Hi everyone !
I have a question for all the long time Pentax users.

How does the glass compare to other companies ? (Canikon, sony ...) in terms of sharpness ?
I am looking to switch from my a7rII to the K1 since the new glass of sony is quite expensive !!! (And I like the extra features of the K1).
Is it possible to achieve ultra sharp result with legacy Pentax lenses ? How about the 24-70 and 70-200 ? Are they the equivalent to the Nikon and Canon lineup ?

Thanks all !!

[OoKU]

Yes,even more

[surfar]

K1 is shipping,this forum will be ablaze with hotshots very soon,just wait and see.

[fromunderthebridge]

Hi everyone !
I have a question for all the long time Pentax users.

How does the glass compare to other companies ? (Canikon, sony ...) in terms of sharpness ?
I am looking to switch from my a7rII to the K1 since the new glass of sony is quite expensive !!! (And I like the extra features of the K1).
Is it possible to achieve ultra sharp result with legacy Pentax lenses ? How about the 24-70 and 70-200 ? Are they the equivalent to the Nikon and Canon lineup ?

Thanks all !!

You will be able find sufficient amount of sharp glass. Very specific specialty lenses may not be available (e.g. tilt-shift except that Samyang model I know of). Also availability of 'fastest' fast glass at specific focal lengths may vary (e.g. 1.8 on Pentax vs 1.4 on Canikon).

Legacy lenses can produce pleasing and/or sharp results in various cases, however, picking the 'winners' will require research as not all are sharp or good. Nothing wrong with that though and some lenses may produce pleasing effects even when not that sharp.

The new zooms are modern and should be up-to-par with comparable Canon/Nikon alternatives regarding image quality.

In summary, you most likely will be able to obtain all the necessary lenses for Pentax system, unless you have very specific requirements. Do go through the 3rd party lens support (Sigma, Samyang etc) and the available native lenses to ensure you don't run up against any brand 'quirks' and have all you require.

Best regards

---------------

EDIT: Btw, body quality and ergonomics for Pentax are awesome and one of the main reasons people can pry my Pentax cameras from my cold, dead hands.

[pathdoc]

Most of the legacy Pentax glass was designed in the days before wall-to-wall tack sharpness became the photography world's obsession. The film-era FA Limiteds in particular were designed for a specific "look" of rendering.

Certainly as an amateur/enthusiast, I know I will never want for sharp enough glass.

The quality of legacy Pentax glass is evidenced by our anger at DSLR videographers who butcher the aperture actuation levers of older Pentax and later Takumar lenses so they won't foul the mirror on some Canon bodies - even though the hacking up of these lenses' most important mechanical part makes baby Jesus cry (because it makes them useless on Pentax bodies ever after), it's sort of a point of pride that they prefer our glass to theirs.

[C_Jones]

If you get the K-1 there is going to be a sufficient selection of very effective lenses for you to use. As you mentioned, the features of the K-1 are an asset in itself.

I appreciate all the responses... I found out a link that refer to all compatible lenses for the K-1. I like the fact that the mount is the same since a very long time making all kind of lenses available.

I will definitely sell my Sony gear since I don't really like the handling and the viewfinder.
I guess I'll just have to wait until first review and the ability to see some Raws to see for myself. This sounds like exiting times !!

[alamo5000]

I actually did an informal test between a Canon 50mm L series lens and my FA Limited lenses. Canon had the edge on aperture (f1.2) but beyond that they were easily very similar... and if you were really out pixel peeping the Pentax lenses won. Then you have to talk about the rendering effect and all that stuff too...

Just on sheer sharpness Pentax FA lenses hold their own with the best of them.

Really interesting ! May I ask what body where you using for your test ?
I am really self conscious about that kind of stuff. I spent months trying different lenses for my sony setup to end up with the one that gave me the better feel/rendition/sharpness.

[alamo5000]

Really interesting ! May I ask what body where you using for your test ?
I am really self conscious about that kind of stuff. I spent months trying different lenses for my sony setup to end up with the one that gave me the better feel/rendition/sharpness.

I can't recall but I think I was using a K-5 and whatever whiz bang camera body they had on hand. I am really not sure.

I will say this though... you can do all the tests you want but none of that really matters in the real world. I have several photographers that I like to call my mentors who are shall we say... GOOD?

One guy... way back in the day (maybe in the early 90's) went on a trip with a film body and a couple of lenses...before he left he loaded a roll of 36 exposure film into the camera...

By the time he came back he had not even finished off the first roll of film yet, but he got 3 shots off that roll published in National Geographic.

I kid you not.

I made the mistake of b**ching about gear to him once and he pretty much told me to shut up with all that.

I have heard the same thing from several other really good photographers as well.

You can do all the tests you want but all those lab tests won't make a bad photo into a good photo. If you have a reasonably sharp lens then after that the rest is all on you....

I completely agree with your statement. The "Reasonably sharp" part was the important factor for me. It look like Pentax got a decent line of lenses that will do wonders with the new full frame body. The other important part is to have fun with the camera after all. And that's why I am considering Pentax.

Thank you again !

[christiandre]

Sharpness (& microcontrast, 3d effect) on Pentax ? Find a zeiss 35mm, 50mm, 85mm ZK.... Just amazing, never seen better association

Awesome tip ! I will definitely look more closely into that !

[ColiNiloK]

Though we need to see how they perform on the K-1, the 3 new DFA/DFA* f2.8 lenses would be plenty sharp, the DFA 24-70 and 15-30 are pretty much rebadged Tamrons, and if you look at the Tamron 24-70 and 15-30 both are both excellent lenses, especially the 15-30. I have used the Tamron 24-70 many times on 5D3, it is very sharp, just the distortion I'm not really a fan of. The DFA* 70-200 seem to a very sharp lens from pictures I saw online, it give me the impression that is pretty much as sharp as the Canon 70-200 L II, which is one of the best 70-200 lens out now, let's wait and see how the DFA* 70-200 really performs when reviewers test it on the K-1.

The others might know more about the FA limited lenses than me, and as they have mentioned above, there are plenty of older Pentax lenses that's plenty sharp. If you are not sure, the FA* and FA limited lenses are great, I especially like the FA*85, it won't be softer than CaNikon 85mm f1.4G /85mm f1.2L.

Zeiss ZK lenses are definitely worth a look, I wish the launch of K-1 means Zeiss will re-introduce ZK lenses and bring their new Milvus and Otus lineup to K mount too. Oh yes, don't forget about the Sigma 35mm f1.4 Art, a very sharp lens indeed( Hope Sigma introduces more new Art and Sports lenses to K mount as well, as Tamron too).

Speaking of Sony, I'm a long time Sony/Minolta user, and I have mentioned this a few times on this forum, I too don't enjoy the A7 series' ergonomics compared to A mount's, the FE system has many shortcomings and Sony just seems to patch things up with every lens and every generation of A7 bodies, while left the better engineered A mount in cold winter....

However I have to say the amount of tech Sony put into A7RII & A7SII are pretty impressive (but you are right, the K-1 still have more interesting features) and their EVF are one of best EVF out there. As mush I hate their pricing of A7RII & SII bodies and G Master lenses (and how the G Master lenses are unbalanced on the A7 series bodies), the G Master lenses are simply stellar performers. I have't read as much about the 85mm G Master, but the 24-70 G Master seem to beat pretty much every 24-70 lens out there. What Sony needs is a bigger more pro A9 body to balance it( but the price will be more too)or they should introduce the G Master lineup to to A mount and keep develop A mount bodies.

[NaClH2O]

Hi everyone !
I have a question for all the long time Pentax users.

How does the glass compare to other companies ? (Canikon, sony ...) in terms of sharpness ?
I am looking to switch from my a7rII to the K1 since the new glass of sony is quite expensive !!! (And I like the extra features of the K1).
Is it possible to achieve ultra sharp result with legacy Pentax lenses ? How about the 24-70 and 70-200 ? Are they the equivalent to the Nikon and Canon lineup ?

Thanks all !!

Check out this link for what the FA limited (31, 43 and 77mm) lenses can do. I linked the last page because this 'lens club' has been around a good long while and many of the early page photo links are broken, so just work your way backwards. Gives you a good idea of what all the talk is about. Eye candy here!

NaCl(can't wait to see what they can do on the new K-1)H2O