[hinman]

Yes, my beautiful, beloved is gone to my best buyer zzbao who is likely to become my best companion in LBA after Rose Duclos. Rose has purchased the best of my oldie lens and I am grateful to their purchases. And I know my lens are in good homes.

Please don't flame me on how illogical and nut case I am in selling the 31mm limited. Would I miss it, hell yes. Would I look back and revisit my decision, hell no, at least not today. I played some very soft music at the moment and it may bring sobbing feeling but absolutely no crying but a spirit to fly high on ideas on what is to come. We look at the moment and the future as the last hour and my first 31mm limited are history already.

What do you recommend me as a sub-optimal replacement NOT to rival its abilities and intrinsic beauty and legends but to fill in the shoe short term until I gather my senses and skills worthy to pick it up again with better style, knowledge and techniques with hopefully some maturity as a gear hunter. I am about to trim my other primes in 24mm. I used to like 24mm a lot in the digital world. It is wider than 31mm and 28mm and I have great liking on 24mm for the wider view in street shooting but it is not ideal for portraits, not like a 31mm and 35mm which seem to do better job for street shooting while beating the normal 50mm in a tighter view.

There is no candidates that I am aware of that is inexpensive and fill in the shoes for the 31mm and what it can achieve. Hence my quest for the 31mm inexpensive substitute to do the work in the interim

Requirements

• ability to use AF for quickness into street shooting for event
• a wider view than 40mm and 50mm
• a longer view than 21mm
• a minimum of speed in f/2.8, f/2.0 will be ideal for me in K20D
• a price tag closer to and less than $300
• color doesn't matter, give me a Red, White, Yellow, no problem as long as it can take good pictures
• size doesn't matter, filter size doesn't matter, give me a rock, no problem as long as it can take good pictures
• no zoom, has to be PRIME for the best in that focal length
• no need to be Pentax, anything goes in my books for good pictures with SR in body

Please clue me in your choices. I am open to more choices and I am here to listen and please NO FLAMING, jokes are allowed as long as it is not pointing to war flaming. We need good humor in life

Here are some of my choices not in particular order:

• Sigma 24mm f/1.8, the close up is 1:2.4, I think
• Sigma 28mm f/1.8
• Sigma 30mm f/1.4
• Pentax DA 35mm f/2.8 1:1 Macro
• Pentax FA 35mm f/2.0
• Komine 28mm f/2.0 CF in K or M42
• Kiron 28mm f/2.0 in K or M42
• Carl Zeiss Flectogon 35mm f/2.4 (m42)

You can reference my current focal length in primes and zoom in this page:

• Hin's Lens Focal Length

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Last edited by hinman; 01-06-2009 at 10:02 PM.

[noel]

Hin, the last few failed your criteria already, no AF.

I'd go for the FA 35mm. Good built, SMC hardcoat.

[kibipod]

I vote for FA 35 f2. Resaons - within your budget, good lens, new lens purchase, and finally -

full frame ..... next year Samsung is ...............................(fill in the blanks)

[JonPB]

Hin, you rock. Vicarious LBA, onward.

I'd vote for the Sigma 28/1.8. You already have a good 21 and 50, and while a 35 would split those two numerically, I think that a 28 is a better middle-ground in practice. I know nothing about the lens, though it is cheaper than the 24.

With the cost of the 24, I'd rather pony up a few extra dollars for the 30/1.4. I find framing to be more flexible than speed.

Then again, I suppose the appropriate question is: when you shot the 31, did you more often want wider (28), a good bit wider (24), or tighter (35)?

Cripes. I didn't know that Sigma was the place to go for fast primes... so much for the vicarious LBA.

[Indianadinos]

Hello,

The Flektogon is really nice, i used it a lot before getting my SMC Takumar 35/2, so ... i vote for the FA 35/2, it seems to be a really good performer ...

Best regards

[RBellavance]

FA35/2. 'nough said

[ddhytz]

I would choose the Flektogon. For street shooting you don't need AF at this FL. You could use hyperfocus tech, essentially point & shoot. Also it's M42 that can be used on other bodies.

[k100d]

Sigma 28 1.8 / FA35

I think the FA35 as well Hin. The price is good especially as this is going to be an interim lens, it's in the right focal length range and you never know, you might decide to keep it.

[frank]

Why not just buy back your lady queen (FA31)? It meets all but one of your requirements

[heatherslightbox]

I'll be the odd one and choose the DA35 macro--
1. Because I have it and like it a lot.
2. Even if I didn't have it, it's a good lens--IQ wise.
3. It has the most utility value--1:1 macro built into such a small lens.

Heather

[troyz]

There is no candidates that I am aware of that is inexpensive and fill in the shoes for the 31mm and what it can achieve. Hence my quest for the 31mm inexpensive substitute to do the work in the interim

Requirements

• a wider view than 40mm and 50mm
• a longer view than 21mm

S-M-C Takumar 28/3.5? Not autofocus and half a stop slower than you specify but quite good wide open and relatively cheap.

[stevebrot]

FA 35/2

Not as nice as the 31 limited, but much, much, better than most of the rest of the competition. Moderately priced, quick focusing, small size, low weight, great optical performance, FF, working aperture ring, solid build...What is there not to like?

I am planning on mounting it on my film camera this week. Its images always impress me on the K10D. I expect to be blown away with the results on 35mm Ektar 100. In any case, it is definitely the best-performing lens I own.

Steve

(Then again, my quiver is pretty much filled with mongrels except for the FA 35! Well-behaved mongrels, but mongrels none-the-less...)

[stevebrot]

...you never know, you might decide to keep it.

I don't think Hin is in to that...



Steve

I don't think Hin is in to that...



Steve

You never know.