[sumitkar1971]

Used my new K-1 with the 100mm for the first time this weekend to shoot some portraits at an Indian festival - I really enjoyed the lens on the K-3 but used it specifically for macro work. On the K-1, it is a very nice portrait lens

Attached Images

View Picture EXIF

File Date

 

View Picture EXIF

File Date

 

[biz-engineer]

Used my new K-1 with the 100mm for the first time this weekend to shoot some portraits at an Indian festival - I really enjoyed the lens on the K-3 but used it specifically for macro work. On the K-1, it is a very nice portrait lens

Great photos. Yes, 100 macro can do portraits. I like the multipurpose of that lens. It looks like there is a tiny bit of motion blur in the second photo. Shutter speed is 1/30. Did you enable SR?

[banep]

On my opinion this lens could be slow for portraits.
I'm using MF too often with this lens because of hunting, it slows me too much.
Anyway results are always great except purple fringing in high contrast situations.

[Saltwater Images]

While the D FA 100 can be slower to focus than a DA 70 or an FA 77 it can still be an excellent portrait lens in experienced hands. I often use my D FA 100 Macro WR on a K-5II to shoot from the sidelines in wet weather when coaching football. While I do miss some shots - I also end up with quite a few that are keepers. I have heard from a Camera Store review the 100 nails focus much better on the K-1 than the crop bodies. Keep shooting with that sweet lens - don't worry about purple fringing as you can clean it up in post!

[banep]

I have heard from a Camera Store review the 100 nails focus much better on the K-1 than the crop bodies.

That is absolutely true, at least in my case.
Unfortunately it is equally slow with equal amount of hunting in compare to my K5.
Don't get me wrong, I like this lens very much, in low light/low contrast situations it nails focus perfectly (better then K5) but I'm usually faster with MF in those conditions.
It is very easy to do manual focusing with K1 and DFA100 plus focus confirmation is perfectly accurate with this lens.

[pathdoc]

The 100 is a superb lens, but for the focus issues (I've used it on the *istDL and the K-5). Thank God for Quick Shift. The trick I've found is to get it as close as possible manually and then let the AF touch it up the rest of the way.

I am at times tempted to get rid of mine, but then there are a few shots for which it is suitable like none of my other lenses. And I want to see what it's like on the K-1 before I seriously consider ditching it.

[kiwi_jono]

Nice photos.
I cant wait to try my FA 100 macro on a k1 when I get one as it has focus limiter which really helps with AF on my k5.

[banep]

The 100 is a superb lens, but for the focus issues (I've used it on the *istDL and the K-5). Thank God for Quick Shift. The trick I've found is to get it as close as possible manually and then let the AF touch it up the rest of the way.

I am at times tempted to get rid of mine, but then there are a few shots for which it is suitable like none of my other lenses. And I want to see what it's like on the K-1 before I seriously consider ditching it.

Don't ditch that lens, results are much better on K-1, only AF is equally "painful".

Thanks for a tip, sounds like a good mix of speed and precision if the lens is not hunting. I'll try that asap.

[iudex]

I am just wondering that you shot with the K-1 + DFA100mm in 2014 (according to the watermark on the pics). ;-)
I think this lens is a good portrait lens on crop bodies as well, I bought mine as a relatively cheap portrait lens. While f2,8 might not be the fastest lens, the long FL pretty much substitutes for missing speed (as regards the DoF). It is my sharpest lens and I use it for portraits, macros and for long distance objects, so pretty useful. The only issue is focusing, which is noisy and slow (because of the long focus range; a focus limiter would help).

[cali92rs]

Used my new K-1 with the 100mm for the first time this weekend to shoot some portraits at an Indian festival - I really enjoyed the lens on the K-3 but used it specifically for macro work. On the K-1, it is a very nice portrait lens

I think that these shots would really benefit with a faster shutter speed and a bit more DOF. Remember, the K-1 is awesome at high ISOs. For these type of shots I wouldn't hesitate to use ISO 3200.

[MadMathMind]

Your lens is front focusing or missing entirely (or you selected the wrong focus point for the portrait--depends on whether you used auto or manual selection). Look at the bottom photo. The bottom of her necklace is in focus but her face is not. The focal plane was in front of her necklace so it ended up sharp (probably barely). In the top image, nothing is in focus. If you had back focus, some piece of her hair would be in focus, but nothing is. Makes me think the focal plane was a few inches in front of her nose so nothing is sharp.

The DFA100, when focused sharply, produces images so sharp you can cut yourself on them. Really. Here's some examples if you're curious:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/madmathmind/albums/72157672534152290

[sumitkar1971]

Great photos. Yes, 100 macro can do portraits. I like the multipurpose of that lens. It looks like there is a tiny bit of motion blur in the second photo. Shutter speed is 1/30. Did you enable SR?

Yes I did - Shutter speed was probably still a little slow. Thanks for the feedback

[MadMathMind]

Yes I did - Shutter speed was probably still a little slow. Thanks for the feedback

1/30 should be fine, even for people, unless you have shaky hands. Your lens needs calibration or if you're not doing so, choose the focus point manually, because the camera is picking wrong.

Here's 1/30s at f/2.8 and ISO1600, natural light. I focused on "notes/pad." You should get razor sharp images even wide open with this lens. It's almost ridiculous.