| Author: | | Site Supporter Registered: December, 2007 Location: Norway Posts: 4,371 | | Review Date: March 20, 2008 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Image quality, Limited finish | | Cons: | Lens hood | |
This is Pentax best wide angle. Sharp at all apertures. Excellent built quality. Screwed in place hood prevent the use of some filter systems
| | | | | | | Pentaxian Registered: April, 2007 Location: Toronto/Victoria Posts: 460 | | Review Date: August 3, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $800.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Very high IQ, extremely well-built | | Cons: | Expensive, large-ish | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 8
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K100D
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This is my standard lens. Unlike the fast 50mm normals I use on film, the 31 is good from F/1.8 to F/22. More importantly, it's drawing characteristics are very good, which is hard to find in a wide angle lens.
Obviously it is quite a bit more expensive than a 50mm lens, but only my K and M lenses can match it for build, and they're not AF nor auto-aperture.
It's also heavier than I'd like. It weighs almost as much as my K50/1.2.
For a normal on 1.5x it is a slightly faster and better built alternative to the FA35 which is already very good in its own right.
2021 update: on FF, this lens becomes an excellent wide angle. The built in hood can be annoying (the DA15 Limited has a clever retractable design), but image-wise this lens is hard to fault. I should add that I own the black version, and the paint is beginning to fall off just a bit. I have the silver 43 and 77 and they have no such issue.
| | | | | New Member Registered: March, 2007 Location: Norway Posts: 1 | | Review Date: March 13, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $500.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | This lens is perfect in almost every way | | Cons: | Except for the lens hood and cap | |
Not much to add here. It is my pride and joy 
I have added a heliopan metal hood which is perfectly straight and therefore fits inside the permanent hood and which accepts a standard 58mm Pentax lenscap.
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: October, 2006 Location: Masachusetts Posts: 243 | | Review Date: March 10, 2007 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, great bokeh, solidly built. Perhaps one of the best AF lenses ever. | | Cons: | Hard to find black ones (my copy is black). | |
This is indeed one of the finest lenses ever made. Luminous Landscape called it one of the top 3 autofocus lenses ever made, and my experience is consistent with that conclusion.
On the digitals, it's a fantastic normal lens. Great for product shots and groups.
No more needs to be said. Get one.
| | | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: September, 2006 Location: West Chester, PA Posts: 1,420 | | Review Date: January 11, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $789.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Exceptional sharpness, smooth bokeh, great build, low light capabilities, good close focus | | Cons: | Chromatic aberration, purple fringing, lens hood | |
The sharpness of this lens - especially wide open - is amazing. I feel comfortable shooting this lens at all apertures knowing my image will be razor sharp in the plane of focus. Coupled with the smooth bokeh it really makes the focused image 'pop'.
It is solid and pretty big/heavy especially compared to the FA 35/2. I like the slide-on hood of the 77 Limited, but on the 31 it is clunkier and seems to just get in the way.
I've noticed similar chromatic aberration to the 77 Limited and I've also seen purple fringing on difficult high-contrast subjects.
Overall, one of my favorite lenses.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: October, 2006 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 11,783 | | Review Date: January 10, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $785.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Light, beautiful, fantastic colour rendition and sharpness! | | Cons: | Not wide enough... | | New or Used: New
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This is in deed a great lens to own.
Images are sharp even to the corners wide open; bokeh is invincible; CA is almost impossible; beautiful finish with a solid build
There is no need to stop down the aperture to get sharper images. The lens renders some sort of magic on protrait: more 3D, more sparkling feel to protraits. A all round lens like Fa 77 ltd
Minimal focusing distance is about 30 cm which is convinient for close ups and indoor shots. A versatile lens.
Recommended!
My sample shots here
My FA 31mm f1.8 shots | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: November, 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 593
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 8, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $1,000.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Image quality is without peer | | Cons: | Built in lens hood is not practical | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 8
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The FA31mm f1.8 Limited is without peer as far as all aspects of image quality is concerned. Sharp, with excellent colour rendition and bokeh to die for.
Build quality is also excellent, but manual focus is not as good as the A or M series Pentax lenses, as is to be expected with an AF lens.
The only real problem with this lens is the lens hood. Not practical for either film or digital cameras, IMO. The hood makes it difficult to use filters like the Cokin/Lee products and therefore a custom type set up has to be made.
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