| Author: | | New Member Registered: January, 2024 Posts: 17
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 24, 2024 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharpness, size, weight, AF, bokeh, price of a used one | | Cons: | I haven't noticed yet | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K3
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I bought a used one a month ago. I was guided by positive opinions from Pentax Forums and the price. I use it with my K3. My 35mm was too narrow for me and the 16-85 was a bit too heavy in some situations. The 28mm 2.8 lens charmed me! It is wonderfully sharp, small and light. Works great with my K3. It became my go-to lens for walking around the city. And I don't mind its slight humming sound at all (screwdriver  )
 | | | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: January, 2019 Location: Beautiful British Columbia Posts: 78
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 23, 2019 | Recommended | Price: $30.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharpness, size, contrast, speed, light | | Cons: | plastic body | |
I stumbled across my copy in a 2nd hand shop - they did not know what they had so I got it for a song. So far most of my the work I have done with this lens on K-S2, but have recently started working with it on the K-1. It's sharp right through it's entire range of f/2.8 - f/22, corner to corner, and is amazing for it's age and build. The only reason I gave this lens a 9 for sharpness is that the modern lens do beat this out - but it's close. You'd be hard pressed to find a sharper 28mm in it's normal price range. The only negative I can think of (if it can be considered as one) is that the lens correction in some PP programs is very heavy and needs some manual adjustment for full frame images.
Here are some sample images.
 Frost on Blue 2 by Sean O'Connell, on Flickr
 sand sculpture 3 by Sean O'Connell, on Flickr
 night at miracle beach by Sean O'Connell, on Flickr
| | | | | Loyal Site Supporter Registered: June, 2011 Location: Westerville, OH Posts: 1,588
4 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 11, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $225.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Small. light, quick to focus, excellent contrast and color rendition | | Cons: | Not WR, some plastic parts | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-5, K-3
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I have a number of Pentax lenses from all of the different series, but for some unknown reason only one from the F series. It is the 28mm f2.8. It is one of my favorite lenses. It focuses lightning quick and is tack sharp to the edges from f2.8. Contrast and color rendition are second to none, IMHO. Even though I have the FA 31 f1.8 Ltd, which is close in focal length, and just a little bit faster, and a Limited, I don't see myself ever parting with this little gem.
On the K-3
1933 Chevy coupe-front-1 by Chuck Campbell, on Flickr
On the K-5
Red brick wall by Chuck Campbell, on Flickr
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: October, 2008 Location: Great Plain, Hungary Posts: 204
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 25, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $80.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, compact, quick AF | | Cons: | None for me | | Sharpness: 10
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-1
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I have had this lens for ages, first using it on film and my istD cameras and other DSLRs. Since selling my K-7 a few years ago there was a hiatus for it to be used on digital. Then this year I bought the K-1 which boosted the use of this lens.
I considered before buying the 31mm Limited, but as I had this lens I am glad I did not. Seeing the results from this lens on K-1 convinced me that the +3mm in focal length and gaining one f-stop would not give me much advantage even considering that the Limited is considered one of the best Pentax lenses of all time. Well, for me certainly not, especially not for 10x the price.
| | | | | | | Junior Member Registered: January, 2017 Location: Nijmegen Posts: 36
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 18, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $200.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | It sharp right from f2.8 | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Pentax k-1
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| | | | | New Member Registered: March, 2017 Posts: 7
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 23, 2017 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp and small | | Cons: | None | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K5iis
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Well i was very lucky to get a copy of this lens, Have been looking for a long time for one of these and found one on gemtree, I can't say anything bad about it, for the age of this lens you can't believe how it performs, i was looking at getting the FA version but found that this version proved to be just a little sharper in some reviews on the net, like this one, https://www.ephotozine.com/equipment/item/pentax-smc-f-28mm-f-2-8-274/reviews, and the colors are very deep, great for landscape and cityscapes photography. Here's a photo of my local beach. Fantastic lens.
 | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: June, 2012 Location: Tokyo Posts: 1,041
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 19, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharpness, value, manual focus to infinity in dark (truth for all film era lenses) | | Cons: | aberrations (can be easily fix in post) | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-5
Sample Photos: 1
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Sharpness: It sharp right from f2.8. I shoot a lot of cityscape, city night, and long exposure stuff. Sample image below is at f16, focus at infinity and it is very sharp.
Aberrations: this is one of its downside. But it is still better than FA35 and DFA100wr, IMO. To be fair, It can be easily fixed in postproduction. I recommend to get an ebay metal hood, it will improve the image quality.
Bokeh: It is satisfying for its price. Just don’t compare it with a lens like FA31. It is like 3-4 times more expensive.
Autofocus: as I mention before, I take a lot of night cityscape photo. My K5 lowlight auto focus performance is useless on all lenses! Most of the time, I only want it to nail focus at infinity. 10 out of 10 times, K5 doesn’t do it. But with a film era like F28, it is no problem to manually focus at it infinity. This is very useful for me. During day time, this lens has no problem focusing. Well, needless to say, every prime I have, never had a problem focusing on K5 during the day.
Handling: solid build lens. It doesn’t feel cheap on my hand. And I prefer lens with plastic barrel. Yes, metal barrel is pretty, but I buy my gears to use not for correction. My 2 metal barrel lenses, dfa100wr and da 15ltd got multiple scratches all over its barrel.  I feel so guilty every time I look at them. But with F28 plastic outher body, scratches are hardly visible.
Value: concerning its price, and what it can delivery in term of image quality, it would be a crime if I don’t give it a 10! I got this lens second hand in Tokyo at around 32k yen. It is the cheapest prime I have, and so far, it is the best investment ever!
and I was looking at FA31 first but when I see this post, It change everything!
 | | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2015 Location: Austin, Tx Posts: 7
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 2, 2015 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, Fast, well built, price for quality! | | Cons: | some CA, but just slight | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K3
Sample Photos: 4
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I bought this to shoot newbie models. Unfortunately, manual lenses can be a burden when someone wants to pose quickly and is a little more impatient. So not having money for limited primes. I bite the bullet and bought this little guy.
It's a beautiful lens optically. Wish it was black and not dark grey, but not a big deal.
My copy is very sharp, I could not complain at all. It creates beautiful details. Blows my FA 50mm 1.4 away in sharpness, and to my eyes is as sharp as the Pentax-M 50mm 1.7. It's got great looking Bokeh too!
Shot wide open with no tripod, F2.8 ISO100, 1/125s, no color correction or editing.
100% crop close up
Shot wide open with no tripod, F2.8 ISO100, 1/125s, no color correction or editing.
100% crop close up
 | | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2013 Location: England Posts: 9
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 29, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $160.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Size, weight, build quality | | Cons: | Very little | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: ist and K5 IIs
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I bought my first SLR, a P30n, with a 50mm f1.4 in 1989 and have stuck with Pentax through 25 years of photography. Seven bodies later (five of which I still have, one stolen, one written off in a skiing accident) I finally decided the time was right to find a 28mm f2.8 to go with the 50mm and 100m macro f2.8 that are my normally walkaround kit. Finding one for the equivalent of 160USD made the decision even easier.
The lens arrived by post at 11am and at 3pm, after a few test shots, a thorough clean and the fitment of the obligatory Skylight 1B, I went out to a family wedding and started shooting.
Knowing that the venue was small and the family large I knew I needed to be able to shoot up close and personal and I cannot say how happy I am with the results. More to the point, so is the bride and over 80 of my shots, nearly 75% taken with the 28mm f2.8, are going in the album.
Having used the 50mm f1.7 for 25 years, and the 100mm f2.8 for over 15, the 28mm behaved exactly as I expected and wanted, and leaves me wanting nothing.
My advice: buy one. Soon.
| | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2012 Posts: 11
1 user found this helpful
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: July, 2007 Location: North West UK Posts: 390 | | Review Date: April 21, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $220.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, even wide open, great colour rendition, good contrast, good build ( a mix of Metal and Plastic outside), Excellent Bokeh! | | Cons: | Some CA in extremis on APS-C | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 9
Camera Used: Pentax K-5
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I only got this lens yesterday, but used it a lot today on various subjects.
Well, I can say, this is one excellent lens! Sharp from F2.8-F11 (not used it beyond this) contrasty, great colour rendition too.
The bokeh, in spite of "only" 5 blades is fantastic! Smooth creamy and not at all fussy.
I already love it!
Downside,
There is CA in high contrast areas which can be a problem. This is why I only put it as a 9. Everywhere else a good solid 10!
I may have paid a tad over the odds for an immaculate copy (£180). But I thought this, I have a great AF lens that works great on both my DSLR's and Film. so in some ways I get two lenses in one. Plus this lens is as rare as hens teeth on the pre owned market!
it is a great addition to my little Pentax prime family (21mm, 35mm, 40mm, 50mm and 55mm) and I have only had it a day.......
Edit.
I used it a lot on a trip to Estonia. I went there only using the aformentioned primes.
Boy does it hold its own against more modern lenses.
Edit (May 2016)
i have used this a few times on the K-1 and it shines and then some! Hence why I have now given it a 10
Examples are here.
 Kiek in de Kök by IHD Photography, on Flickr
 Tallinn by IHD Photography, on Flickr
 Alexander Nevsky Cathedral by IHD Photography, on Flickr
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: September, 2009 Location: Langley, BC Posts: 550 | | Review Date: July 5, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $200.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | great FOV, sharp, great colors | | Cons: | plasticky build | |
I'm amazed that this little gem sells for the price it does, considering what its big brother the FA 31 goes for. I have always loved the ~40-45mm FOV on film, and this lens just feels "right" on APS-C. Do I wish it was a 1.8 instead of a 2.8? Sure, but then I couldn't afford it. I love that I can shoot it as a normal FOV lens on the K5, but switch it over to the LX without missing a beat. There is no 9.5, so 10 it is. The cost to IQ ratio alone justifies the rating.
Edit: after many years of use, I finally sold it on. I lucked into a good deal on an FA20-35/4, and after that this one just sat in the bag. Other than the f4 vs f2.8, the FA20-35/4 gives up nothing to the F28. Both are excellent.
| | | | | New Member Registered: April, 2010 | | Review Date: June 20, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $250.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | color, sharp, quik | | Cons: | none | |
it's a nice lens. and the color of its pictures are also amazing. someone always compared this F28 with FA28, and said this one was less sharp than FA28, because of lack AL glass. Though I haven't got FA28, the F28 is very sharp even in wide open (f2.8).
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: February, 2011 Posts: 118 | | Review Date: May 28, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $320.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharpness, bokeh, color | | Cons: | none | |
I use this lens mostly on digital. This has got to be one of the classics. This focal length is just right on digital as a true normal lens, in my opinion, because I really enjoyed FA 43mm Limited on film.
It's quite sharp wide-open. Stopped down to F4, it's super sharp. The color-rendering is lovely, as expected out of F-series.
It may be debatable, in my opinion the relative rareness of this lens makes it a great one to own over similar FA-counterparts, such as FA 28 or FA 35. This also works great as a wide-angle on film.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2009 Location: USA Posts: 351 | | Review Date: May 22, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $265.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | sharpness, colors, compactness | | Cons: | none in my book | |
I am a fan of the F series lenses, and have been wanting to pick up the 28mm for some time. (I also own the 50 ƒ1.7, 135 ƒ2.8 and 35-70mm) The samples I've seen from this lens on the forum were a major inducement, and inspired some serious LBA. Now that I've had the lens for a few days, I'm happy to report that it lives up to my hopes for it, and more. The colors and rendering are great, and the sharpness has really blown me away as I've looked at a few pictures.
A picture of my son:
(Non working link deleted)
A 100% crop of the same picture:
(Non working link deleted)
The above photo was cropped, but otherwise un-retouched. Notice how you can see the fine texture of the cloth on his jacket, and that's without sharpening applied.
I'm thrilled with this lens, and recommend it without reservation.
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