[shaolen]

Does anyone know why they discontinued this lens?

[Paul the Sunman]

I think he's talking about the 645 lens. Originally introduced in 2011, and then modified with a different more restrictive permanent hood in 2012, and now dropped. There have been some mumblings about the company that provided the front element going out of business. Not sure of the full story.

A fabulous lens by all accounts, and sorely missed. It's not even on the 645 lens roadmap any more, so it doesn't seem there's any intention to bring it back anytime soon.

[lytrytyr]

Does anyone know why they discontinued this lens?

SDM??

[Adam]

That's surprising, to be honest. Perhaps they're releasing yet another updated version.

Adam
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[Paul the Sunman]

That's surprising, to be honest. Perhaps they're releasing yet another updated version.

That would be necessary if there was an intention for the next 645 to have a larger sensor, closer to true 645, since the second version of the DA 25mm vignettes beyond the current 645D/Z sensor size due to the hood.

[Adam]

That would be necessary if there was an intention for the next 645 to have a larger sensor, closer to true 645, since the second version of the DA 25mm vignettes beyond the current 645D/Z sensor size due to the hood.

I guess they could go a bit bigger, but you don't exactly see many complaints about the size of the existing sensor

[Kolor-Pikker]

The 25mm simply wasn't very good. Starting at only 3mm longer, the 28-45mm is sharper, is a zoom, has stabilization, only f/0.5 slower across the range, takes front filters, and debuted at the same price the 25mm originally did - putting it to complete shame.

What Pentax needs is a super-wide lens that's specifically formulated for the 33x44 format, possibly in tilt-shift flavor, it would sway a lot of Canon owners who still use the system for lenses like the 17/24TS-E. The 11-24mm is an insane lens and I don't see Pentax being able to match them even with a prime lens.

[Rondec]

I thought the issue was that their source for some of the lens elements went bankrupt and so they couldn't continue to produce the lens.

[Kolor-Pikker]

Even if the issue was "technical" in nature, if this is justification enough for them to go back to the drawing board, I'm fine with it.

[rfkiii]

I never thought the sample images Pentax distributed from the 25 were very compelling. Here's one.


http://www.cameraegg.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Pentax-645Z-Sample-Image-4.jpg


I am happy with the 28-45. I bought a 5DsR to cover the 11-24 range (on the list to purchase) and the 150-600 range. The 645z will be the meat of the sandwich.


OTOH, Thomas Brown does pretty well with the lens.

[jrpower10]

OTOH, Thomas Brown does pretty well with the lens.

2nd that. Wish I could afford the 28-45, but getting the camera tapped me. Gotta live with an A 35 for awhile.

[Thomasbrowphoto]

I'm not sure if they will ever be replacing the DA25mm lens. As stated above its not on the road map, and I can see it could be a tad too close to the 28-45mm. I feel there is definitely a need for a wider lens than the 28mm and for me personally 28mm is too tight for the images I like to make. The 25mm is definitely not perfect, but is no slouch either. Apart from the severe CA in bright scenes and slight softening/smudging on the corners.. And some samples even falling apart. It sits on my 645Z almost all of the time. Maybe one day they will give us a new wide lens. But I don't think it will be in the near future.

[mikeSF]

I'm glad I got mine before they stopped making them and I find it a great lens. Still hoping for something wider for tight seascapes.

Country Livin' (pt 2)

The Hannah Nicole Show

[donesteban]

Well, it is a bit sad. Especially if you got one of the DFA from Japan and are using both film and a 645D or Z. When using a film body, it gives a much wider view again, so you basically have two primes in one. The 28-45 might be sharper, especially wide open, but is not fully covering 41x56mm

[Kolor-Pikker]

Well, it is a bit sad. Especially if you got one of the DFA from Japan and are using both film and a 645D or Z. When using a film body, it gives a much wider view again, so you basically have two primes in one. The 28-45 might be sharper, especially wide open, but is not fully covering 41x56mm

Pentax can either continue making full frame lenses that may or may not be useful in the future, or optimize the optics for better performance today, kind of a trade off going on here.

With a telephoto lens this isn't as much of a problem, since you're not losing a lot of performance, but in a wide, they could easily make the lens wider, have a larger aperture, and smaller/lighter all at the same time by catering to 33x44. The hood will also cover the correct framing.

While the 25mm wasn't outright bad and many people did make good photos with it, you can say that a lot of wide-angle lenses for a lot of systems aren't bad either, meaning that with the Pentax system all you're getting are the bonuses offered by the improved sensor tech. Pentax needs to get that every new lens has to push the limits of the sensor so that the system as a whole would be more desirable, rather just for getting that one extra stop of DR over a D810.

For instance, the Sony/Zeiss FE 35/1.4 is an awesome lens even used wide open, and the A7RII is a spitting distance away from the performance offered by the 645Z. Why doesn't the Z have something like it? A 45mm f/2 lens would be very welcomed by many I can imagine, certainly by me.