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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
08-12-2018, 06:01 PM
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BTW, I should have added that mine is MIJ ;)
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
08-10-2018, 10:49 AM
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When Ritz/Kits Camera folded a few years ago, their inventory was apparently bought sold at lot as part of inventory liquidation. Part of that inventory was a goodly number of Pentax lenses and cameras. A few months later, Prodigital2000, an eBay storefront, featured a good selection of Pentax stuff. Included were several Pentax-A 77/1.8 Limited in black. I believe the asking price was $789 BIN or "Make Offer". On a lark, I offered $500 and it was accepted. The lens was brand-new with N. America warranty and included 3-year Mac contract and a very nice Cokin skylight filter.
Steve
(...unbelievably lucky, eh?)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-01-2017, 10:00 AM
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Yep...you and one other person on those two threads. I still think you should add a review calling out your experience with this problem. As for rarity, separation is not unknown. We probably see a half dozen examples per year on this site involving a wide range of lenses. I have had a couple come through my hands as part of various purchases. It is common enough that most repair technicians are able to do the repair for a reasonable cost. The ones I had, I gave in trade for other stuff with my local repair guy and he fixed them for resale.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-26-2017, 04:41 PM
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I pondered this statement for awhile, particularly in consideration of the nature of mythic pixie dust. My FA 77/1.8 is the most expensive lens on my shelf, though I am not sure it is the sharpest. It definitely has a bounty of pixie dust, but I am not confident that it has the most of that substance either. For many subjects, my Helios 44M 58/2 will match it grain for grain of the pixies precious output.
I have a handful of lenses that generally shine regardless of the subject and light. The FA 77/1.8 is one of them. The others are my Sigma 17-70/2.8-4.0 (C), Pentax-M 50/1.7, and Pentax-FA 35/2. Adding a variance for subject matter and the KMZ MC Zenitar 16/2.8 Fisheye also counts. I can recommend any member of that list with only the minor reservation that the Zenitar will probably have to be adjusted for infinity focus.
All that being said, for a given subject, there is a bit of overlap in terms of suitability to task. For example, one of the below was taken with the FA 77/1.8 and was explored in Flickr. The other was taken with the LZOS MC Jupiter-9 85/2 and while it was not explored, I consider it to be a credible bit of camera p0rn. Both have about 10,000 views, more or less.
Addendum: There is only one lens in my kit that could have taken the photo below...that is the FA 77/1.8, due to the simple combination of performance, focal length, and features.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-25-2017, 01:54 PM
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Thanks for reminding us of this very important fact.
My M42 Jupiter-9 (I also have one in Contax/Kiev mount) is a multi-coated version of recent manufacture and is on my list of "will never sell" lenses. I did not bring it into this discussion thread because it is sort of cumbersome in use and as you noted, sort of special purpose. My avatar photo was taken with the J-9...
And I have used it on 35mm film with good success too. Mine has pretty good edge sharpness.
...and the bokeh is uniformly good even stopped down a bit (I do most of my work with this lens at f/4 and f/5.6).
If one has the opportunity to purchase the FA 77/1.8 at a price that is manageable, but all means do so.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-23-2017, 01:34 PM
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It was a special situation (long story related to failure of Ritz Camera some years ago), but such things do happen and my lens was sold by an authorized Pentax dealer with full warranty. I used it as an example of how the price ranges of premium and consumer-grade product often overlap and that the Sony lens is priced as a premium product. Current street price of the FA 77/1.8 is just under $800 USD in the U.S. If Pentax were to offer a D FA 85/1.8 at $600, I would consider it to be an expensive lens.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-22-2017, 06:53 PM
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The Zeiss Z-series and Voigtlander SL/SLII lenses are both fairly recent vintage and have been made in a number of mounts including Pentax K. Prices are high, but so is performance and build quality.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-22-2017, 06:45 PM
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That may be why the OP is looking into the Pentax-M 85/2. That would be my choice if I didn't already own the FA 77/1.8. I also own the LZOS MC Jupiter-9 85/2, but while it is competent, I consider it a specialty lens and a little cumbersome to use without auto aperture actuation.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-22-2017, 06:27 PM
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Those are the three available that are reasonably priced and cover the FF 24x36mm frame. I would add the Sony FE 85/1.8 except that at just under $600, it is pushing the boundaries of what might be called reasonably priced. I got my FA 77/1.8 Limited new for less than that.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-22-2017, 03:55 PM
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You might want to add a review for your copy on this site. It will be the only one out of 42 reviews reporting element separation.
Steve
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-22-2017, 03:45 PM
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You mean systems such as Sony (85mm f/2.8 SAM, A-mount only), Nikon (85/1.8G), and Canon (85/1.8 non-L)? Of course, Pentax users would complain about plastic build, but I would love to see a Pentax equivalent of the Nikkor 85/1.8G. In the mean time, there is still the Samyang, which is a notch down in terms of performance, but is still quite usable for portraits and is backwards compatible to all K-mount SLRs.
As far as the OP's request...if one is comfortable without "A" setting, the Pentax-M 85/2 is probably the better lens. Rare is the time when one needs that extra stop of whatever available at f/1.4 and good luck attaining consistent focus.
Steve
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