85mm f1.4 does brand matter?

jolee1990 · 09-13-2009, 06:48 PM

so i heard that the 85mm f1.4 is famous for being a good lens for portraits.. so i want to get em, when i searched for them i found alot of different brands, odviously the pentax ones where all in the 1k's but i found some gower and other brands, do they have the same quality? is it the same lens but cheaper because the brand name?

Blue · 09-13-2009, 07:09 PM

Brand does matter. The cheaper ones that you refer to are various re-badged Korean lenses that are decent but not in the league with Pentax, Nikkor, Canon etc. Pentax doesn't have a 85mm in production. They do have an FA 77mm f1.8 ltd and a DA 70mm f2.4 ltd that are in production.

GLXLR · 09-13-2009, 07:16 PM

Originally posted by Blue

Brand does matter. The cheaper ones that you refer to are various re-badged Korean lenses that are decent but not in the league with Pentax, Nikkor, Canon etc. Pentax doesn't have a 85mm in production. They do have an FA 77mm f1.8 ltd and a DA 70mm f2.4 ltd that are in production.

+1
Not to mention the Bower, Opteka, and Vivitar ones don't have AF.
Not even sure if they have an "A" setting.

jolee1990 · 09-13-2009, 07:23 PM

oh :/ i really want the old pentax 85mm f1.4 but they are so expensive x0
ahh theres got to be a way to get it cheaper...
korean lenses? what is there company name?
bower opteka and vivtar <- are they any good?

Blue · 09-13-2009, 07:26 PM

Originally posted by jolee1990

oh :/ i really want the old pentax 85mm f1.4 but they are so expensive x0
ahh theres got to be a way to get it cheaper...
korean lenses? what is there company name?
bower opteka and vivtar <- are they any good?

Samyang and as pointed out by GLXR, they are mf.

jolee1990 · 09-13-2009, 08:22 PM

Cambridge; Photography equipment, Film developing, Camera filter & more!
is that the same pentax 85mm f1.4?
is the old one a prime 85? and does it have FA?

deadwolfbones · 09-13-2009, 08:24 PM

Originally posted by jolee1990

Cambridge; Photography equipment, Film developing, Camera filter & more!
is that the same pentax 85mm f1.4?
is the old one a prime 85? and does it have FA?

Cambridge World - cambridgeworld.com - Reviews, Ratings and Prices at ResellerRatings

jolee1990 · 09-13-2009, 08:31 PM

haha i just read it but i was wondering is that 85mm FA <- is that the same one as the old famouse 85mm pentax lens tahts famouse for good portrait lens? i thought the old one didnt ahve FA?
http://www.amazon.com/Pentax-SMCP-FA-85mm-Lens-Case/dp/B00005ABCB/ref=cm_cmu_pg_i <- even amazon has it so i was wondering if it was the same as the old 85mm lens..

Spock · 09-13-2009, 08:40 PM

85mm was the ideal portait focal length for 35mm film. With DSLRs you will get the same effect with a 50mm/1.4 - and these lenses are relatively cheap and plentiful on the second-hand market.

Blue · 09-13-2009, 08:52 PM

Originally posted by jolee1990

haha i just read it but i was wondering is that 85mm FA <- is that the same one as the old famouse 85mm pentax lens tahts famouse for good portrait lens? i thought the old one didnt ahve FA?
Amazon.com: Pentax SMCP-FA 85mm f/1.4 IF Lens with Case: Camera & Photo <- even amazon has it so i was wondering if it was the same as the old 85mm lens..

The A* and FA* 85mm f1.4 have different optical formulae. There was also a K 85mm f1.8 and an M 85mm f2 and they also have different formulae. There were also soft 85mm lenses as well.

Go here for the differences:

Pentax Short Telephoto Prime Lenses

Edit: Actually the FA 77mm ltd has a similar optical formalae to the A* 85mm f1.4 than any of the other Pentax 85mm lenses do.

jolee1990 · 09-13-2009, 10:04 PM

gosh this would be easier to understand if i weren't such a newb xD
wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA?
is there much difference in the picture quality of the 85mm A 1.4 and the 85mm FA 1.4?

i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference
i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it.

Blue · 09-13-2009, 10:08 PM

Originally posted by jolee1990

gosh this would be easier to understand if i weren't such a newb xD
wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA?
is there much difference in the picture quality of the 85mm A 1.4 and the 85mm FA 1.4?

i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference
i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it.

The older version is the A which is manual focus and the newer version is FA. They have different optical formulae however. As I pointed out, the FA 77mm ltd has a similar optical formulae to the older A. That was just to emphasize that all of the 85mm lenses are different. As far as IQ etc., that is open to interpretation and different people will have different opinions on that. Go to the lens review data base and look at reviews and the lenses discussed in this thread so far as a starting point.

The K, M, A*, FA* 85mm lenses are fine glass and get great reviews.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/index.php

Class A · 09-13-2009, 10:10 PM

Originally posted by jolee1990

so i heard that the 85mm f1.4 is famous for being a good lens for portraits.

On full frame. For APS-C this translates to 56.67mm.
85mm can still be used as a portrait FL on APS-C but it will be quite on the long side.

Originally posted by jolee1990

...other brands, do they have the same quality?

The Samyang 85/1.4 (which is also available with other brand names, like Polar, etc.) is manual focus only but has an A-setting and some users really like it.

Mechan1k · 09-14-2009, 12:13 AM

This is why i chose something slightly cheaper ... but on the manual side of things (more fun).

With an M42 adaptor there are a number of choice Takumar lenses out there ... that are still excellent quality indeed.

In regards to the above sizing ... I have:

Super Takumar 50mm f/1.4
Super Takumar 55mm f/1.8
Super Takumar 85mm f/1.9 (this is a NIIIIICE lens indeed).

But it is not AF ... and not quite the excellent quality of the A* and FA* 85mm. And nowhere near as expensive either.

Marc Sabatella · 09-14-2009, 09:21 AM

Originally posted by jolee1990

wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA?

Both are "old" in the sense of having been discontinued long ago, but yes, the A series lenses (these have no autofocus) are older than the FA series (these have autofocus).

Quote:

i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference
i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it.

For raw data about the lenses (size, optical construction, what the various abbreviations means, etc) you can see

Welcome to Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page

For opinions on the quality of specific lenses, you can see

Stan's Pentax Photography

Also look for the discussions of the 85mm lenses on this forum. You'll find the newer Korean manual focus 85's (the ones you seeing sold under all these different brand names, but when you look at the pictures, it's obviously the same lens) are quite a following. As does the Pentax M85/2.

09-13-2009, 06:48 PM	#1
jolee1990 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 88	85mm f1.4 does brand matter? so i heard that the 85mm f1.4 is famous for being a good lens for portraits.. so i want to get em, when i searched for them i found alot of different brands, odviously the pentax ones where all in the 1k's but i found some gower and other brands, do they have the same quality? is it the same lens but cheaper because the brand name?

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09-13-2009, 07:09 PM	#2
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Brand does matter. The cheaper ones that you refer to are various re-badged Korean lenses that are decent but not in the league with Pentax, Nikkor, Canon etc. Pentax doesn't have a 85mm in production. They do have an FA 77mm f1.8 ltd and a DA 70mm f2.4 ltd that are in production.

09-13-2009, 07:16 PM	#3
GLXLR Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Sugar Land, TX Photos: Gallery Posts: 684	Originally posted by Blue Brand does matter. The cheaper ones that you refer to are various re-badged Korean lenses that are decent but not in the league with Pentax, Nikkor, Canon etc. Pentax doesn't have a 85mm in production. They do have an FA 77mm f1.8 ltd and a DA 70mm f2.4 ltd that are in production. +1 Not to mention the Bower, Opteka, and Vivitar ones don't have AF. Not even sure if they have an "A" setting.

09-13-2009, 07:23 PM	#4
jolee1990 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 88 Original Poster	oh :/ i really want the old pentax 85mm f1.4 but they are so expensive x0 ahh theres got to be a way to get it cheaper... korean lenses? what is there company name? bower opteka and vivtar <- are they any good?

09-13-2009, 07:26 PM	#5
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by jolee1990 oh :/ i really want the old pentax 85mm f1.4 but they are so expensive x0 ahh theres got to be a way to get it cheaper... korean lenses? what is there company name? bower opteka and vivtar <- are they any good? Samyang and as pointed out by GLXR, they are mf.

09-13-2009, 08:22 PM	#6
jolee1990 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 88 Original Poster	Cambridge; Photography equipment, Film developing, Camera filter & more! is that the same pentax 85mm f1.4? is the old one a prime 85? and does it have FA?

09-13-2009, 08:24 PM	#7
deadwolfbones Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: La Crescenta, CA Posts: 7,450	Originally posted by jolee1990 Cambridge; Photography equipment, Film developing, Camera filter & more! is that the same pentax 85mm f1.4? is the old one a prime 85? and does it have FA? Cambridge World - cambridgeworld.com - Reviews, Ratings and Prices at ResellerRatings

09-13-2009, 08:31 PM	#8
jolee1990 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 88 Original Poster	haha i just read it but i was wondering is that 85mm FA <- is that the same one as the old famouse 85mm pentax lens tahts famouse for good portrait lens? i thought the old one didnt ahve FA? http://www.amazon.com/Pentax-SMCP-FA-85mm-Lens-Case/dp/B00005ABCB/ref=cm_cmu_pg_i <- even amazon has it so i was wondering if it was the same as the old 85mm lens..

09-13-2009, 08:40 PM	#9
Spock Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Perth, Western Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 674	85mm was the ideal portait focal length for 35mm film. With DSLRs you will get the same effect with a 50mm/1.4 - and these lenses are relatively cheap and plentiful on the second-hand market.

09-13-2009, 08:52 PM	#10
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by jolee1990 haha i just read it but i was wondering is that 85mm FA <- is that the same one as the old famouse 85mm pentax lens tahts famouse for good portrait lens? i thought the old one didnt ahve FA? Amazon.com: Pentax SMCP-FA 85mm f/1.4 IF Lens with Case: Camera & Photo <- even amazon has it so i was wondering if it was the same as the old 85mm lens.. The A* and FA* 85mm f1.4 have different optical formulae. There was also a K 85mm f1.8 and an M 85mm f2 and they also have different formulae. There were also soft 85mm lenses as well. Go here for the differences: Pentax Short Telephoto Prime Lenses Edit: Actually the FA 77mm ltd has a similar optical formalae to the A* 85mm f1.4 than any of the other Pentax 85mm lenses do.

09-13-2009, 10:04 PM	#11
jolee1990 Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 88 Original Poster	gosh this would be easier to understand if i weren't such a newb xD wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA? is there much difference in the picture quality of the 85mm A 1.4 and the 85mm FA 1.4? i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it.

09-13-2009, 10:08 PM	#12
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by jolee1990 gosh this would be easier to understand if i weren't such a newb xD wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA? is there much difference in the picture quality of the 85mm A 1.4 and the 85mm FA 1.4? i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it. The older version is the A which is manual focus and the newer version is FA. They have different optical formulae however. As I pointed out, the FA 77mm ltd has a similar optical formulae to the older A. That was just to emphasize that all of the 85mm lenses are different. As far as IQ etc., that is open to interpretation and different people will have different opinions on that. Go to the lens review data base and look at reviews and the lenses discussed in this thread so far as a starting point. The K, M, A, FA 85mm lenses are fine glass and get great reviews. https://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/index.php

09-13-2009, 10:10 PM	#13
Class A Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 11,251	Originally posted by jolee1990 so i heard that the 85mm f1.4 is famous for being a good lens for portraits. On full frame. For APS-C this translates to 56.67mm. 85mm can still be used as a portrait FL on APS-C but it will be quite on the long side. Originally posted by jolee1990 ...other brands, do they have the same quality? The Samyang 85/1.4 (which is also available with other brand names, like Polar, etc.) is manual focus only but has an A-setting and some users really like it.

09-14-2009, 12:13 AM	#14
Mechan1k Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 2,891	This is why i chose something slightly cheaper ... but on the manual side of things (more fun). With an M42 adaptor there are a number of choice Takumar lenses out there ... that are still excellent quality indeed. In regards to the above sizing ... I have: Super Takumar 50mm f/1.4 Super Takumar 55mm f/1.8 Super Takumar 85mm f/1.9 (this is a NIIIIICE lens indeed). But it is not AF ... and not quite the excellent quality of the A* and FA* 85mm. And nowhere near as expensive either.

09-14-2009, 09:21 AM	#15
Marc Sabatella Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Denver, CO Photos: Gallery Posts: 10,685	Originally posted by jolee1990 wait so the older version was the A? and the newer version is FA? Both are "old" in the sense of having been discontinued long ago, but yes, the A series lenses (these have no autofocus) are older than the FA series (these have autofocus). Quote: i am sorry for all these questions but is there a article or osmething that explains the things about the glasses inside? cause i dont know what makes the difference i have the 50mm FAf1.4 and i like it but i would like to try the 85 and i have been hearing good stuff about it. For raw data about the lenses (size, optical construction, what the various abbreviations means, etc) you can see Welcome to Bojidar Dimitrov's Pentax K-Mount Page For opinions on the quality of specific lenses, you can see Stan's Pentax Photography Also look for the discussions of the 85mm lenses on this forum. You'll find the newer Korean manual focus 85's (the ones you seeing sold under all these different brand names, but when you look at the pictures, it's obviously the same lens) are quite a following. As does the Pentax M85/2.