I have a Pentax Z-20 film camera with a fantastic Pentax-FA SMC 50mm F2.8 Macro Lens (Autofocus, Aperture ring, 1:1 reproduction) and a Pentax-FA SMC 35-80mm F1:4-5.6 Lens that I haven’t used in 10 or more years. They are both KAF2 lenses I think. How would the lenses work on the Pentax ist DL2?

[UncleVanya]

Great!

The FA series of lenses is fully compatible. You will get standard metering, the ability to set aperture and shutter speed in any mode (lens aperture set to A), and autofocus via the screwdrive connection on the body.

The field of view (FoV) that they will cover will be narrower than normal making them seem like they were a longer focal length in terms of picture framing. The easy way to conceptualize this is that all lenses (even DA lenses) that are used on that body will appear to be 1.5x times longer than they are. So the 50mm macro will frame like a 75mm macro. The 35-80 will appear to be roughly similar in FoV to a 52-120mm. The 35-80 isn't the best lens but it's not awful either. I suggest finding an 18-55 or something along those lines if you want a wider FoV - the 18mm end is similar to a 28mm mounted on a film camera.

Does that help? BTW the FA 50 macro is a stellar lens with superb sharpness - enjoy!

Oh one more thing - the 1:1 feature of the macro is unchanged - the image on the sensor will be lifesize when used with the 1:1 setting. However this will appear to the same framing as a 1:1 from a 75mm lens which will appear to be larger than 1:1 magnification from a 50mm when printed or viewed. It gets confusing but just understand that 1:1 is in fact still 1:1, the sensor is just cropping a portion of the lens's projected image since the sensor is smaller than the image circle projected.

Hi UncleVayna, Thank you for the immediate and very comprehensive reply, with every thing so well explained, which is much appreciated. How does the ist DL2 sensor compare with the K100D or even the Canon 70D in size and quality?
I will put a new battery into my Z-20 to check out if the Macro lens is still functioning smoothly, not having used the pair for over a dozen years. Thanks again, Iggy

[UncleVanya]

Hi UncleVayna, Thank you for the immediate and very comprehensive reply, with every thing so well explained, which is much appreciated. How does the ist DL2 sensor compare with the K100D or even the Canon 70D in size and quality?
I will put a new battery into my Z-20 to check out if the Macro lens is still functioning smoothly, not having used the pair for over a dozen years. Thanks again, Iggy

I honestly don't know the answer on the sensor. I used an *istDS briefly recently (within the last year) and a K100D and K100D super are in my "collection" so I'm pretty familiar with them. They all used a 6mp sensor that was fairly similar I thought but the processing engine and autofocus on the K100D series might be improved. I'd look here: Pentax K-mount DSLRs - Pentax Pentax Digital Cameras - Pentax Camera Reviews and Specifications for reviews and info. A quick glance:

*istDL2:
The Pentax * ist DL2 resembles the *istDS2 but was offered at a lower price point made possible by replacing the pentaprism with a pentamirror and removing some features, hereunder TTL flash support and display of the active AF point in the viewfinder. The *istDL2 was only offered in select markets. Compared to the *istDL, the DL2 has electronic preview in addition to optical depth of field preview, and it has 5 autofocus points rather than 3.

Read more at: Pentax *ist DL2 - Pentax K-mount DSLRs - Pentax Camera Reviews and Specifications

K100D:
The 6 MP K100D is a very capable camera and introduced in-camera shake reduction to the entry level cameras back in 2006. The shake reduction works with all lenses, new as well as old. The K100D shares most of its technical data with the *istDS2 but in order to be able to reduce its price Pentax removed TTL flash support and changed the viewfinder from a pentaprism with 0.95x magnification to a pentamirror with 0.85x magnification. As a consequence the viewfinder looks smaller and darker than the viewfinder of the *istDS2.

Operating Manual



Read more at: Pentax K100D - Pentax K-mount DSLRs - Pentax Camera Reviews and Specifications

So honestly after reading those summaries I would suspect the K100D and *istDL2 are very similar. Both have PentaMirror, both include a 6mp sensor, and both lack TTL flash support. The IBIS (In body Image Stabilization) of the K100D is a very nice to have feature but not essential. The ISO performance of both cameras is pretty weak and the IBIS helps offset that on the K100D. Neither camera will work with SDM only lenses like the DA 17-70 or DC lenses like the 18-135. The K100D Super is the low end body that adds SDM support.

[stevebrot]

How does the ist DL2 sensor compare with the K100D or even the Canon 70D in size and quality?

With the exception of the 70D, you are talking ancient history here. To be honest, I see little rational to compare either to the 70D. The short answer is that all three are APS-C and have the same size sensor and that the 70D is a superior camera in every way. In comparing the two Pentax models, both have the same sensor and will provide comparable results. They differ in fine points of feature with the K100D being the more recent design and having better AF and also the SR feature.

Pentax K-70 vs. Pentax K-1 vs. Pentax K-3 II - Pentax Camera Comparison - PentaxForums.com


Steve

[UncleVanya]

Canon 70D is a 20MP more like the KS-1 or KS-2 in features than the *istDL2. A more appropriate Canon comparison would be the D60 (not the 60D) or the 10D - both of which are 6.3MP cameras.

My primary quest was to learn if my old Pentax-FA SMC 50mm F2.8 Macro Lens would work with any old Pentax DSLRs with most functions working.
The answer is yes including auto focus which is good to know.
In the past, I used the Z-20 with the macro lens primarily for aquarium fish photography, shooting through the glass at an angle, while using the small built-in GN flash.
Perhaps I should look for an old Pentax DSLR with TTL for best results do you think, even though I hope to shoot small creatures in natural light.
Iggy

[UncleVanya]

Not having TTL isn't a major issue. Auto flash modes are really quite good and the real limitation is the 6mp sensor in low light. My advice is to look for any one of the 16mp sensor models if that is an option. The change from CCD to CMOS (K20d?) brought a lot better low light performance and then the 16mp was such another jump ahead. It is an outstanding sensor and it is hard to overstate the improvement it makes in low ISO over prior sensors.

The K-5, K-5ii, K-5iis, K-30, and K-50 all sport this sensor. Of these the K-5iis is the best at low light but the rest aren't far behind.

As for aquarium shots I suggest a large rubber hood you can press against the glass to remove reflections. Also turn off the autofocus assist light and shoot raw. That lets you fix white balance easier and recover dark shadow areas.

---------- Post added 09-19-16 at 07:26 PM ----------

If you want to use flash get an external flash (af280T perhaps) and a rubber hood for it. Then place a wireless transmitter on the camera and a receiver on the flash or use a cable connection to fire this off camera.

The 280T might not be the right choice due to the very limited power levels in manual flash mode. There are lots of cheap manual options for wireless use. Be careful about mounting these on the dslr some tigger voltages on old flashes are too high and fry dslr's.

Thank you for the comprehensive replies that are all really helpful as when it comes to camera functions, I am still a novice.
When I find a cheap enough secondhand Pentax DSLR camera, I will resurrect my Pentax-FA SMC 50mm F2.8 Macro Lens.
In 2003, I did find that my light weight Fuji S7000 with its smaller sensor out performed DSLRs with larger sensors because the S7000 gave images with superior depth of field. I still use the S7000 occasionally today.
I will post again if and when I get a Pentax DSLR!
Thanks again,
Iggy

[UncleVanya]

Iggy, there are several non Pentax specific threads and sections. Don't be a stranger. We are always happy to help.

Just just found out that the Samsung GX 1L camera is probably the same as the Pentax ist DL2 apart from taking 4 AA batteries.
I assume that Pentax ist DL2 camera would work on the Samsung GX 1L camera with no problems and is as reliable as the Pentax.