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01-19-2023, 06:07 AM - 4 Likes   #31
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I’m late to the party but

I have K3IIIs and both the DFA*50 f1.4 and DFA* 85 f1.4. Both are wonderful lenses. Most of my photography is outdoor work so I tend to favor the 85 slightly.

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01-26-2023, 08:53 AM   #32
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Wow! Your doggie portraits are outstanding, getting right down to the nitty-gritty. The level of detail we can get with these late-model Pentax lenses and sensors continues to amaze me. That’s not to overlook your skill. Most people’s doggie portraits don’t come close to yours. Thanks for sharing them. I must add that the woman pictured is no dog, and is quite pretty.

I have to agree with your advice to Loyd go with the 50 mm lens on the crop body. As I posted elsewhere, for more than twenty years, I wished I could get a Pentax FA* 70-200 f2.8 lens, but by the time I finally got one a few years ago, I’d switched from shooting 35 mm film with an MZ-S to shooting digital APS-C, first with a K-5, then with a K-3. On those bodies, the 70-200 became in effect a 100-305 or thereabouts, which made it too long for the indoor shooting I usually do. While it’s amazingly sharp, it's quite big and is very heavy, and was more than twice the price (and nearly three times the weight) of the DA* 50-135 f2.8, the lens I actually should have bought, and did buy a year later.

The 70-200 won’t go to waste, and will get used sometimes when shooting outdoors. I also use it to shoot Mount Baker and the Olympic mountain range, which I can see from the windows of my home. It just won’t be the go-to lens that I had thought it would be.

Getting back to Loyd, the new 50 f1.4 should serve him very well, but depending on your resources, it might be worth a look at the DA* 55 f1.4, which is small, light, and much less expensive than the big FA* 50 f1.4. In spite of their nearly identical focal lengths, each lens has its own strengths, and on a given day, one or the other could be the better choice.

Sorry for being such an enabler. It’s always fun to help other people spend their money.

Last edited by Pentax4me; 01-28-2023 at 09:33 AM.
01-26-2023, 05:17 PM - 6 Likes   #33
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I agree with you on all points but one: no 55 for me. It will take me awhile to learn what the 50 can achieve. And every time folks generously share their shots and EXIFs (thank you perfessor5646), I learn in leaps and bounds.

Thanks to everyone for sharing your thoughts. Flowers anyone?


Cheers,
Loyd
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02-02-2023, 01:36 AM   #34
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In what way will the DFA 50 be better over 55 1.4 ? Just curious as i am also considering buying a portrait lens to go with k3 mark 3. The 85 mm is way too heavy

02-02-2023, 02:23 AM   #35
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QuoteOriginally posted by Urnamaster13 Quote
In what way will the DFA 50 be better over 55 1.4 ? Just curious as i am also considering buying a portrait lens to go with k3 mark 3. The 85 mm is way too heavy
Less chromatic aberrations and sharp across the frame even at f/1.4, faster AF that's more decisive off-center, less coma, to name a few advantages. I also slightly prefer the out of focus rendering, but both are very nice. If it was for APS-C use only, I'd be torn, because the DFA*50 is a lot bigger and heavier.
02-02-2023, 03:10 AM   #36
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QuoteOriginally posted by Urnamaster13 Quote
In what way will the DFA 50 be better over 55 1.4 ? Just curious as i am also considering buying a portrait lens to go with k3 mark 3. The 85 mm is way too heavy
The "F" in "D FA" tells you that it's made for a full-frame camera, so to cast that bigger image circle it's necessarily bigger and heavier, and quite a bit more expensive than the DA* 55 1.4 which is designed for APS-C cameras.

The D FA* 50 is designed to be used as a 50 on a full-frame camera, as a sort of general purpose lens, while the DA* 55 seems to be intended as a portrait lens, since its 55 mm focal length equates to 82.5 mm when used on an APS-C camera. On full-frame, 85 mm is favoured as a portrait lens, for the combination of angle and typical shooting distance. The 55 seems be designed to do the same thing on crop-frame cameras like the K-3 III.
02-02-2023, 03:53 AM   #37
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QuoteOriginally posted by Urnamaster13 Quote
In what way will the DFA 50 be better over 55 1.4 ? Just curious as i am also considering buying a portrait lens to go with k3 mark 3. The 85 mm is way too heavy
At a time before Pentax had a FF camera offering, the DA* 55 1.4 was designed to be a successor to the legendary FA* 85mm 1.4, and A* 85mm 1.4, both wonderful portrait lenses. They even designed the hood to a similar shape as the FA* one.

If you want the classic framing that a 85 would give on FF, then the 55 would be the perfect choice for aps-c.

If weight is a consideration, remember the DFA* 50 1.4 is over twice the weight of the DA* 55mm

02-02-2023, 07:03 PM   #38
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Good summary. Maybe i will wait for few months before deciding which portrait lens to go for.

I just did not want to end up in situation where i buy the 55 1.4 and decide that it is not optimal. Some reviewers have mentioned a squeak in focusing which concerns me.

Last edited by Urnamaster13; 02-02-2023 at 07:50 PM.
02-03-2023, 09:16 AM   #39
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QuoteOriginally posted by Urnamaster13 Quote
Good summary. Maybe i will wait for few months before deciding which portrait lens to go for.

I just did not want to end up in situation where i buy the 55 1.4 and decide that it is not optimal. Some reviewers have mentioned a squeak in focusing which concerns me.
What do you mean by a "squeak in focusing"?

Cheers,
Loyd
02-03-2023, 11:00 AM   #40
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mccsiz Quote
What do you mean by a "squeak in focusing"?
That's for the reviewers to answer, but the one I had produced more of an occasional faint chirp from the AF motor, nothing I'd call 'squeak'. Given that it the motor is driven by high-frequency switched currents, I would assume that's not unexpected.
02-03-2023, 02:06 PM   #41
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mccsiz Quote
What do you mean by a "squeak in focusing"?

Cheers,
Loyd
some reviews on our own forum mention that there is a sound at times while focusing which they mentioned as a squeak. Anyway i think i will take risk and go for this lens. it is lighter than the other candidates for portrait lens and cheaper.
02-03-2023, 03:15 PM - 1 Like   #42
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QuoteOriginally posted by Urnamaster13 Quote
In what way will the DFA 50 be better over 55 1.4 ? Just curious as i am also considering buying a portrait lens to go with k3 mark 3.
Ignoring size, weight and cost, the DFA*50 wins over the DA*55 in three areas:
It is tack sharp wide open, while the 55 has a bit of glow until about f/2.0
The out of focus rendering is more consistently sublime
The autofocus is quicker
02-03-2023, 11:30 PM   #43
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QuoteOriginally posted by Sandy Hancock Quote
Ignoring size, weight and cost, the DFA*50 wins over the DA*55 in three areas:
It is tack sharp wide open, while the 55 has a bit of glow until about f/2.0
The out of focus rendering is more consistently sublime
The autofocus is quicker
Nice summary Sandy. I have the DFA* 50mm 1.4 and it is a stunning lens all round.

If the OP is looking specifically for a "portrait" lens, the glow you mention could be advantageous, and indeed specifically designed into the optical arrangement.
02-04-2023, 04:17 PM   #44
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QuoteOriginally posted by JensE Quote
That's for the reviewers to answer, but the one I had produced more of an occasional faint chirp from the AF motor, nothing I'd call 'squeak'. Given that it the motor is driven by high-frequency switched currents, I would assume that's not unexpected.
I have the DFA* 50mm 1.4, and it makes a peculiar noise when auto-focusing on both my K3 and my K3 III. Without the lens hood, the sound is a subdued clicking as the lens tries to determine distance to the subject. With the lens hood, the clicking (rapid ticking?) sound is much louder and the search seems more frantic. I believe the noise originates in the part of the barrel where distance is displayed in feet and meters through a plastic window. I can watch through the plastic window as the lens rapidly and fractionally adjusts the distance ring. This is a brand new lens. Can anyone explain what is happening?

Cheers,
Loyd
02-04-2023, 05:01 PM - 1 Like   #45
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I cannot explain it but it isn't something i have experienced over the past year that I owned the lens. So i'd be very suspicious, in fact i'd send it back.

Last edited by Smolk; 02-05-2023 at 04:36 AM. Reason: typo
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