[1750Shooter]

New to Pentax & DSLRs in general. LOVE my K30D & even the kit 18-55mm isn't too bad, but... Does anyone, Pentax, Tamron, Sigma, et al, make an 85mm prime? I'm going to get a 35mm to replace the zoom & my favorite combo is 35/85. Thanks for any help. BTW, with a wife in college, inexpensive would help.

[Zafar Iqbal]

I own a Samyang 85mm f1.4 . It's lso branded as Rokinon and another brand which I don't remember.

It's a manual focus lens - can be tricky because of the large aperture but using a thirdparty focusing screen helps. It's cheap though and great for the price.

Samyang 85mm f/1.4 AS IF UMC Lens Review

I'm sure there are more - look under the lens database.

[Jimfear]

Sigma makes an AF 85mm f/1.4, it's far from cheap though. Samyang also makes an 85mm f/1.4, which is manual focus and quite cheap. If you don't necessarily want to buy it new there are many different older 85mm lenses for Pentax, some cheap, some staggeringly expensive.

[rawr]

You could also consider the Tamron 90mm f2.8 Macro. It's close enough to 85mm, it's got a great reputation for sharpness, and it's not crazily expensive.

[Zafar Iqbal]

You could also consider the Tamron 90mm f2.8 Macro. It's close enough to 85mm, it's got a great reputation for sharpness, and it's not crazily expensive.

Oh yes, I agree (I own that one too ) 2.8 isn't as fast, but it is a great lens (and macro!).

[elho_cid]

The Tamron is a fair macro lens, but not really good bokeh at portrait distance.
The Russian KMZ factory is apparently again manufacturing the beastly Helios 40-2 which is 85/1.5. Interesting lens.
If you don't mind buying used lens, there are plenty of options, ranging from great Leica-R APO lenses modified for use on Pentax to very cheap ones.
I had very good experience with Carl Zeiss Pancolar 80/1.8 but I sold it after buying a FA*85.

[rbefly]

Hello 1750Shooter, Welcome to the Forum!
Not exactly an unbiased opinion, but the M 85mm f/2.0 is my favorite M and one of my absolute favorite lenses in any series.
Small, fast, sharp, light and unobtrusive. Around $250-$300 when you can find one.
But, it's manual focus and manual aperture, you'll need to use the green button; Not the worst thing in the world, but takes some getting-used-to.
Jimfear posted a link to the reviews under "cheap", take a look at the photos there. By the way, cheap is a relative term when discussing 85's!
JMO,
Ron

[iwillau]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
I own the Sigma 85mm f1.4 and it's by far my favourite lens. BUT, it's far from cheap (just short of $1000) and also rather large. Really depends on what you want to use it for.
I agree with the combo, I travel a lot with the sigma 85mm and the Pentax 35mm f2.8 macro (also a nice and very versatile lens).

[ChooseAName]

The Samyang/Rokinon/Bower 85/1.4 is also much more easy to find than a Pentax M 85/2, as they are still in production, I believe. I saw a copy for $240 the other day on the marketplace but who knows if it's still there. You can get one new for $300 from Amazon Prime.

Now, if you're patient enough, you might be able to find the Pentax M 85/2 for a bit cheaper on eBay. A couple of months back, there was a copy on there for $175! The seller didn't accept returns so my wife asked me to pass on it, but I'm really kicking myself because with my impatience, I ended up paying $290 for another copy from Poland.

The Samyang 85/1.4 has the advantage that it's got the bigger maximum aperture, it's capable of being used in Av mode, and it's highly available. On the other hand, it's much bigger than the Pentax M 85/2 and filters will be more expensive. The Pentax is very compact and has a 49 mm filter diameter. (I have no direct experience with the Samyang so I can't compare the image quality, although I believe it's comparable)

[rawr]

but not really good bokeh at portrait distance

But but but ... they call it 'the portrait macro'.

[elho_cid]

But but but ... they call it 'the portrait macro'.

That's common statement, but only leads to bad photos.
I tried it, and didn't like the result. Then I compared it to DA70 limited and to 50-135. The Tamron had most bokeh fringing on portrait distance, also significantly more busy bokeh. Look at he comparison pictures at my review of DA70:
Pentax Friends Site - Galerie, Forum • Zobrazit téma - smc PENTAX-DA 1:2,4 70mm Limited
The price/performance ratio for macro is great (much cheaper than DA100 and not so much worse) but it is not your ideal portrait lens.

[southlander]

+1 for the M85/2. Have only recently acquired one, but initial use is most encouraging. Plan to test more extensively over the next month.

[simbon4o]

I have had Jupiter 9, M85 and sold them. Now I have Samyang 85 1.4 and it is the reason to sell the M85. You can also buy DA70 Ltd second hand but it is a hole 1 aperture slower so for me - too expensive for the performance.

[everydaylife]

In the dslr lens discussion thread on this site there is a sticky for lens reviews from forum members. You will find many kinds of manual 85s and not so many AF 85s. The manual focus lenses are the cheapest If you do not mind manual focus only. Myself I think the FA* 85 1.4 is a stellar lens but expensive. You can also look here
Stan's Pentax Photography
Lots of info and opinions about old pentax lenses.

Good luck