[GUB]

In my day to day usage of my old primes I have come to the conclusion that there isn't much gain from the improvements in coatings up to at least the A series (where my collection ends). So I thought I would do a comparison in a real life situation which is reasonably cruel to the lens. It is in full sun and although all lenses are hooded (with the same hood) the sun is still striking all over the front element. Combining this with presenting the white flowers against the green foliage I feel it is a reasonable test. Note the purple flare bottom just right of centre. The Takumar Bayonet certainly heats it up most but I feel it handles the whites of the flowers really well. And the poor old early model M 28 2.8 certainly shows why it has a low review score. Doesn't the Super Takumar stand up well. Maybe being half a stop slower helps it control flare.

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[AsahiGlass]

M 28 3.5 is the crisp one, but how does the M 28 2.8 look at 3.5?

I enjoy the older lenses personally.

Nice comparison.

[photoptimist]

Nice tests!

Another 28 in the menagerie is the Pentax K 28/3.5 Shift. This lens can easily flare from the sun -- creating rainbow bubbles on a diagonal opposite the sun. Even if the sun is out of the visible frame, it may be within the ultrawide field-of-view of the lens. Shading the lens with a card or your hand can block the sun and kill the flare.

[GUB]

M 28 3.5 is the crisp one, but how does the M 28 2.8 look at 3.5?

I enjoy the older lenses personally.

Nice comparison.

Yes maybe another day I will do a more comprehensive comparison of sharpness. That smeared look of the M28 2.8 early is that classic look of a lens too open for the design that you often see in cheaper off brands. I think the early should have its own review page because it is obviously quite a different design that just happens to have the same element number as the later one. When they are sitting side by side it is noticeable how much more recessed the front element is (and smaller) than the other Ms to As. Overall it also has a lower profile, in fact with a little bit of lens body redesign it would easily pass as a pancake. Perhaps they were thinking down that path (pancake) but took too much of an IQ hit to persevere.

[GUB]

Nice tests!

Another 28 in the menagerie is the Pentax K 28/3.5 Shift. This lens can easily flare from the sun -- creating rainbow bubbles on a diagonal opposite the sun. Even if the sun is out of the visible frame, it may be within the ultrawide field-of-view of the lens. Shading the lens with a card or your hand can block the sun and kill the flare.

It is really hard to find a lens hood that will achieve much without vignetting on FF with the 28s. The old square original are probably the best bet. But obviously for here I chose to let the sun hit the front glass. There is really 2 basic sorts of flare isn't there. The artifacts from the sun hitting the front element (and the Tak Bayonet is very prone to that) and general sort of contrast loss which I think the Tak bayonet seems to handle well. More to the point it loses contrast but seems to render particularly well when bringing it back in editing. My Tak Bayonet 135 2.5 is the same.

And for the record the shots were out of camera jpg.

[ZombieArmy]

Tak bayonet seems to handle well. More to the point it loses contrast but seems to render particularly well when bringing it back in editing. My Tak Bayonet 135 2.5 is the same.

This is my experience as well. It almost feels like a clean canvas in post. Especially good with flower photos

[stevebrot]

...and general sort of contrast loss which I think the Tak bayonet seems to handle well.

I have heard that referred to as "veiling flare".


Steve

[GUB]

Thought these were worth posting. They are the histograms for the full jpgs of the f2.8s. They would suggest that the late model M28 2.8 may get some of its IQ boost from not being quite f2.8.

[GUB]

The 3.5s for comparison