[OrangeKx]

I have to admit, I'd never heard of the Petzval lens till today but it looks like it's trying to make a comeback... just not for Pentax. Check out the video for this Kickstarter project.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lomography/the-lomography-petzval-portrait-lens

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Last edited by OrangeKx; 07-31-2013 at 10:17 AM. Reason: Forgot link

[Not a Number]

Interesting. Since it has no electronics or mechanical linkages it should be easy to put a K-mount adapter on it.

[VisualDarkness]

Well, no huge loss. It's not like Pentax lacks a selection of retro lenses.

[mrNewt]

They kind of look hideous on those bodies though...

[Anvh]

You would think they would make m42 version, ah well...

[redrockcoulee]

A number of people use them on large format cameras. The lenses work best if they are used on a format larger than they were designed for otherwise the "interesting" portion of the image is excluded.

If they were available for Pentax mount and Lomography made them from an original design they would be effective on film cameras much more than digital cropped sensor ones

I also think Lomography got caught with surprise with the demand expressed in kickstarter

[oxidized]

Well, I have to admit it looks cool, but it is really an extreme version of Helios 40-2. Looks especially cool on 5d since it is full frame. The problem is that its starting to become very specialized (i.e. limited purposes). It will be mostly good for portraits and the effect can get old really fast (just like using a fisheye). I think $500 is pretty steep for a new lens with a limited use and clear mechanical limitations (need to carry aperture diaphragms separately etc). And yes it looks really really weird on a modern DSLR. That being said, I am sure there are people out there who would absolutely love the effect and justify buying it. I imagine the creators realize that and this is why they chose not to include Pentax. We are already such a small part of the market and when you account for the fact that most people wouldnt pay $500 for this, there isnt that many K mount users left to justify the cost of producing the additional mount...

[rbefly]

Well, the good news is...
Canon users have something besides k-mount lenses to try out, and they don't have to chop anything up!
Pentax users have about a zillion other K-mount and M42 mount lenses in the 80-100mm range. Many f/2.0-f/2.8 primes to choose from, with various bokeh effects, including swirly and donut, round, oblong, halo, nervous, smooth, jagged, dreamlike and, lest we forget, buttery.
Wanna bet this historical wonder is $500 +? You could almost buy a Ltd for that!
No pledges necessary for us, no sir!
Most, if not all, of our lenses look pretty good mounted on the camera.

The downside is...ummm...ahhh, give me a minute.
Ron

[VisualDarkness]

They kind of look hideous on those bodies though...

I agree, something like an OM-D or Fuji could pull it off though but aesthetics gets killed but all those plastic round curves. Pentax at least got something odd that may pull it off in their K-01.

[boriscleto]

Wanna bet this historical wonder is $500 +? You could almost buy a Ltd for that!n

From the Kickstarter page.

The retail launch price of the lens is currently planned as $499/€499 and the Special Edition at $599/€599

The Nikon version will most likely mount to a K mount camera just fine...

[Giklab]

I love it how there was a guy on another forum who was pi*sed to bits that the lenses don't come in Sony mount, while here the reaction was pretty much "yawn"

[Not a Number]

The Nikon version will most likely mount to a K mount camera just fine...

As long as none of the external tabs or flanges are present this should be true (and there is no real reason to have them present). However as I recall the locking pin on Nikon is on the opposite side from Pentax bodies so in order to lock the lens you would have to rotate it 180 degrees. Perhaps the mount can be rotated 180 degrees - it depends on how the mounting holes are spaced.

Vignetting effects go a bit beyond "bokeh" (of course it depends on how you define the effect). The curved field of focus means that pretty much only the center will be in focus. Certainly not a lens you would want to photograph documents with.

[VisualDarkness]

I love it how there was a guy on another forum who was pi*sed to bits that the lenses don't come in Sony mount, while here the reaction was pretty much "yawn"

Sony always have the 135mm F2.8 STF I'm drooling over all the time, more special than an undercorrected Petzval. There are tons of swirly lenses in M42 mount.

[boriscleto]

As long as none of the external tabs or flanges are present this should be true (and there is no real reason to have them present). However as I recall the locking pin on Nikon is on the opposite side from Pentax bodies so in order to lock the lens you would have to rotate it 180 degrees. Perhaps the mount can be rotated 180 degrees - it depends on how the mounting holes are spaced.

Friction should be adequate to hold the lens in place. If you're really worried you can use a dremeled to make a new slot for the Pentax locking pin.

Or you could use one of the optically corrected adapters. In addition to extending the focal length it would add even more aberrations...

[mrNewt]

I agree, something like an OM-D or Fuji could pull it off though but aesthetics gets killed but all those plastic round curves. Pentax at least got something odd that may pull it off in their K-01.

Actually I think you are onto something... that black/yellow brick will be able to pull it off very easily...

Darn... now I want one