[Mechan1k]

There's a PC forums where someone picked up a "tamron popular 400mm f/6.3-32 preset." lens.

But that was 2 years ago.
Lithos from here actually posted in that thread as well.

[ramseybuckeye]

Mounted with an Asahi Pentax adapter on a K20D. Took these yesterday, an unusual foggy day.

f8 1/4000 ISO 250:

f11 1/4000 ISO 250:

f5.6 1/3200 ISO 250:

f1.9 1/40 ISO 320:

f3.5 1/10 ISO 320:

[w0jt]

Hello, all. Just joined the forum today. I have a fairly extensive collection of M42 lenses from my film photography days, but as my workload as a health professional has grown exponentially over the years, I slipped further and further from spending time with my cameras and lenses. A couple of years ago, I picked up a Fuji S5000 digital camera, and while nowhere as versatile as a true SLR or DSLR, it was at least versatile enough and easy enough to use that I have gotten back into photography a little bit in my miniscule free time. (Not to mention that I can "develop my film" instantly and not worry about the price of the next "roll of film" here in the digital age.)

But what I really long to do is get a DSLR like the Pentax-KX that will allow me to use my collection of M42 lenses. Of course, I note that there are some limitations to be aware of. The primary concern to me is that the FL is effectively 1.5x on the digital camera compared to the film camera due to the smaller sensor size. So my super-wide-angle 18mm f/3.5 lens from the film days is equivalent to only a moderately-wide-angle 27mm lens on a 35mm camera, and so on with my 28mm f/2.5, 35~105mm f/3.5, 50mm f/1.5, and 85mm f/1.5 lenses. There is an upside, of course, at the other end of the scale with my 500mm f/8 mirror lens becoming the equivalent of a 750mm lens...

Well, I guess my collection of lenses from the film days will, at a minimum, get me a much wider maximum aperature than the typical zooms that come on the KX camera packages out there, plus the bonus of longer effective FL when I want a really long FL, however with one or two zooms that are often sold with the KX, the focal length waterfront is almost covered compared to what my old lenses can do.

I won't miss the AF, and in fact really look forward to being able to grab a focus ring and twist until the subject is focused the way I want it instead of where the camera wants it. I expect that aperature-priority AE won't be a major hurdle, with the possible exception of how dark the display will get as the lens is manually stopped down, since the digital camera can't read the aperature ring with the lens in "auto diaphragm" mode.

I guess my post is intended to stimulate any comments along the lines of if I have some irrational notions going here of how much fun I am likely to have with a KX body and a collection of old M42 lenses, are there better choices to be made, did I overlook some large disadvantage, etc. before I run out and buy the KX.

Thanks in advance!
P.S., LOTS of stunning pictures in this forum, my highest congratulations to all!

[ramseybuckeye]

Hello, all. Just joined the forum today.

Welcome to the forum. I have been using the forum since last summer and it is definitely the place to come for information and to make yourself a better photographer. I have only come to this thread "The M42 Crew" a few days ago since getting my first M42 lens, so I am definitely not an M42 expert.

But our somewhat "common cause" is that I shoot with a K20D, so I am also new to the combination of Digital SLR and M42 lens. One important thing I have learned from this forum is to get a genuine Asahi Pentax k mount adapter. I was fortunate and picked one up on Ebay for $35, it works great. I have read in these forums and other places that a lot of third party adapters don't allow infinite focus, and can get stuck in your camera.

Anyway, the Pentax DSLR cameras are unique in today's photography world, they don't make your old lenses obsolete. And everything I've read about the KX is really good, you'll have a blast with it!

[Mechan1k]

There's a PC forums where someone picked up a "tamron popular 400mm f/6.3-32 preset." lens.

But that was 2 years ago.
Lithos from here actually posted in that thread as well.

Lens arrived .... and it is this actual lens ... would you believe it.
Will take some pics of it later on.
And it is definitely an M42 ... not a T-mount ... as i tested it on my spare M42/K adaptor.

In really good condition as well from what i can see ... a few dust specs ... but will have it a bit of a clean and see how it goes.

Had a look down the barrel to check the internals ... which look spotless ... and checked the aperture blades (13 of them) and everything looks in order.

[noel]

At close range there is no swirly bokeh.

[Nesster]

Excellent result with the Mamiya 55! A real sense of depth, and subtle color rendition

[JesseDavis]

I got this lens from the junk bin because I couldn't afford the 50/1.4 that day. Don't use it much but it's not bad. I figured out later that the aperture lever was kind of broken so I superglued it down (wide open) and the aperture ring is continuous so you 'use the force' to set it. A bit yellow too but for 20 bucks alright and fast. This was the day I learned why they put a focus scale on the lens :-p

Right after purchase


Photoshopped for flavour:


Life in Japan; This is It:


Beware the Mother in Law:

[noel]

Jesse, that Yashinon f2 has that film like rendering, especially in the last 2 photos. A gem in itself for 20 bucks

[JesseDavis]

Yeah, it was only after digging some up out of the library that I noticed how nice they were. Doesn't stand up to pixel peeping but I think the yashinon could make some nice A4 prints without any trouble.

...oh right, prints, and Im still sifting through last month's duds. I think i will just shoot more instead

btw some of those zeiss shots were amazing! I'm assuming I will still suffer sticker shock if I go looking for them?

[Fixcinater]

Cross posted to/from Soviet lens thread:





Helios 44-2 on Canon 40D. Funny how this amount of sharpening applied to the Helios shot (B&W) oversharpens it compared to the same applied to my Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8.

[ovim]

I bought a beaten up Meyer Orestor 2.8/135mm last week. The BIN was low so I couldn't resist... Seems to perform very nicely. This was shot through my kitchen window @f4. Exposure (and other stuff) corrected in PP.

[noel]

I bought a beaten up Meyer Orestor 2.8/135mm last week. The BIN was low so I couldn't resist... Seems to perform very nicely. This was shot through my kitchen window @f4. Exposure (and other stuff) corrected in PP.

That's a nice chick , and the bokeh is soothingly nice.

[ovim]

That's a nice chick , and the bokeh is soothingly nice.

Thanks noel. I think the background with branches against the snow came out almost OK. But it's hardly an "easy" bokeh scene so I quess it could've been much worse. I didn't have time to make much adjustments so the (this) shot that was sharpest and had the bird lookin at the camera was underexposed by about 1 1/2 f stops so upping it in PP introduced some noise.

[bbluesman]

Happy to be a member of the M42 club with my new A. Schacht Travenar 90mm. Still working with it so nothing to glorious yet. Here is one of the early test shots