[todd]

The 20 encourages me to be playful.

I guess that happened to me tonight...


I've really been enjoying this lens so far! It's the same FL as my FA20 but has a different (that Takumarishness) quality to it so I feel like I have two very different lenses..

I have both the 20 and the 24. I bought the 24 first. It has never excited me like the 20 did

I bought the (non SMC Tak) 24 first too before the (SMC) Tak 20 and have not had much of a connection with it. I will be looking to move it on here pretty soon I am almost certain of it. It's nice but not in the same league as the 20 at all... Maybe the SMC 24 version is better though..

[Andrew_Oid]

I have both the 20 and the 24. I bought the 24 first. It has never excited me like the 20 did. I hope your experience of the 24 is better. It might just be that I have not got to know it well enough.

I like 24mm, but there does seem to be quantum leap between the 20 and anything larger (i.e. 24, 28, 35, . . .). I have an AF Zeiss Distagon 24mm f2, but I don't really like its image quality. It's not Takumar, and there just seems to be something off about it, contrast and color I'd say. Back in film days when shooting Nikon, a 24mm f2.8 Nikkor was my favorite lens. In a few days I'll see what I think about the Tak.

---------- Post added 10-06-16 at 11:05 PM ----------

I guess that happened to me tonight...


I've really been enjoying this lens so far! It's the same FL as my FA20 but has a different (that Takumarishness) quality to it so I feel like I have two very different lenses..

I bought the (non SMC Tak) 24 first too before the (SMC) Tak 20 and have not had much of a connection with it. I will be looking to move it on here pretty soon I am almost certain of it. It's nice but not in the same league as the 20 at all... Maybe the SMC 24 version is better though..

Surely looks playful to me. Have you an opinion as to which 20 you prefer (and why)?

[Dartmoor Dave]

I guess that happened to me tonight...

Wow, that's a beauty. Everything about that one works perfectly for me.


It's fascinating to read everyone's opinions about the Takumar 20mm vs 24mm, and I think I agree with just about everything. I've got the Super Tak 20mm and the SMC 24mm, and their rendering is radically different. The 24mm seems to produce cooler colours to my eyes, probably more natural actually, but without that wonderful romantic glow that makes the 20mm so addictive. And of course the SMC has got much stronger contrast, almost too strong for my taste because I prefer a lower contrast look. That's why I'll always go for a Super Tak over an SMC, but it's a purely personal thing.

[todd]

Have you an opinion as to which 20 you prefer (and why)?

Too soon to say for me... I've had the Tak20 for only three weeks now. I noticed right away that it has nice bokeh, flare resistance, handling, colors (Tak) and is plenty sharp, close focus... I really dig it. I've had the FA20 for almost a year now. It gave me some really pleasing images on K-3, and some nice ones so far on K-1 too, but we went through some tough times together, when I broke it in June (while trying to remove a cheap hood I bought on ebay that was stuck, and it could no longer auto focus...) so limped along with it until getting it repaired last month... It has many of the same strengths as the Tak20, and it's AF and F2.8... Both have barrel distortion adn weight about the same... So yeah, if it was a pry them out of my hands contest, I don't know which one I'd put in my right hand...

I need to take them both out on a nice sunset/landscape shoot and compare them more closely, which usually isn't something I'll do... I did compare them both indoors the other day, and here are the results.. Unfortunately didn't keep the exact framing (travel tripod on chair)... Both F8 and 1 second exposures.. Lighting a litte different on each as I was holding a lume cube:
Tak20:


Fa20


Starbursts are another (minor) factor for me... On crop I am a DA15 flare/starburst fan and hope that RP releases and FF clone of the DA15 someday... I was familiar with the A20 from looking at images from others here and flickr, with its 10pt starbursts, and had read that FA20 is the same optical design as A20, so was excited when I had my chance to score FA20 at a deal last year. But then it was a bit of a disappointment when I first saw the 6pt starbursts from FA20, which I just don't like as much as the 10pt from A20 or the 14pt DA15. Just a minor detraction though.. It's actually been good for me in a sense because it takes the whole 'fishing for starbursts' factor out the equation when I am composing shots...

One of the first things I did with the Tak20 was check for starbursts, as I hadn't been able to find examples online prior to purchase, and then I found out why... It doesn't really seem to produce them. So far at least I haven't seen them, but I need to try harder. When the lens is wide open, in my couple tests so far it produced flare off the sun similar to my Preset Macro Takumar 50/4, though they are obviously different designs. The Tak20 is 'automatic' diaphragm, which I don't know what that means technically but I'm sure you could explain to me... I can say that so far I prefer the Tak20 "no starbursts" over the FA20 six pointers...

Here are the couple test shots of the Tak20 wide open sun flare. (Don't know why I didn't stop the lens down too... Guess I was busy in the moment being too enamored with other aspects of the lens):

Wow, that's a beauty. Everything about that one works perfectly for me.

The 24mm seems to produce cooler colours to my eyes, probably more natural actually, but without that wonderful romantic glow that makes the 20mm so addictive. And of course the SMC has got much stronger contrast, almost too strong for my taste because I prefer a lower contrast look. That's why I'll always go for a Super Tak over an SMC, but it's a purely personal thing.

Thanks! And yes, my Super-Tak 24mm does have the more natural colors and lower contrast comparitively. The other thing my copy doesn't have is the ability to focus to infinity. I was contemplating trying to adjust it myself but have put it off for now because I am probably not keeping the lens long term...

[Pen-A]

I bought FA20 for K-1 to shoot car shows mainly, because I noticed my Sigma 10-20 3.5 was usually at 14-15mm on crop bodies. The six blade bursts are a bummer for sure.. and my copy sucks at landscape photos also. Corners are pretty messed up no matter what f-stop . Well, I don´t shoot landscapes that much so no biggie . I´ve seen some really good corner performance from others so maybe it´s just my copy, but at least it´s center sharp from 2.8 on .

Anyway here´s a few of my latest shots, all at f4 after some PP :

[todd]

Anyway here´s a few of my latest shots,

All nice especially the last one...

I need to take them both out on a nice sunset/landscape shoot and compare them more closely,

Going to attempt an outdoor comparison tonight, since the fam and I are hitting the local theme park again after dinner.. And will make a determined effort for stopped down starbursts with the Tak20... The other night when we went I was just taking hand held wide open motion shots with it...

This one half a second braced:


This one half a second hand held, no bracing ,and a little bit of starbursts in top rim lights...


This one shows the potential of starbursts along the top.. Also half a second no bracing...

[Andrew_Oid]

All nice especially the last one...

Going to attempt an outdoor comparison tonight, since the fam and I are hitting the local theme park again after dinner.. And will make a determined effort for stopped down starbursts with the Tak20... The other night when we went I was just taking hand held wide open motion shots with it...

This one half a second braced:


This one half a second hand held, no bracing ,and a little bit of starbursts in top rim lights...


This one shows the potential of starbursts along the top.. Also half a second no bracing...

I really like how the people are rendered in the second example. They have that "volume" quality I was talking about. I also thought the close-up of the flower in the previous post was very impressive. Thanks for posting at length on your experience with the lenses.

[todd]

All nice especially the last one...

Going to attempt an outdoor comparison tonight, And will make a determined effort for stopped down starbursts with the Tak20...

Didn't get to the comparison it was too crowded. Did do some starburst tests and feel silly for some of the comments above. Just have to stop down to F11/F16 to get them, and they are kind of sprayed out, not super defined 10pt starbursts...

[zzeitg]

Sigma 20mm f1.8

[paulh]

Sigma 20mm f1.8

Very nice!

Vivitar 19/3.8:

[zzeitg]

Very nice!

Thanks, Paul. Two more with same lens below.

[jcdoss]

St Louis Gateway Arch taken with K-1 and M20/4 by Jason Doss, on Flickr

Excellent shots, everyone! I still love the diminutive M20, now even more on full frame.

[paulh]

Excellent shots, everyone! I still love the diminutive M20, now even more on full frame.

Very cool POV of the arch, Jason

Vivitar 19/3.8

[zzeitg]

Sigma 20mm f1.8

[RobA_Oz]

Sigma 20mm f1.8

I like both your compositions, particularly the second one. The first photo, though, has an edge to the out-of-focus shapes, that I find a little unsettling, but which the second doesn't have. Is that the result of post-processing, or the different combinations of aperture and focal distance?