[SelrahCharleS]

28-105
Good deal at Ricoh sample sale.

https://us.ricoh-imaging.com/sample-sale/

Wow that seems like a really good price. Cheaper than a KEH "bargain" condition!

Anyone have any experience buying from these sample sales? I guess I will soon because I also just snagged one

[madison_wi_gal]

Wow that seems like a really good price. Cheaper than a KEH "bargain" condition!

Anyone have any experience buying from these sample sales? I guess I will soon because I also just snagged one

Interesting - there were ONLY 3 LEFT when I bought mine. With @SelrahCharleS also snagging one, there should be ONLY 1 LEFT.

Still says 3.

[SelrahCharleS]

Interesting - there were ONLY 3 LEFT when I bought mine. With @SelrahCharleS also snagging one, there should be ONLY 1 LEFT.

Still says 3.

Hopefully this doesn't mean they were all sold out before we even clicked the buy button. They did send an email that they got the order so I guess I'll see if it ships in a day or two.

[mbukal]

I prepared for the purchase of K1 with Tokina 28-70/2.8 zoom and Pentax F 28/2.8 + F 50/1.7 primes, then later I bought more ff lenses, but at the end of the story I still bought the 7th lens in my stud farm DFA 28-105 /3.5-5.6 , I join everyone who recommends the Pentax-D FA 28-105/3.5-5.6

[richard0170]

First off get the K1 before worrying about extra lenses. Your current kit, apart from a wide angle is fine. So having first got your K1 a wide angle option would be a priority. Maybe a 24-70mm or 28-105mm. However, the K1 is a fantastic piece of it to use with vintage K mount glass which mostly can be picked up at a reasonable price. I would consider the K 24mm f3.5, K28mm f3.5 and K 35mm f3.5. A more modern option would be an (HD) FA 35mm f2. This is a very useful lens which doubles up as a standard on your K3 iii.
For longer reach on a budget consider the F 70-210mm f4-5.6 or A 70-210mm f4.
As standard lenses the K 50mm f1.4 and F 50mm f2.8 Macro perform very well on my K1.

---------- Post added 05-11-23 at 03:46 PM ----------

This was also more or less my reaction to the opening post.

I don't really see a motivation for buying a K-1, except 2-3 lenses that also work on FF (meaning the other lenses don't)
The 16-50 was mentioned as walkaround lens for APSC, but I didn't see any reason why this lens does not satisfy for this particular user case.

Of course, if there is a strong desire to purchase and develop a second system, that's cool, camera&lens-collecting is fun, although it's something mostly unrelated to photography. To be clear: I own maybe over 100 lenses so I don't have a negative intent with this comment; it's simply good to be honest about the purchase motivation: A new lens or new camera won't make us better photographers, but the chase can be lots of fun.

It took me years of prevarication before buying my K1 in Oct 2021 for the same reasons you state here. When the K3 iii was released I was very enthusiastic over the thought of getting one, but did not want to lose either my K3 or KP to help finance the purchase for a camera which for my needs at least the K3 iii's capabilities were overkill. I luckily had the opportunity to try out both a K3 iii and K1 ii side by side and it was abundantly clear to me that for slow considered photography the K1 is a much better tool and would add to my enjoyment of taking landscapes and still life. So the K1 ii was acquired. Luckily being a fan of vintage K mount glass I already had a good range of lenses to use on the new camera. I soon discovered that using them on the K1 is much more satisfying than using them on an APSC camera. So whilst I broadly agree with your point, I do think that there are circumstance that a new system (which the Pentax K1 is not really) or piece of kit can add to one's enjoyment and lead to images you would not of otherwise taken.

[madison_wi_gal]

Hopefully this doesn't mean they were all sold out before we even clicked the buy button. They did send an email that they got the order so I guess I'll see if it ships in a day or two.

Mine just shipped.

---------- Post added 05-11-23 at 19:02 ----------

Hopefully this doesn't mean they were all sold out before we even clicked the buy button. They did send an email that they got the order so I guess I'll see if it ships in a day or two.

Now there is ONLY ONE LEFT

[SelrahCharleS]

Mine just shipped.

---------- Post added 05-11-23 at 19:02 ----------



Now there is ONLY ONE LEFT

Mine shipped as well Strikes me as a bit odd in this day and age but I guess they don't update inventory until it ships rather than when a sale goes through.

[cnarchitect]

As a K-1/K-1M2 Owner for years and tried many lens mounted on them, I would NOT recommend the DFA 24-70/2.8. It is much too heavy and weight tons to move around. If you found a decent quality (non-repair history) FA*28-70/2.8, It is a better choose ahead of 24-70/2.8 and full of Pentax Rendering Character. The DFA28-105 is an OK chance but I fell it lack of character and not compact enough. Maybe you can try the FA 24-90, I like its color rendering. For myself, after a long search, I settle down with a PK converted Contax Zoom 28-70/3.5-4.5 and Nikon 17-35/2.8; along with the FA*28-70/2.8 for most balanced quality and mobility; for Now

[UncleVanya]

As a K-1/K-1M2 Owner for years and tried many lens mounted on them, I would NOT recommend the DFA 24-70/2.8. It is much too heavy and weight tons to move around. If you found a decent quality (non-repair history) FA*28-70/2.8, It is a better choose ahead of 24-70/2.8 and full of Pentax Rendering Character. The DFA28-105 is an OK chance but I fell it lack of character and not compact enough. Maybe you can try the FA 24-90, I like its color rendering. For myself, after a long search, I settle down with a PK converted Contax Zoom 28-70/3.5-4.5 and Nikon 17-35/2.8; along with the FA*28-70/2.8 for most balanced quality and mobility; for Now

Uh...

D FA 24-70 weighs: 787g per Pentax Forums page
FA* 28-70 weighs: 800g per Pentax Forums page

So the FA* isn't lighter, is it balanced differently? Obviously you like the character better and it could be the better choice for you. The Contax is a nice choice from what I have read. How does the Nikon fit in? Is it the non-AI version mounted directly on the K mount?

[cnarchitect]

Uh...

D FA 24-70 weighs: 787g per Pentax Forums page
FA* 28-70 weighs: 800g per Pentax Forums page

So the FA* isn't lighter, is it balanced differently? Obviously you like the character better and it could be the better choice for you. The Contax is a nice choice from what I have read. How does the Nikon fit in? Is it the non-AI version mounted directly on the K mount?

Yes, though weighted almost the same the FA* 28-70/2.8 is more compact in size and more balanced handle on K-1/K-1M2, down to two facts; The DFA 24-70/2.8 is more fatter, exactly much fatter (82mm filter thread compare to 67mm filter thread) and secondly it stick out much more than FA*28-70. The downside of the FA*28-70 is, like other old FA glasses, its CA is strong, but this is a relative easy fixing in Lightroom.
I had the Nikkor AFD 17-35mm surgery (with right flange focal distance) in China by a local expert and now have a manual focusing ultra wide bright zoom lens. I did a group test includes Contax 18/4 (PK converted); Pentax K18/3.5; Rikenon XR 18/2.8; Fujinon 19/3.5M42; Sigma 12-24/4-5.6 and the newly converted NAFD 17-35; The Nikkor stands out just behind Contax and Fujinon in terms of centre and corner sharpness. Its truly a legendary zoom lens.

[madison_wi_gal]

First off get the K1 before worrying about extra lenses.

I am trying. The ONLY one I want is not available to me at a fair market price.

[James O'Neill]

For my K1 I have
The ltd 77. I've joked that I will be buried with this lens. The focal length works for me, and there is something magic about the limited. If I had to give up all others this is the one I'd keep.
The DFA*85 . So close in focal length, and better in test scores, bokeh which is just beautiful, but a little bit soul-less. And heavy. So heavy. I've said the best car I ever had was a Mercedes, but the car I loved most was a Citroen. The limited series are Citroens. Quirky and if you don't hate them you absolutely love them. The DFA* are Mercs. Engineering marvels, to be admired more than loved.
The limited 43. A super all rounder and most photographers need a lens in the 40-50 bracket. I don't always like the transitions from in focus to out-of-focus (not the bokeh as such) but I've now got the instinct to use it properly.
The DFA 21 ltd. I hoped I would like this lens. The other original ltd, the 31 is just the wrong focal length for me, although it has the best reputation of the three. It's exceeded expectations, not so much for the quality but for the shots it gets me to take. I'd recommend having a look at it but it is not going work for everyone.
A Tamron 90mm Macro. I still have my manual version which feels like it was made from a tank gun barrel. The AF version which I was using today feels like it is made from an old yoghurt pot. But the optics are still good.
A sigma 12-24 zoom. I rarely use. It's a good lens but I've never bonded with it.
A Tamron 28-300 travel zoom. This lens lives on the camera in case I need to grab a shoot, and is the one to go in the bag with at most 2 of the small primes when I travel. It actually doesn't get used as much.

If I were starting again from a clean slate, I'd have the four pentax primes. I'd buy different zooms. The 15-30 is too big and heavy, the 28-105 has a good repuation, I don't know what I'd do for wider than 21mm, or longer than 100. I'd love to see a modern 28-300.

[ilpostino]

I think only my Sigma 18-35 f1.8 is my only lens I can't use on a ff. i am thinking about getting a K-1 II instead of a secund k3 II. (currently I have a K-3 and K-3 II and is thinking about replacing the K-3 with a K-1 II or K-3 II).

[UncleVanya]

If I were starting again from a clean slate, I'd have the four pentax primes. I'd buy different zooms. The 15-30 is too big and heavy, the 28-105 has a good repuation, I don't know what I'd do for wider than 21mm, or longer than 100. I'd love to see a modern 28-300.

D FA 21, FA 31, FA 43, FA 77?
The D FA 100, and the DA 200 and DA 300 are all options on primes as well. As for wider than 21 - what would you photograph with it? 21 is pretty wide on FF. I struggle to find a need for much wider.

[James O'Neill]

D FA 21, FA 31, FA 43, FA 77?
The D FA 100, and the DA 200 and DA 300 are all options on primes as well. As for wider than 21 - what would you photograph with it? 21 is pretty wide on FF. I struggle to find a need for much wider.

I have the DFA 21, FA 43, FA 77 and DFA* 85 I'd keep those.

The two zooms I have take me from 12mm to 300mm. The super wide stuff is for interiors like these (London Transport do tours which let you see tunnels like this)



I don't really like the Sigma 12-24 which shot that, but there isn't a good alternative - I bought and returned the 15-30. I read the spec and thought I could live with the size and weight but I really couldn't.

Beyond about 100mm I use the travel zoom which goes to 300mm. There are alternatives there but I can't justify the cost of a DA* 300 or the 150-450 for the use they'd get. So both the current zooms justify a place in my bag unless / until something better appears, but I wouldn't tell people to get either... the primes on the other hand I'll recommend to anyone who'll listen (and one or two who won't :-) )