Alizarine,
I agree with you. I bought the FA limiteds last year when Pentax had one of their tempting offers. As a result I switched from Canon. I was sitting on the fence with Canon. I never liked their flash system and the focusing in their mid range cameras. I wanted to go back to Pentax knowing they are a great value and a serious platform. Granted with all the video craze Pentax is behind in the game. But for pure still shooters they can compete with the best of them.
As I mentioned I switched and I do not regret it one bit. However, the FA Limiteds on an APS-c sensor are not practical. I tried to shoot an event and I was lacking on the short end. Then I realized that I am fighting a losing battle. When I shot Canons for events, I had a wide to mid telephoto zoom on one camera and one mid to long tele zoom on the other body. That allowed me to cover 99% of most events. At that point I realized that I need pretty much the same set up for a Pentax too.
Now the FA limiteds are relegated to my "artsy" shooting or giving me the bragging rights with my other Pentax buddies. As you said it, they are not practical. I am not sure if they are great either. They are good optically but not great. They are fantastic mechanically. They are a work of art esthetically. But in practice and for 99% of the folk including myself they are not practical. I had some loose cash last year. That is why I bought them. If I had to buy them today, I would have serious second thoughts.
I wish there was a full frame. At least the 31 would have been an adequate wide lens and the 77, a nice mid range tele. The 43, on the other hand, other than size is an oddball for a crop sensor.
With all of this said, the esthetic value is priceless. A few of my Canon friends are tempted to get them too just because they are beautiful and so unique. They think the FA Limiteds are Leicas at Pentax prices. My old timer friends who know what a Leica is think it is a bargain and a nice "toy" to have.
Go figure.
Last edited by btnapa; 03-18-2014 at 06:40 AM.
Reason: Copy addition.