[pdophoto]

Taken with my most expensive and oldest lens on K200D, Super-Takumar 55/1.8 purchased new in 1962 with a Pentax SV.

[Argenticien]

So, this was daft: I had grabbed the K20D and run outside to get a picture of this d@mned woodpecker who was pecking on my house. I wasn't quite fast enough to get him before he flew off, but snow and other detritus started falling on my head, so I looked up and directly above me fidgeted a finch (I think) in the pine tree beneath which I stood. I popped off three pictures of him. He then flitted off. I chimped. The pictures were in monochrome! D'oh!! That'll teach me, never leave the camera on monochrome; you never know when you'll next grab it and use it without time to check settings. (One can always convert from color to monochrome in PP, but not the other way -- unless there's something I don't know?) So here we have a bright yellow bird against the brown branches, green pine needles, and white snow tufts. Really. (Please, use your imagination.)
--Dave

K20D, Super Tak 135/3.5, 50% crop:

[dude163]

Tak 50mm f1.4 wide open

[v5planet]

Well, the last few nights I've been trying my hand at some basic astrophotography, with my camera attached via adapters to my telescope, turning it, in effect, into a 2000mm ƒ/10 lens. Normally this involves directly attaching the camera to the scope's tube, but tonight I decided to shoot handheld with a Takumar on my camera looking into an eyepiece on the telescope. Here is the result:

I don't think I'll continue with this method, but it was worth a try, as I have seen some very good results. This was with the 50/1.4 wide open, handheld up to the eyepiece as mentioned, and composited from about 19 frames. The field of view in the eyepiece is small, and even smaller when you try to frame it with a handheld camera. I can't tell you how many times I bumped the front element of my lens against the rubber eyecup of the telescope's eyepiece in the dark waiting for the scope's vibrations to die down so I could get a clean shot. Whoops!

Notice the characteristic warm glow of the radioactive 50/1.4 in this moon shot.

[stash]

I don't think I'll continue with this method, but it was worth a try, as I have seen some very good results. This was with the 50/1.4 wide open, handheld up to the eyepiece as mentioned, and composited from about 19 frames. The field of view in the eyepiece is small, and even smaller when you try to frame it with a handheld camera. I can't tell you how many times I bumped the front element of my lens against the rubber eyecup of the telescope's eyepiece in the dark waiting for the scope's vibrations to die down so I could get a clean shot. Whoops!

Notice the characteristic warm glow of the radioactive 50/1.4 in this moon shot.

Nevertheless it's an amazing shot of the moon. Great

[Mike Cash]

Pentax K20D
S-M-C Takumar 105/2.8

Hand-lettered signs by someone who has a remarkably poor grasp of Japanese calligraphy protesting plans to construct a funeral parlor in his neighborhood. I've seen several places which have protest signs regarding precisely the same thing so I am led to believe that the desire to have such establishments in somebody else's neighborhood must be fairly common in Japan. I don't know if such feelings arise out of not wanting additional traffic in the area (which I doubt to be the case) or just due to some primitive heebie-jeebies regarding the dead (which is what I suspect is the real reason).

Every place that I have seen these signs so far I have also eventually seen the funeral parlor constructed and in business. In each case with ample parking, tastefully constructed, and in no readily discernible way doing anything other than providing a service that eventually everybody has use for.

[dude163]

tak 50 wide open

[v5planet]

tak 50 wide open

dude, I love the DOF and the color processing. Nicely done!

[Porga]

Punk is not dead.

Pentax k-x
SMC Takumar 50/1.4
extension tube

[pdophoto]

Punk is not dead

Apparently not, but this one is very beautiful. Sharp as always.
Never seen this type of ice crystals except on photos.

[dude163]

Thanks V5 , I wasa busy lad at teh coffee shop, here is another shot I took that I liked

my daughter , Tak 50 f1.4 @ f1.4

[theunartist]

SMC Tak 55 f2 - At Rest...


Details

[elliott]

Got my first Takumar today at a flea market, a Super Takumar 50mm f1.4, I believe the later 7 element version. It was $5 with a Honeywell Spotmatic that appears to be functional. It had a broken skylight filter on it that was a pain to get off because the edge was dented, but once it came off, the threads were perfectly intact. Glass appears flawless, don't see any dust inside either.

Can't wait to put it to use, the focus ring and aperture ring feel awesome, I thought my M 50 f1.4 felt smooth, the Takumar is on a whole different level.

[pickles]

Well, the last few nights I've been trying my hand at some basic astrophotography, with my camera attached via adapters to my telescope, turning it, in effect, into a 2000mm ƒ/10 lens. Normally this involves directly attaching the camera to the scope's tube, but tonight I decided to shoot handheld with a Takumar on my camera looking into an eyepiece on the telescope. Here is the result:

I don't think I'll continue with this method, but it was worth a try, as I have seen some very good results. This was with the 50/1.4 wide open, handheld up to the eyepiece as mentioned, and composited from about 19 frames. The field of view in the eyepiece is small, and even smaller when you try to frame it with a handheld camera. I can't tell you how many times I bumped the front element of my lens against the rubber eyecup of the telescope's eyepiece in the dark waiting for the scope's vibrations to die down so I could get a clean shot. Whoops!

Notice the characteristic warm glow of the radioactive 50/1.4 in this moon shot.

Well done, you'd have to be happy with that.
Cheers, Pickles.

[ducdao]

Got my first Takumar today at a flea market, a Super Takumar 50mm f1.4, I believe the later 7 element version. It was $5 with a Honeywell Spotmatic that appears to be functional. It had a broken skylight filter on it that was a pain to get off because the edge was dented, but once it came off, the threads were perfectly intact. Glass appears flawless, don't see any dust inside either.

Can't wait to put it to use, the focus ring and aperture ring feel awesome, I thought my M 50 f1.4 felt smooth, the Takumar is on a whole different level.

What a steal! You'll love it. Your lens seems to suffer the yellowing issue, a sun bath for the lens could be useful.