[Orbus]

A couple more from the K110D and SMC Pentax-A 35-105mm f3.5 combination. And, no, Mike, you're not delusional; I'm also increasingly drawn to that "CCD look."

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[E-man]

Love the padlock shot Mike! Sometimes people forget that these cameras were once state of the art. The cameras (and the folks who used them) took great shots then, and continue to take great shots now . I enjoy the challenge of creating a pleasing image using the limited technology of the old hardware. I love the vintage look of the older glass (Taks, M's, A's, etc) on these cameras - it's just something the modern cameras and lenses can't quite match. I appreciate you guys contributing to this thread, and hope we can keep it going!

Great point, Paul. It's amazing how quickly we come to regard things as 'outdated' anymore. I got my first 35mm SLR, a Minolta X-570, in 1984 and used it heavily for the next 20 years without ever really feeling that it was inadequate on obsolete, even though the model was discontinued a couple of years after I got it after Minolta's autofocus Maxxum series came out. A few years later, I even supplemented it with an even older XD-5 body, made in the late '70s, and I never felt inadequate about either camera. These days, I struggle somewhat with the--admittedly irrational--idea that my cameras might be somehow outdated or inadequate, just because another new model has come out. It's good to have threads like these to keep me grounded and loving the cameras I have instead of lusting after the ones I can't afford.

[Dan James]

I have nothing particularly impressive to contribute here yet (of course, that suggests I might in future - which may be somewhat hopeful of me ), but while testing my new-to-me *ist DL today, I snapped this garden flower. I can't tell you what it is, as I know even less about flora and fauna than I do about photography.

Taken with the old FA 28-105mm f/3.2-4.5 that came with the camera, at 70mm, f/6.7. Cropped to 1x1 and gently processed in LR6.

Lovely classic CCD greens! This is a major reason why I enjoy my 6MMP and 10MP CCD Pentax K DSLRs.

Taken in the garden with my K110D behind a recently-acquired SMC Pentax-A 35-105mm f3.5 lens. I'm pleasantly surprised at how sharp this lens is wide open!

I've looked at this lens on and off for some time, wondering if it could replace a prime or two. Your shots give further weight to the argument that it could! I have the A 35-70/4 which is pretty impressive, but the 35-105 would give me a lot more options between 50-105mm where I currently have very few.

Sometimes people forget that these cameras were once state of the art. The cameras (and the folks who used them) took great shots then, and continue to take great shots now . I enjoy the challenge of creating a pleasing image using the limited technology of the old hardware. I love the vintage look of the older glass (Taks, M's, A's, etc) on these cameras - it's just something the modern cameras and lenses can't quite match. I appreciate you guys contributing to this thread, and hope we can keep it going!

Paul, I think for me "the limited technology of the old hardware" is what actually makes these cameras so enjoyable to use - there aren't dozens of buttons and hundreds of menus, you can quite quickly set them up initially then need very minor tweaks as you go. So you can focus on just using the camera to make photographs, not constantly fiddly and adjusting.

"I love the vintage look of the older glass (Taks, M's, A's, etc) on these cameras - it's just something the modern cameras and lenses can't quite match." - Absolutely agree with this - and not just the look of the images, but the feel of the lenses too, so different to using modern plasticky AF zooms.

A couple with my 6MP Samsung GX-1S and A 50/1.4... The A series generally give more vivid colours than Takumars (my usual lens(es) of choice on the GX-1S and Pentax K10D), but sometimes that's just what I'm looking for. Having said that, these two shots are actually both quite muted for an A series!

[Skodadriver]

I've looked at this lens on and off for some time, wondering if it could replace a prime or two. Your shots give further weight to the argument that it could! I have the A 35-70/4 which is pretty impressive, but the 35-105 would give me a lot more options between 50-105mm where I currently have very few.

Well worth adding the A 35-105mm to your lens collection. I should put this on my 100D and try it this weekend, this is the 35-105mm with the K5, all I had with me at the time. Apologies for not having any shot with CCD sensor.....yet.

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Last edited by Skodadriver; 07-20-2017 at 01:05 AM. Reason: additional text.

[Orbus]

I've looked at this lens on and off for some time, wondering if it could replace a prime or two. Your shots give further weight to the argument that it could! I have the A 35-70/4 which is pretty impressive, but the 35-105 would give me a lot more options between 50-105mm where I currently have very few.

Dan, I'll echo what Skodadriver says. Like you, I also have the A 35-70 f4 and, while it is no slouch either, the 35-105 is definitely in a different league. I happened to come across mine in an eBay "buy it now" offering with three other lenses at a price that was just too good to pass up. The filter ring had a very slight ding which I was able to repair enough to make it functional. I slapped on a cheap and cheerful 67mm metal lens hood (also from eBay) and have been enjoying it ever since. It is a somewhat heavy lens and it does have a quirky "jog" to get it into "macro" mode which takes some getting used to. Could it replace a few primes? Maybe not in terms of speed, but as far as image quality, my eyes say, "yes!"

[ChristianRock]

This shot of the padlock on my garden gate is one I've taken many times before with different cameras, to confirm real-world vs test-chart AF accuracy at shallow DOF.

This time, I tried it with the *ist DL and FA 28-105mm f/3.2-4.5. Taken at 85mm, f/5.6, ISO 800, and processed in LR6 and Google Nik Sharpener Pro 3.

I am always impressed with the results from that lens... I had been looking for one for months now. It has the premium ghostless coatings and was sort of a premium optics middle-of-the-road lens, despite the plastic build. Sort of like the predecessor to the DA 16-45 I guess, but the same philosophy - unexpectedly good optics in a cheaply built lens. Also like the DA 35 2.4 I guess Anyway! Just gave up looking for one and bought a bunch of accessories instead with the money. It seems like people stick with them and don't sell them. The only one available in the last few months on ebay had fungus in it. The other one was waaaay overpriced. Oh and there was one in the mmarketplace that I missed out on, that one would have been perfect for me, it was black like yours

Congrats, that seems like a great combo to have! Color me jealous.

[ralph-uk]

Paul, I think for me "the limited technology of the old hardware" is what actually makes these cameras so enjoyable to use - there aren't dozens of buttons and hundreds of menus, you can quite quickly set them up initially then need very minor tweaks as you go. So you can focus on just using the camera to make photographs, not constantly fiddly and adjusting.

I agree since 'only' having 6MP forces you to compose for what you actually want since there isn't much room to crop later.

Ralph

[BigMackCam]

I am always impressed with the results from that lens... I had been looking for one for months now. It has the premium ghostless coatings and was sort of a premium optics middle-of-the-road lens, despite the plastic build. Sort of like the predecessor to the DA 16-45 I guess, but the same philosophy - unexpectedly good optics in a cheaply built lens. Also like the DA 35 2.4 I guess Anyway! Just gave up looking for one and bought a bunch of accessories instead with the money. It seems like people stick with them and don't sell them. The only one available in the last few months on ebay had fungus in it. The other one was waaaay overpriced. Oh and there was one in the mmarketplace that I missed out on, that one would have been perfect for me, it was black like yours

Congrats, that seems like a great combo to have! Color me jealous.

Thank you I was flat-out lucky to come by it. In fact, until I saw the ad for the camera it came with, I'd never even heard of this lens. Now that I've used it a little, I'm rather taken with it. On APS-C it works really well, though I believe on full frame it's not so good towards the borders? Not a problem for me, really, as I'm stuck fairly and squarely (and happily ) in APS-C land as far as Pentax goes. I'm quite curious to try it out on my A7 MkII though, just to see what those borders are like

[ChristianRock]

Thank you I was flat-out lucky to come by it. In fact, until I saw the ad for the camera it came with, I'd never even heard of this lens. Now that I've used it a little, I'm rather taken with it. On APS-C it works really well, though I believe on full frame it's not so good towards the borders? Not a problem for me, really, as I'm stuck fairly and squarely (and happily ) in APS-C land as far as Pentax goes. I'm quite curious to try it out on my A7 MkII though, just to see what those borders are like

They're supposed to be good in the middle of the range, a bit soft at 28-35mm, and not too bad at 105mm. And the A7II isn't quite as demanding - pixel size is more like the K10D. I think you'll like the results.

[paulh]

I'm stuck fairly and squarely (and happily ) in APS-C land

Same here. At this point, FF would be massive overkill for my skills, not to mention my wallet!
Youze guyz are posting some nice work here lately - keep it up!

An early attempt at bokeh from 2011 with the K100D and 18-55 kit lens at iso800:

[BigMackCam]

They're supposed to be good in the middle of the range, a bit soft at 28-35mm, and not too bad at 105mm. And the A7II isn't quite as demanding - pixel size is more like the K10D. I think you'll like the results.

Thanks for the info And you raise a good point generally about pixel size... A lens I'm very fond of (but one that doesn't get a lot of love in our reviews section) is the Pentax-F 28-80 f/3.5-4.5. I picked one up at a junk sale some time ago, and now have two, one of which is like new (also bought very cheaply). I really like its colours, and the out-of-focus rendering when used for close-up shots (well, as close up as the 80mm pseudo-macro mode allows), but I've only used it on the K-3 thus far... and the sensor does expose its limitations. Still, I like the overall look of the images I take with it - so, I must try it out on my GX-10 and *ist DL, as the larger pixel size should be more forgiving

[paulh]

An evening walk thru the trees - *ist D with Super Tak 28/3.5

[Orbus]

Pentax K110D; this time with the A50mm f.2.8 macro

[paulh]

Pentax K110D; this time with the A50mm f.2.8 macro

Wow - superb photos!

[Orbus]

Thanks for the compliment, Paul. It was kind of a dreary day today which provided some nice soft lighting.