Originally posted by MXLX I'm starting to search for one of the "grail" lenses, the 85mm.
I had a similar itch to own a 85mm, and ended up buying the SMC K 85/1.8 (the K-mount version of the SMC Takumar). On the basis that if you've going to spend money on an expensive manual lens, you may as well try to buy the best you can. The A* was out of reach and I waited some time before finding an affordable-to-me K version. I wasn't disappointed. Physically, it's a very handsome lens, and optically impressive. After using it every day for a month on a Daily challenge, I posted a 10/10 review on Forum's lens reviews (so I won't repeat what you can read there).
However, I found that I wasn't using the lens nearly as much as I thought I would - on crop or FF. The K135/2.5 seemed to open up more interesting photo opportunities, even as a portrait lens. So it turned out to be an expensive lens sitting on the shelf.
Then I saw a good-value Super Takumar 85/1.9 for sale, and thought that if it's anywhere near as good I'd sell the 85/1.8. The 85/1.9 is an older optical design dating back (I believe) to the Auto-Takumars, with lesser coatings. My copy was well under half the price of the K85mm.
And is it half the lens? Not at all. Ergonomically, it's more tactile to use with the all metal focus ring (compared to the K85's hard rubber covered ring). Optically, the 85/1.9 is probably a tad softer across the stops, and the lesser coatings result in a slightly more dreamy rendering. But I actually prefer that - generally, I prefer the Auto-Takumar renderings to the later SMCs. It's just a personal preference, and I'm happy to do the pp'ing required to compensate for any lack of contrast. To my eyes, the 85/1.9 bokeh is better than the 85/1.8; sharp enough on the in-focus parts with softer and creamier oof areas - and others have said so too. Not that the 85/1.8 has anything other than beautiful isolation/bokeh. I ended up selling the 85/1.8 for a profit.
Coincidentally, I took out the 85/1.9 on the walk to work yesterday - the first time I've used it for ages - and here is a pp'd snap from the walk, taken wide open.
Hope this helps and happy hunting, Simon