[napawino]

I'm getting my K-5 with 18-55mm kit lens delivered tomorrow. I'm wondering what your recommendations would be for the best lens of good quality for wandering the town, the park, the waterfront, etc?

thanks

[Adam]

The best overall lens is probably the 18-135, unless you want fast aperture, in which case you should turn to the DA*'s

[napawino]

I'm thinking more of a Prime.

Would the pancake 40mm Limited be too long?

OR would the 21mm Limited be a better choice?

I want a high quality lens that I won't worry about needing to upgrade.

Thanks

[nah]

The 35mm LTD Macro is a fine choice. It relatively wide enough but has macro functionality.

[robbiec]

I've used a 43 for great effect as a walkabout lens, the 40 is even smaller and a smidgen wider. To get near enough everything in the frame have a look at the DA15.

[napawino]

So many choices. I've been browsing the online vendors that have reviews, and it seems everyone loves all of the Limiteds. I had hoped that one or two would be much better than the rest, and simplify my decision.

[psychdoc]

Rent two or three of them and try them out yourself. DA 70, 35 and 15 would be nice, its cheaper to rent more than one of them at a time, as it can be shipped together.

[napawino]

Rent lenses? I've never heard of such a thing. Where do you rent them?

Does that run any risk of getting dirt into the camera?

I have images of Bowling Shoes in my head.

[Skymist]

I'm getting my K-5 with 18-55mm kit lens delivered tomorrow. I'm wondering what your recommendations would be for the best lens of good quality for wandering the town, the park, the waterfront, etc?

thanks

My best walkabout lens is the 43mm F/1.9 Limited. And I may carry my old 18-55mm zoom as a backup in case I need something wider sometimes. Otherwise, the 43mm does it, it handles an enormous variety of situations - moving objects it focuses fast, it can work by available light, and it is a great lens for flash snapshots. I think anything over 55 will be too telephoto for you to get typical outdoor street shots, and anything under 30mm will be hard to get that personal up close feel that you want sometimes. Also, it's so small it doesn't attract attention and cause people to duck or pose. It's not easily noticed unless the person knows it already - recently an industrial photographer walked by my desk and saw the box for the 43mm FA f/1.9 and picked it up and said, "That's a $700 lens!" I just said, "and worth it." I predict that as long as you stay with Pentax cameras, you'll make heavy use of the 43mm and always be happy you have it.

Here's a sidewalk portrait as an example.

K-5 with Pentax SMC-FA 43mm f/1.9 Limited lens, 1/1000s, F/5, ISO 640, AF, AE, overcast day.

[snostorm]

Hi napawino,

You will have part of the answer when you get your camera and kit lens. Just go out and shoot with the lens locke at different FLs with the kit, then choose the perspective that you like to shoot the most. With the FL nailed down, you'll have limited your choices and get the best lens in that FL that you can afford, or you can research further by asking questions on the forum about a specific FL.

Scott

[napawino]

43mm F/1.9

That's also nice and fast. what is your experience in low light with it?

You will have part of the answer when you get your camera and kit lens. Just go out and shoot with the lens locke at different FLs with the kit, then choose the perspective that you like to shoot the most. With the FL nailed down, you'll have limited your choices and get the best lens in that FL that you can afford, or you can research further by asking questions on the forum about a specific FL.

That is a good idea. I bought the K-5 with the kit lens, so I'd have something to use right away, knowing that I would upgrade.

[napawino]

I'm liking what I read in this review of the 35mm macro.

SMC Pentax-DA 35mm F2.8 Limited Macro Reviews - Pentax Lens Reviews & Pentax Lens Database

[bjdavey]

I had hoped that one or two would be much better than the rest, and simplify my decision.

It depends on what you want to do with them. For walkaround, I carry my 21, 40, and 70 Limiteds - one on the camera, and one in each pocket. That's the beauty of the pancakes, you don't even need a bag to carry them in, and you have a super high quality range that covers just about all requirements. Looking back at my walkaround pics, the 21 gets most use - it's just right for most street needs.

[EsBee]

I did it with a DA40 for a while until (I felt) it grew too tall on me one fine morning. And then for a while it was the big, Tamron 28-135 that accompanied me but I just got an FA35 today. So far it seems like this lens would be good to go around town while being attached to a decent body -- fast to focus, quite sharp even at f2 with a small foot print.

And FWIW, I did try a friend's 21mm and while I thought it was a great lens, for walkabout I somehow felt it was either too wide or not long enough at times but as always, your mileage may vary.

[pentaxcat]

The three lenses that I prefer to use as a walkabout lens are the 77mm/1.8 Limited, SMC 105/2.8 Manual Focus, and the FA 35/2 AL.