IIRC, due to the combination of the Bayer colour filter and how the micro-lenses on a sensor are designed, the light gathering abilities of the f1.2 lens over a 1.4 lens isn't as drastic as one is lead to believe (no where near 1/2 a stop). If that is the case, wouldn't I just be better off with the A50/1.4 in this hypothetical situation, seeing that is cheaper, sharper and lighter?

A50 1.4 is cheaper and lighter, but I'd find it hard to believe that it's sharper.

[robbiec]

Quick question though, IIRC, due to the combination of the Bayer colour filter and how the micro-lenses on a sensor are designed, the light gathering abilities of the f1.2 lens over a 1.4 lens isn't as drastic as one is lead to believe (no where near 1/2 a stop). If that is the case, wouldn't I just be better off with the A50/1.4 in this hypothetical situation, seeing that is cheaper, sharper and lighter?

It is about a 1/3 of a stop. Think of it this way, an f/1.4 at f/1.4 is at its maximum and all that entails, the f/1.2 is already stopped down and ramping up, by f/2 there is a noticeable difference between the two IMO.

This is @ f/1.6 on a K-5 (seems like yesterday)


I throw up some more examples of an A50/1.2 ramping up once I get home (work restricts stuff like Photo sharing sites)

[clackers]

From the sounds of it both the DA* 55/1.4 and the FA 50/1.4 are capable lenses, and whilst waiting for the DFA* 50/1.4 will suffice for my uses, the question is now, which one to pick?

I think just buy either second hand, Joshua, use it in the meantime, and sell for not much of a difference when the DFA* 50 appears and you've saved up enough to buy it.

[Jonathan Mac]

The OP already has the DA 50/1.8. The FA 50/1.7 is an excellent suggestion except that it is hard to come by and tends to be overpriced. That being said, if I came across either that of an F 50/1.7 in reasonable condition, I would probably buy it.


Steve

I paid 165GBP for my FA 50/1.7 a few years ago and that was a pretty good deal at the time. Now the price has come down by around 25%, and I see them for sale fairly regularly just of forums, so I think they can't be hard to come by on ebay.

[leekil]

There are also the potential SDM issues on the DA55; though less frequent than on other lenses, they do exist.

[pinholecam]

Just get FA50/1.4

No SDM issues
Cheaper
Unlikely price will drop
Small for an AF 50/1.4

[stevebrot]

I paid 165GBP for my FA 50/1.7 a few years ago and that was a pretty good deal at the time. Now the price has come down by around 25%, and I see them for sale fairly regularly just of forums, so I think they can't be hard to come by on ebay.

Yes, there are a fair number of eBay listings today, though prices are still over $200 USD for the most part, with some being somewhat less from the Japan vendors, but still overpriced IMHO.


Steve

[pres589]

Have we talked about the DA 50 1.8 yet?

[UncleVanya]

Even with the less than stellar reviews wide open - the FA 50 is a good bargain used compared to the DA* 55. I'd buy it for your use - I'd guess edge performance isn't the highest requirement - and then be in a position to buy the DFA 50 later if it was needed. The FA 43 sounds like it might be too wide given the comments you have made and it isn't quite fast enough based on your preferences.

[Eyewanders]

it's as good as any except the ridiculously sharp 50mm f2.8 Macro.

That thing is just bananas. I use it only for very specific uses (including film scans) and affectionately refer to it at my house as "The Scalpel".