[Cerebum]

My month with the SMC 120mm f2.8. If I were a portrait photographer, this lens wood be in my bag all the time. The medium tele length produces a nice separation from subject and background, but a strange focal length with the 135 just around the corner. Bokeh from f4 and wider is smooth and nicely blurred. As usual, I'll be keeping this lens , but now I know, or at least think that I know, when I need to pop this lens on my camera.


A few of my favorites for this month:

Absolutely gorgeous

[UncleVanya]

Preview:

Monovember Preview by -vanya_42nd-

[pepperberry farm]

end of month wrap up....

early on, I had a used copy of the DA 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 ED AL (IF) and loved it; when the focus gears wore out, I sent it off for repairs and it was determined that the parts were not available for a repair with out a donor lens, so I had to let it go...

I've missed it... and tried to fill that hole with several other superzooms and none of them ever had the colors or focus of the 18-250 - I've had a good copy of the DA 18-135mm for a while, but that lens just wasn't "it"...

so when I came across a NIB copy of the 18-250, I bought it.... and here we go:

it is a superzoom with a 'slow' aperture that gets worse the further out you go in focal lengths.... so you need a truckload of light to avoid having to run higher ISO....

MFD is reasonable, but allows for close up shots at the further focal lengths...

significant barrel distortion at 18-20mm, but almost any post-processing software will cure that, plus the lens will also give you purple fringing if you aren't careful about bright highlights/backlighting...

typical plastic build quality for a consumer zoom lens - zoom ring is nicely-damped, but the tiny focus ring has that expected plastic grittiness to it...

but - it is a superzoom, not a highly-corrected prime, so this is a lens of convenience not art...


or is it?

gimme some shots from the month... how about some bokeh?








or some color?






but the convenience of 18mm to 250mm is hard to ignore...

18mm:




250mm:




so - hugely capable, convenient, and actually quite competent....

the rest of my month:

Single in Challenge - October '21 | Flickr

[Benz3ne]

To wrap up October, a new-to-me lens (that I was actually trialling prior to purchase... of course, that purchase WILL happen) that I have become more and more enamoured with over the course of the month.
It's a bit of an 'ugly duckling'. It has some obvious signs of wear to the exterior, cleaning marks on the front element, I disassembled it and cleaned the internal elements but it still performs like a champion, as to be expected with the Auto-Takumars.
Focus is buttery smooth, it doesn't give you huge amounts in the way of fringing or aberrations, but it is keen to flare so a hood is necessary if removing all flare is your aim.
I set out with my own Lightroom preset to use throughout the month, which I felt gave me something of a 'cinematic' feel, entirely subjective of course. I enjoyed aiming for shots that fit that mood, and my personal favourites are as below:











Lastly, a huge thanks to everyone who has commented on my shots. I've tried to keep up with replying but have done a poor job of it, so my apologies too.

[Cerebum]

end of month wrap up....

early on, I had a used copy of the DA 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 ED AL (IF) and loved it; when the focus gears wore out, I sent it off for repairs and it was determined that the parts were not available for a repair with out a donor lens, so I had to let it go...

I've missed it... and tried to fill that hole with several other superzooms and none of them ever had the colors or focus of the 18-250 - I've had a good copy of the DA 18-135mm for a while, but that lens just wasn't "it"...

so when I came across a NIB copy of the 18-250, I bought it.... and here we go:

it is a superzoom with a 'slow' aperture that gets worse the further out you go in focal lengths.... so you need a truckload of light to avoid having to run higher ISO....

MFD is reasonable, but allows for close up shots at the further focal lengths...

significant barrel distortion at 18-20mm, but almost any post-processing software will cure that, plus the lens will also give you purple fringing if you aren't careful about bright highlights/backlighting...

typical plastic build quality for a consumer zoom lens - zoom ring is nicely-damped, but the tiny focus ring has that expected plastic grittiness to it...

but - it is a superzoom, not a highly-corrected prime, so this is a lens of convenience not art...


or is it?

gimme some shots from the month... how about some bokeh?








or some color?






but the convenience of 18mm to 250mm is hard to ignore...

18mm:




250mm:




so - hugely capable, convenient, and actually quite competent....

the rest of my month:

Single in Challenge - October '21 | Flickr

Damn! The DA* 55mm f1.4 has a new friend at the top of my wish list. These are ace

[pepperberry farm]

Damn! The DA* 55mm f1.4 has a new friend at the top of my wish list. These are ace

thank you...

[severalsnakes]

I wasn't sure when I was going to make it back here to you guys and this game, but I got the push at just the right time and I'm really happy about it! After a month (and another month and another...), I hope I can build back the habit again. I've taken a long break!

The M28/2.8 is a great example of the M series. It's sharp and the handling is reliable. Colors reproduction is rich and coatings are performance quality. I stuck with the lens all month, but it quickly felt too "wide" for what I was seeing, so it was probably a little challenging for my re-entry into daily shooting, but I was able to stick with it and just get the best shot I could make, even if it wasn't my vision. I think getting back into daily shooting and the SIC practice, and using different focal lengths, will help train me to adapt instead of just feeling disappointed in the gear.

Faves:

[robgski]

I've long praised the DA 40 XS, and encouraged every Pentaxian to own one. Compact size, f2.8, incredible results, versatile and suitable for most occasions.

A real walk-around lens.
In the garden

Initmate Indoor events like a Wedding

A day on the town

...and at night in the city

Or a sunrise the country

or a sunset

It even suits for panoramic landscapes

[UncleVanya]

I've long praised the DA 40 XS, and encouraged every Pentaxian to own one. Compact size, f2.8, incredible results, versatile and suitable for most occasions.

A real walk-around lens.
In the garden

Initmate Indoor events like a Wedding

A day on the town

...and at night in the city

Or a sunrise the country

or a sunset

It even suits for panoramic landscapes

I own the SMC DA 40, and I’m curious if you have expertise with it vs the XS?

[robgski]

I own the SMC DA 40, and I’m curious if you have expertise with it vs the XS?

I own both, I like them both, but the XS takes up almost no room in my bag or pocket, and delivers great results so I prefer the XS. Maybe I will do some side by side comparison between the two during this month.

[Riggomatic]

Absolutely gorgeous

Thank you

[Cerebum]

I own the SMC DA 40, and I’m curious if you have expertise with it vs the XS?

I had the XS but didn't like how it looked on the camera so didn't really connect so i had no problem selling it.I now have the limited and love that. That is going nowhere. IQ wise I can't see a difference, I just prefer the build and the focus ring. Its funny how aesthetics came into play but they were a genuine factor