Originally posted by ismaelg Hi,
Sorry if this has been asked before, but I couldn't find any reference to it.
What's the difference between K and M lenses? And for that matter between F and FA?
I'm compiling a quick reference guide for lenses and I'd like to make sure I got it right.
K: original bayonet mount. Fully manual
A: Aperture automation capability
M: Fully manual *???????
F: First generation autofocus
FA: ????
DA: digital only lens (APS-C) will not work properly on full frame 35mm
*: The * after the lens type (A*, DA*) represents a premium grade
Any help will be appreciated. This is for a local photo club and I'm the only pentaxian so far......
Thanks,
the real difference between K and M is that the M series attempted to retain most lenses with a 49mm filter, and be very compact. The idea was to keep 49mm filters as a standard to help the photographer in reducing the number of filters. WHile this did not impact some lenses, others disappeared or changed.
in the M series, there was no 50mm F1.2, the 85mm went from F1.8 to F2, the 135mm F2.5 was dropped, the 200mm F2.5 I think got dropped and only a 200mm F4.
Additionally I think many of the wide angle lenses went to F3.5 as opposed to F2 or F2.8, but I am not really sure.
There were some improvements, however, specifically in the 300F4 which was downsized a little, and the 400F5.6 which became auto aperture as opposed to preset.
While some people consider the K mounts as re-packaged SMC Taks some were much better optically.