[Kerrowdown]

totally agree, K-1 + DFA*85/1.4 is very powerful combination even wide open.

I've also found the K-1 + Pentax-A*85mm F1.4 "Sweetheart" is a very powerful combo too.

[Wheatfield]

In all these shots, it's all about the subject, light, background and how colors are rendered. With same skilled photographer, those studio shots could have been made with the kit zoom.

And you call yourself an engineer?
I'm really shaking my head at this one.

[biz-engineer]

And you call yourself an engineer?

I can do the same shot with a D-FA 28-105

[Wheatfield]

I can do the same shot with a D-FA 28-105

Sure, we'll go with that.

[Medex]

I can do the same shot with a D-FA 28-105

F8 in studio is a quite standard aperture and I am sure you are right about possibilities to make good pictures even using kit lens

[UncleVanya]

F8 in studio is a quite standard aperture and I am sure you are right about possibilities to make good pictures even using kit lens

I have to agree. Studio shots can still benefit from the “best” lenses but far too often we buy more than we strictly need. Skill and practice trump equipment on almost all fronts. The edge cases are real but just because something can be done better - it doesn’t follow that it needs doing better.

Nikon's 'Worst' and 'Best' Zoom Lenses Compared | PetaPixel

And yes, I post this probably enough you are all sick of it.

---------- Post added 02-22-22 at 01:30 PM ----------

I will also say - just because you can make a great shot from a poorer lens doesn’t mean that’s an equal effort. Chris Rankin (@LeRolls) might be able to shed light on lens choices. My recollection is that he switched from the FA77 to FA85 and found files much easier to work to his desired output using the 85.

Lastly the OP has posted excellent work that shouldn’t be overlooked. He might be able to shed light on how this lens fits his needs better than others he has tried.

[BigMackCam]

I have to agree. Studio shots can still benefit from the “best” lenses but far too often we buy more than we strictly need. Skill and practice trump equipment on almost all fronts. The edge cases are real but just because something can be done better - it doesn’t follow that it needs doing better.

Nikon's 'Worst' and 'Best' Zoom Lenses Compared | PetaPixel

And yes, I post this probably enough you are all sick of it.

In a similar vein, several times I've mentioned Erik Madigan Heck who, at least until fairly recently, used to do all his studio shoots with the same old, abused Canon zoom lens given to him by his mother... stopped down, of course...

[Wheatfield]

F8 in studio is a quite standard aperture and I am sure you are right about possibilities to make good pictures even using kit lens

The three shots he posted later appear to have been shot at f1.4. That's going to be a hard one to match with a kit zoom.

[Medex]

The three shots he posted later appear to have been shot at f1.4. That's going to be a hard one to match with a kit zoom.

I do not talk about OP's shots using f1.4 but about studio shots in general. It is common practice to use f8 for studio shots.
DFA*85/1.4 at f1.4 is very sharp lens and I like it and use it often wide open when I shoot outdoor, but studio shots at this aperture have some specificity due to shorter distances (not all studios are big): you can shoot face looking directly to the camera, but try to turn the head a little and one eye will be out of focus. For this reason (and for other reasons of image postprocessing / editing / photoshoping) many shoot in studio at higher aperture values.

[Digitalis]

I really disliked the lack of close focus.

Then you would probably hate working with Rangefinder cameras. For technical reasons (focus errors and parallax) close focusing really isn't the rangefinders forte.

I do not talk about OP's shots using f1.4 but about studio shots in general. It is common practice to use f8 for studio shots.

He's also using continuous light in a large dish diffuser, so f/1.4 is probably as much light as he can get out of it. Unless you are using extremely powerful balanced HMI lighting, or high efficiency LEDs (which often have problematic CRI's) a small studio is bound to get pretty warm if your target is f/8.

With strobe lighting where high output can be expected yes, f/8 is a common target for exposure. Though these days lenses with high performance at apertures of f/1.4~f/1.2 are becoming de rigueur and strobes with duration as short as 1:128th ~ 1:250th that can accommodate for the speed of such lenses are becoming more common.

[Kerrowdown]

Just as a side comment... me and my "Sweetheart" (Pentax-A*85mm F1.4) get along "jus fine" in life.

[pschlute]

It is common practice to use f8 for studio shots

I use f8 or f11 a lot in my studio shots. Not least because my subjects are dogs. Something to with the long snout apparently

There are times of course when only f1.4 will do.......

[UncleVanya]

Then you would probably hate working with Rangefinder cameras. For technical reasons (focus errors and parallax) close focusing really isn't the rangefinders forte.

Lol. I did own a Yashica years ago. I used it and loved it - but my choices were appropriate to the gear. I wouldn’t hate it, if work around it I guess. But given my options I found the 43 a little limiting.

[gatorguy]

I use f8 or f11 a lot in my studio shots. Not least because my subjects are dogs. Something to with the long snout apparently

There are times of course when only f1.4 will do.......

Exactly! I've often shot wide-open portraits, and more often than not staying under the typical 4.5/5.6 max aperture of a consumer zoom. (Yes Clackers I'm using my strobes and speedlights a little more often, but still love my LED's) Having 1.4 as that option on an 85mm opens up so many possibilities.

For those saying "anyone with a cheap zoom can do the same", IMO almost any old lens will do at F8 if that's all you care about using. But you ain't getting the OP's image using F8, tho probably with enough PP skills you might create an OK approximation. I'm not that skillful yet.

[Digitalis]

me and my "Sweetheart" (Pentax-A*85mm F1.4) get along "jus fine" in life

Typically the kind of thing said before a break-up or a divorce...