K-3IIIM and 30yr old FA*200 f/2.8

Ned Bunnell · 05-25-2023, 05:25 AM

Originally posted by gatorguy

Very nice performance from that old lens. Well done!

What surprises me a little is this old lens, while always a sharp performer on my color cameras like the K-5IIs and K-1 II, has never performed better than with this mono sensor. I’ve got an long time friend, who was telling me the FA*200 is an outdated lens design, but when he saw my samples he was blown away

gatorguy · 05-25-2023, 05:33 AM

Originally posted by Ned Bunnell

What surprises me a little is this old lens, while always a sharp performer on my color cameras like the K-5IIs and K-1 II, has never performed better than with this mono sensor. I’ve got an long time friend, who was telling me the FA*200 is an outdated lens design, but when he saw my samples he was blown away

That doesn't surprise me. The K3III in general seems to perform really well with old lenses. It definitely has a more assertive and faster focus motor, even bringing back from the dead a failed SDM on a *55 I have.

Ned Bunnell · 05-25-2023, 05:36 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by denopp14

Great shots Ned...love the punchy contrast, did u use any color filters on the KiiiM yet?

Thanks! I haven’t tried any filters yet. But I can tell you based on using an M10M for three months a few years ago, by comparison there’s almost no need to use filters with the K3M based on my tests so far. I will at some point do some shots with and without filters, but it’s not mandatory like I found was the case with the M10M.

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05-25-2023, 05:25 AM	#16
Ned Bunnell Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2017 Posts: 44 Original Poster	Originally posted by gatorguy Very nice performance from that old lens. Well done! What surprises me a little is this old lens, while always a sharp performer on my color cameras like the K-5IIs and K-1 II, has never performed better than with this mono sensor. I’ve got an long time friend, who was telling me the FA*200 is an outdated lens design, but when he saw my samples he was blown away

05-25-2023, 05:33 AM	#17
gatorguy Moderator Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Central Florida Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,092	Originally posted by Ned Bunnell What surprises me a little is this old lens, while always a sharp performer on my color cameras like the K-5IIs and K-1 II, has never performed better than with this mono sensor. I’ve got an long time friend, who was telling me the FA200 is an outdated lens design, but when he saw my samples he was blown away That doesn't surprise me. The K3III in general seems to perform really well with old lenses. It definitely has a more assertive and faster focus motor, even bringing back from the dead a failed SDM on a 55 I have.

05-25-2023, 05:36 AM - 1 Like	#18
Ned Bunnell Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2017 Posts: 44 Original Poster	Originally posted by denopp14 Great shots Ned...love the punchy contrast, did u use any color filters on the KiiiM yet? Thanks! I haven’t tried any filters yet. But I can tell you based on using an M10M for three months a few years ago, by comparison there’s almost no need to use filters with the K3M based on my tests so far. I will at some point do some shots with and without filters, but it’s not mandatory like I found was the case with the M10M.