[Andi Lo]

Well I ordered a DA 21/3.2 Ltd from a camera shop back east - mint condition but used, for a bit over $350 on last Sunday. When I ordered the image associated with the web ad had a FA 31/1.8 Ltd. The box came today and upon opening it up - what did I find, but a Pentax FA 31/1.8 Ltd.

Envyyyyyy. That's some godly luck. Enjoy the lens!

[interested_observer]

You can count yourself one very lucky person....
Hold on to that one, you'll love it.
If not, just sell it and buy 2-3 other lenses instead

My LBA is well in check, since I have the 4 lenses that I thought covered everything for me - 12-24, 16-45, 55-300 and 10-17 FE (taking 4 years to acquire them). I was very satisfied, but started considering the 21 Ltd with the thought that it would have a higher IQ than the 12-24 and would give a limited a try, since I tend to use the 20 FL quite a bit.

Now with the arrival of the 31 by mistake, something that I would probably never have picked up myself, I am anxious to try it out, although I need to set up the K20 to use it, since the top LCD is giving me the F-- indication. If the 31 is everything everyone claimed it will be going nowhere. I do not know the history of this lens, but for a used lens, its absolutely mint in every way - other than no box. The lens surfaces are perfect and the felt on the inside of the lens cap is unused. I am starting to think that this lens may have never been used or used so little as to be essentially new. I feel very very lucky. This has the build of a fine precision instrument in every way....

I know that I have somewhat hijacking this thread - I only posted, because I was planning on doing a comparison at 20mm f8 on the 12-24, 16-45 and the 21 Ltd. and was going to post the results as requested here.

[Bart]

...although I need to set up the K20 to use it, since the top LCD is giving me the F-- indication...

I suppose it is the lens you need to set to the 'A' position.
There is no setting required on your camera to use the FA31.

[Sailor]

found the opinion that 15/4 has quite better optical quality than 21/3.2.
is it worth to change 21 for 15?
15. pros (for me): faster focus, better sharpnes tru the field, wider angle
cons: bigger size, 4.0 (vs 3.2)

any tests, direct comparisons?

I've got both, and my answer is that my DA 15 is better when the FOV of my DA 21is not sufficiently wide, and my DA 21 is better when my DA 15 is too wide. I'm being facetious, of course, but frankly comparing the two is like contemplating the proverbial question of the apple vs. the orange.

I do think that the DA 15 has better optical performance than the 21 for the reasons others have mentioned, but that's of little consequence when the 21's FOV works better for the shot.

Heck, why not get both? You only live once.

Jer

[Marc Sabatella]

At some point I hope to borrow a DA21 to do a comparison of the DA15 cropped against the DA21. But my assumption based on what I have seen thus far is, unless I need to print so big that I've thrown away too many pixels, the DA15 will probably beat the DA21. After all, I'd be cropping out the worst part of the DA15 (the corners), and the DA15 has much less distortion to begin with.

[OrenMc]

Well I ordered a DA 21/3.2 Ltd from a camera shop back east - mint condition but used, for a bit over $350 on last Sunday. When I ordered the image associated with the web ad had a FA 31/1.8 Ltd. The box came today and upon opening it up - what did I find, but a Pentax FA 31/1.8 Ltd.

That is crazy luck!! Enjoy!!!

[bentax]

Well I ordered a DA 21/3.2 Ltd from a camera shop back east - mint condition but used, for a bit over $350 on last Sunday. When I ordered the image associated with the web ad had a FA 31/1.8 Ltd. The box came today and upon opening it up - what did I find, but a Pentax FA 31/1.8 Ltd.

Sorry to hear about your unfortunate luck. If you send the lens back and explain the mix-up i'm sure they'll swap it back out for the 21mm.

[interested_observer]

Sorry to hear about your unfortunate luck. If you send the lens back and explain the mix-up i'm sure they'll swap it back out for the 21mm.

They are out of the 21, so I will just have to make do.... Absolutely not complaining though!!!!

This (the first image) is using my K100 handheld stitched across 4 images at ISO 400 1/8 sec f??. I am still learning how to use the lens.

The second one is from the 12-24 on the K20 single image, f8, 12mm, ISO 100, at 6 seconds on a tripod, 2 sec mirror up, with an external release.

They were both taken within 30 seconds of each other. - I only have a single tripod, never in the world would I have thought that I would need 2 tripods.

I am going back out this evening and trying again, however the 31 is going on the K20 and the tripod. There are a lot of things I want to try with this lens. Its opening up an entirely different aspect of things for me....

[artemapei]

Heck, why not get both? You only live once.

Jer

pentax - is the third compact system to me. I have full range of angles I need (and even almost do not ) on my Nikon FF. from pentax I need a very compact set with most usefull lenses. on FF I use 25mm twice more often than 35mm (meanwhile I do not have af on my FF 25mm, if I had - I'd use more). so, I think 15+40 will cover 80% of what I need from the system (the rest will be covered by 70 and 31 on ff film camera)

[PentHassyKon]

At some point I hope to borrow a DA21 to do a comparison of the DA15 cropped against the DA21. But my assumption based on what I have seen thus far is, unless I need to print so big that I've thrown away too many pixels, the DA15 will probably beat the DA21. After all, I'd be cropping out the worst part of the DA15 (the corners), and the DA15 has much less distortion to begin with.

Marc-
I'm in phase of possibly selling my DA16-45 or Sigma AF 24mm for either the DA15 or 21. Would appreciate if you could provide some shots showing FOV difference between the 2.
If you've already done this on another thread, I somehow missed it.

[Marc Sabatella]

Sorry, I don't have the 21, so I can't do this. But if you search around the web, you should be able to find a picture where someone has superimposed crop markings showing the effects of various focal lengths.

Based on experience with the 18-55, I personally find 21mm kind of blah, personally. I tend to shoot the 18-55 right at 18 (suggesting I really wanted wider), or else closer to 28. Once I realized this, the decision between 15 & 21 became easy.

[Boris]

I own DA 21 and it is a dandy piece of kit. However, I opine that sometimes there is never a lens wide enough. I remember (shooting film at the time) my first visit to Norway back in 2004. I tried 28 mm, tried 24 mm and then tried 20 mm and it still want as wide as I wanted it to be... To that end I don't see much sense in comparing 15 mm and 21 mm f.l. lenses. Both are small, both are limited (read: good make, good handling, etc), both have positive and negative aspects. So, pick your poison ...

[antipattern]

I've got the DA21 for a bike trip to Denmark, and I absolutely love it. For me, the field of view is ideal, but then, as Boris was suggesting, I was mostly shooting my 18-55mm zoom shortly after the 18. So maybe that's a good method in figuring out what you would need. Also, the size of the 21 seems to be a tad bit tinier than the 15mm, if that matters. Ultimately, you need to figure out which one suits your needs most, and get that one. And the other one later. Alas, I haven't tried the 15mm yet, but I think next Christmas might be a good time...

[Ron Boggs]

I recently sold the 12-24 and obtained the 15 and the 21. Both are fine products and both do what I expect of them. You will not regret the purchase of either, though neither covers the view of the other. That isn't the fault of the lens, but a fault of our own budgetary limitations!

Marc, I'm afraid you won't be able to do the "shoot 15 and crop to 21" approach due to the extreme difference in angle of framing. I'll let you look up the difference, but it is an extremely different view. Foreground items in the 15 are tiny compared to foreground items at the same distance shot through the 21. This type of cropping can work with telephotos...essentially cutting an 8 degree view down to a 5 degree angle of view as an example. However, it just doesn't work the other way around shooting 90 degree and cutting it to 75 degree. I don't think it works at all with wide angle lenses due to the extreme angle of view differences between the various lens lengths.

[Jonathan Mac]

Unfortunately, in Europe the price difference between the 15 and the 21 is so great that choosing one or the other is not just an academic question but a financial one too. I long for more limiteds but can't afford the 15. The 21 may not be as wide as I'd like. SO I might just go for a Sigma 10-20 and be done with it.