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2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 25, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $45.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Compact, fast, good pictures | | Cons: | Depth of fiel is very very short wide open | |
This is the first manual lens I bought.
The pictures I get from this lens are good. Colors seem very natural, pictures are sharp.
At f1.7 and f2 however, the pictures are softer. It is convenient for portraits.
The only con I see for this lens is that I bought it in order to make portraits indoors when light conditions require a fast lens. In these conditions, you need to use it wide open and the depth of field is so short that you have to be very precise if you don't want to have only one eye in focus  | | | | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2008 Location: Pireaus, Greece Posts: 18
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 23, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $49.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp from 1.7 and Extreme sharp at smaller apertures | | Cons: | NONE | |
Fisrt of all I would like to thank all the reviews that I had read. They convinced me to purchase the lens, and I don’t regret it.
I was looking for a lens, for low light conditions, with very good performance, sharp and not expensive. So I bid on eBay the M50 f1.7 (in EXCELLENT condition).
The lens is tip-top in all perspectives (especially considering the price).
Excellent build quality. Very good out of focus blur(!), colors(!!), contrast(!).
If you don’t have a low light 50 lens, don’t mind the manual adjustments and don’t want to pay extraaaa for some other lens (that, probably, will produce similar results) then don’t hesitate, Buy it.
Plus, I have the feeling, that stopping from 2.8 and upward, you can't miss a shot!
In the streets of Athens (f/1.7 - ISO 100 - 1/25)
Aristofanis "Thesmophoriazuses" theater (f/2.8 - ISO 200 - 1/100)
 | | | | | Inactive Account Registered: August, 2009 Location: Valencia Posts: 3
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: August 24, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $55.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | build, performance, optics, nice bokeh | | Cons: | none...(MF I guess...) | |
Great value for money...
Great performance...
Solid...
Nice bokeh...
Looks so cool on my K-m!!! | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: August, 2009 Location: Edmonton, AB Posts: 2,519
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: August 6, 2009 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | fantastic image quality, warm and brilliant colors, fantastic in low light | | Cons: | finding one for a fantastic price is getting harder | |
When I first got into photography my mom gave me her old SLR kit, a Pentax MX, and among the lenses was this lil jem... the only lens I'm still using with my K20D...is this lil 50mm.
I love this lens, I use it whenever and wherever I can. It works great in low light (the majority of my shooting environments) but also excels in natural light too.
I used it as my walk around lens in my last two trips to Florida and just loved how the colors seemed so much warmer and richer than with my DA 18-55mm kit lens.
I've purchased the DA primes and returned them because this 50mm is the best lens I've shot with! I ordered it's 28mm cousin off a internet reseller as soon as possible..
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1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 21, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $55.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Solid, Sharp, CHEAP | | Cons: | | |
I got a copy off eBay for $70AUD. My first 'fast 50'. And let me say it's awesome!!!
at 1.7 it's sharp and definately useable, and from f4 up it's razor sharp. This copy of the lens was nearly mint, the only thing missing was the gold "QC Passed" label on the aperture ring.
I love the optical quality and image quality and colours and tones this lens produces...
For $50 US it doesn't come much better than this, and if you can get used to Manual lenses, it's definately a wise alternative to an FA 50.
| | | | | Pentaxian Registered: December, 2007 Location: In the most populated state... state of denial Posts: 1,852
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 8, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $20.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Quaity, sharpness, built, bokeh | | Cons: | none | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Film Cameras (KX, MES, ME, Program, MZ) DSLRS K100, KX, K5ii
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Sharp as a knife, built like a tank
need to say more?
| | | | | Otis Memorial Pentaxian Registered: March, 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Posts: 42,007
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 6, 2009 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Compact, light, optical performance, excellent build | | Cons: | none | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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Mine came new as the kit lens on my Ricoh XR7 in 1982. (Yes...that one left me scratching my head as well. I ordered the Rikenon and got a Pentax...go figure...) Over the last 27 years, I have formed a pretty firm impression of this lens. In a very few words...it ROCKS. Here are the bullet points:- Excellent optical performance
- One of the most compact 50mm lenses ever produced
- Very light
- Mostly metal construction (save the rubberized focus ring)
Even though it has seen frequent use over the years under all kinds of conditions, the controls on my copy are still smooth and precise. A great lens. Were it not for the inconvenience of using it on the current digital bodies, I would rank it a 10 for build, performance, and value. However, due to the inconvenience of flaky stop-down metering on many Pentax dSLR models along with the lack of a 9.5 rating, I am forced to rank it at 9.
Edit: Updated on 25 April 2022 and still all true.
| | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2009 Posts: 6
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 13, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $90.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | everything | | Cons: | uhm, ... Oh yes, i found it : autofocus ? ^_^ | |
Well,
It's a fantastic lens.
See the picture : (no crop, no photoshop) taken with Pentax K100d
 | | | | | Senior Member Registered: October, 2008 Location: Great Plain, Hungary Posts: 204
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 3, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $25.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Built and image quality, sharp, nice contrast | | Cons: | none | |
This is my favourite consumer lens in the Pentax stable (not talking here about A*, FA* and Ltd. lenses, which are another league). I am amazed how well these lenses are put together. The focus and mechanics are very precise after 25+ years.THE '70-80 M* LENS (if there was such lens line-up/category).
As I have some leses to compare to I can say that this lens is on par with the M 1.4/50mm and probably even with the A-FA 1.4/50mm. At least I cannot find any difference that can be noticed by eye. Just listing the advantages I personally found:
- cheaper than the M 1.4/50mm and is probably as good
- cheaper than the A 1.7/50mm, better construction, unnoticable difference in IQ
- cheaper than the A 1.4/50mm, better construction, unnoticable difference in IQ
My experience mainly based on shooting slides and some occasional digital image. (I cannot comment on F and FA versions.)
For those complaining about its limited use on digital camera: please take into account that these lenses were made well before the AF, and very well before the digital era. If you find focusing awkward change the focusing screen of your camera to a classic split image/microprism one (I did it with my *istD and MZ-S and works great. Never changed back the AF screen since then.)
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: January, 2009 Location: University of Waterloo, ON Posts: 239
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: March 17, 2009 | Recommended
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | small, fast, nice bokeh, incredible build quality | | Cons: | narrow space between focus and aperature rings makes changes a bit fumbly | |
This has to be one of my two favourite lenses in my kit (toss-up between this and the M 135/3.5). For starters, as with most any K or M series lens, Pentax meant business with the M 50/1.7. The all-metal construction, precision fitting, and comfortable rubberized focus ring grip make for a solid lens that inspires confidence. This is yet another example of my flood-surviving free gear from my mother.
The image quality is astounding; contrasty, colourful, and rather sharp stopped down. It tends to be a tad soft wide open, but not in a bad way. The out of focus rendering is rather dreamy, but still leaves a bit of room for improvement.
My only gripe is the lack of space between the focus and aperture rings, making it somewhat difficult to get on and off of the body. However, I don't tend to remove it from my K200D that much anyway. :P
Given the prices these normally go for, I can't see any reason why one shouldn't have one of these in their kit - unless, of course, one already has the 1.4 or 1.2.
| | | | | New Member Registered: February, 2009 Location: Bodø Posts: 5
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 24, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $40.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Everything its better than gold | | Cons: | They havent made this lens for a long time | |
I think this lens is a 10. Its a beauty and the lens, if used carefully, takes werry werry werry nice photos on my k20D... Its a 10 no doubt about it.
| | | | | Forum Member Registered: June, 2007 Location: quebec Posts: 75
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 21, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $40.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Rich color, good contrast, sharp, smal and well built. | | Cons: | what? | |
Small and fun to carry.
| | | | | Pentaxian Registered: January, 2009 Location: East Bay Area, CA Posts: 6,620
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 17, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $45.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | sharp optics, solidly built, nice bokeh | | Cons: | fully manual | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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This is the lens I keep on my camera most of the time. The 50mm FL is just right for most situations where i dont need to go wide to my DA16-45. The wide aperture is great for low light indoor shots and achieves a pleasing bokeh.
My first manual lens, i expected it would be a hassle to manually meter and focus but on my DSLR, it is ultra simple with the AE-L button. I only use M mode anymore for all my lenses and am quite comfortable selecting an aperture with the ring and then pressing the AE-L to set shutter. The focus ring is easy enough to dial in a moving object decently but takes practice.
If all my lenses were lost tomorrow, this is one i'd buy back right away - it is a no brainer, and at $45, what a deal!!
Recommended.
Here are a couple of shots i took with this lens:
(Non working link removed)
And, not sure if anyone has mentioned it yet, but you can mount the lens backward using a reversing ring and achieve some very satisfying close up shots too. Here is one i took with this lens:
 | | | | | Junior Member Registered: February, 2009 Posts: 43
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 15, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $40.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Inexpensive, sharp, versatile | | Cons: | | |
The "fast fifty" is often the recommended lens to have in every photographer's bag. For the beginning photographer with the extreme budget-conscious mindset but an eagerness to learn about depth of field - this is perhaps the best deal across the board among all 50mm lenses from any company. When I was first exploring my first dslr, manual focus "forced" me to stop, think, compose, focus, and then shoot. This quickly broke my old "point and shoot" habits which sneak up on me with my faster auto-focus lenses.
I got this lens used for approximately $45 canadian. It has since been a proven performer. I couple this with a split image focusing screen and a vivitar 2x macro focusing teleconverter (~$50) and I have a poor man's 100mm 1:1 macro lens that takes fantastic photos.
Sample Images:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jwfchu/5718129012/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jwfchu/5177287582/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jwfchu/324600868/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jwfchu/327021724/ | | | | | Inactive Account Registered: January, 2009 Location: Ontario Posts: 1
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 11, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $40.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Robust, Fast, Smooth focus, Crisp and Sharp, Bokeh | | Cons: | | |
I love this lens and I love that Pentax SLRs allow the use of these old but great optics. My favorite use of this lens is when I want to pack light for a rough trip or hike. On these adventures I take along my old *Ist D with my 50 -1.7 mounted. It is like carrying a point and shoot but rendering crisp images in low light. I recomend this lens to those DSLR first time buyers instead of the DA 18-50 kit lens.
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