[MSL]

Time to launch the third edition of: Something Special About That Lens


The goal of this contest is to show off some special feature of a lens, whether it is a fish eye, bokeh monster, super starbursts, perfect for reversing, super sharp, dreamy colors, super fast wide open aperture / narrow depth of field, creative use of vignetting etc. Pull out that hidden gem you haven't used in a while and find how it can enable your creativity. While members are free to like any image they like, ideally voting should be towards images that show off the special feature of the lens. Entrants are encouraged to include a short description with the image to tell what special feature they are trying to highlight.


The formal stuff:

• 1 entry per person per month. Any brand of lens, but the photo should be taken with a Pentax or Ricoh DSLR/SLR camera.
• PLEASE INCLUDE a short blurb explaining the special characteristics of the lens you are trying to show off
• To enter, reply to this message and put your image in this thread.
• The top entries (this will be adjusted based on how much interest there is each round), based on total likes, will then be voted on in a poll for the monthly prize (one 128 GB SD card, or three (3) 32 GB SD cards).
• The 2nd - 4th place finishers in the poll voting each month will be entered into the December contest for additional prizes.
• Contest winners will be asked for a brief blog post describing the technique you used to shoot and process your photo, as well as what equipment you used. Additional information about the lens and how and when you tend to use it will be most welcome.

This month: 28 to 39 mm (absolute lens focal length, don't include any crop factors - no math required!). (I'm just waiting to see a head to head between the many top notch 28 or 31 or 35 mm lenses, or a creative use of one of the many zooms that cover this range)

Entries will close at the end of the month, but voting will continue until May 12 and then the shortlist voting poll will run for 10 days after that.

If you have any questions and they are specific to this month please put them here, otherwise please use this thread (Something special about that lens - NEW CONTEST series - PentaxForums.com) to learn more about the origins of this contest.


FINALLY: Whether you enter or not, please go view the photos from Issue 2 (Something special about that lens Volume 1 Issue 2 - PentaxForums.com) and LIKE the ones that you think best show off a special characteristic of a lens. To that extent, credit should be given for those who included a short blurb about their images as befitting the purpose of this contest.

[pepperberry farm]

FA 31mm f1.8 AL Limited

I just finished a month in the Single In Challenge with this legendary lens - this is what 28mm lenses want to be...

exceptional clarity and sharpness, smooth bokeh, and amazing color rendition - what more could you want?

[MossyRocks]

exceptional clarity and sharpness, smooth bokeh, and amazing color rendition - what more could you want?

To try one out for an evening of astro shooting because I really like to punish lenses.

[MSL]

And here I thought this month was going to attract so many entries given the range of lenses that qualified ...?

[MossyRocks]

And here I thought this month was going to attract so many entries given the range of lenses that qualified ...?

I just haven't made it out to shoot yet this month with an old wide beyond doing some testing of old lenses. Tomorrow I will be seeing what a couple of wides and an ultra wide can do with a barn at night.

[MSL]

I just haven't made it out to shoot yet this month with an old wide beyond doing some testing of old lenses. Tomorrow I will be seeing what a couple of wides and an ultra wide can do with a barn at night.

I'm glad you replied. While a future version of this contest might put a time limit on how old an image can be, in this inaugural round it is open to any time frame. So if you don't get a chance to go out, I hope you can dig through your archives.

[S.M.]

This lens is a ceap lens that is usefull for wide angle close up photography, wide open is unusable but closed is not bad, here a photo at F11 (with Pentax K1 II).

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Last edited by S.M.; 04-12-2021 at 08:20 AM. Reason: Ad the Pentax camera I used

[MossyRocks]

So if you don't get a chance to go out, I hope you can dig through your archives.

It appears I will be doing some digging since I was off by a month at least for getting a good milky way shot over the barn. There is one image I have in mind that I took 2 years ago from an old zoom that is kind of a hidden gem.

[MossyRocks]

Well of all the shots from a wide this has always been a standout shot in my mind. The lens is the Tokina 28-70mm F2.8-4.3 which some claim is is soft but if one nails the focus with it stopped down is actually pretty sharp. This was actually the first K-mount lens that I bought that didn't come with a camera (so non kit lens) and was the second zoom I owned. I have also used it at night as a faster 28mm option for some ultra wide astro shooting (astro is weird where anything shorter than about 1000mm is considered wide field) where it gives some nice stars even when wide open or very close to it. I use to use it a lot but since acquiring it I have gotten a lot of very good K-mount primes so it doesn't see much use now but when I want to travel light it is this lens, my old 17mm f/4 fisheye, and my SMC A 70-210/4. So while not the absolute best lens I find it to be a good lens and at the cost they can be had (about $30) you would be hard pressed to do better. Add in that it has a psuedo macro function and it is kind of a jack of all trades in the wide to short tele range even if it is a master of none.

This shot was done at the 28mm end of things on a nice humid evening with heavy air pollution which is typical of the greater Manila metro area. The sun really sets fast when it starts going down there

[bobphoenix]

I'm hoping the Pentax Kit lenses with zoom are permitted (provided they are within the focal length of the category, that is...)
if so, here is my entry for "Something Special About That Lens"...
Having so many sub-35mm lenses, my favorite of all time is my SMC-M 24mm. But, with that one having a sticky vane problem, which I have not been able to cure yet, (and now having a FF K-1) my go to, at the moment, is my HD Pentax-DFA 28-105mm.

Here is an image using this lens at 34mm, at night with lots of pinpoint lights in the image.
I like this lens because of how fine and how many, those flares are, due to the aperture blades.

This "Fraunhofer diffraction" effect makes a perfect texture effect, for me, and I think, really enhances the image...

So here are the Stats:
Camera K-1
Lens:
HD-Pentax-DFA 28-105mm @
34mm - f5.6 - ISO 400 - 30 sec. +.7 EV

Cheers

[MSL]

I'm hoping the Pentax Kit lenses with zoom are permitted (provided they are within the focal length of the category, that is...

Zoom lenses are permitted as long as the image was taken within the focal length range. And they can be entered more than once for each range they qualify for.

[MossyRocks]

I'm hoping the Pentax Kit lenses with zoom are permitted (provided they are within the focal length of the category, that is...)

Zooms are allowed so long as the shot that is submitted was taken at a focal length in the range. My shot I submitted is from an old 28-70mm zoom that was used at the 28mm end.

[cksandberg]

Traveling light in Japan with my K-3 and just two lenses. The 18--55 AL WR gave me great detail with just the right focal length to capture the sweep of the Phoenix Hall outside Kyoto at 35 mm.

[brofessor]

Pentax K-x, 35mm, f3.2, 1/125 sec @ISO200

Lens: 35mm f2.4 (aka Plastic Fantastic)

[bdery]

Here is my contribution. Image shot with the Pentax 16-85mm at 35mm.

To me this image evokes powerful emotions. A child looking into infinity and the powerful beauty of nature, while grounding herself thanks to the fence and the stuffed animal, giving her reassurance enough to face that open space.

I'm happy with the technical aspects, but it's the story that I really like.