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HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR Review RSS Feed

HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR

Sharpness 
 9.3
Aberrations 
 9.0
Bokeh 
 8.8
Autofocus 
 8.8
Handling 
 8.5
Value 
 8.6
Reviews Views Date of last review
26 169,116 Sun February 4, 2024
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Recommended By Average Price Average User Rating
92% of reviewers $1,137.52 9.08
HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR

HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
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HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
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HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
supersize
HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
supersize
HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
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Description:
The HD PENTAX-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM AW zoom lens was announced in September 2015 as the third zoom lens developed with the Pentax full frame DSLR in mind.

On a full frame the field of view covers a very useful range from ultra wide angle to short tele. The lens can also be used on DSLRs with an APS-C size sensor; here the field of view goes from moderate wide angle to telephoto.

The lens features rounded diaphragm blades for smooth Bokeh and it has a number of seals making it weather resistant. Other features are Quick Shift and a zoom lock button intended to prevent the zoom from extending when pointed downwards.

The lens has a built-in SDM (Supersonic Direct-drive motor) autofocus motor and no provision for screw drive autofocus. Autofocus is thus neither possible with the K100D/K110D or *istD series cameras nor with film SLR cameras. As per RICOH the SDM autofocus motor is of a new generation. Hopefully this means that it is more reliable than the SDM motors introduced back in 2007.

The lens is essentially a rebadged Tamron SP 24-70mm F2.8 Di VC USD lens from 2013 with the in-lens stabilization mechanism removed.

HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
© www.pentaxforums.com, sharable with attribution
Image Format
Full-frame / 35mm film
Lens Mount
Pentax K
Aperture Ring
No
Diaphragm
Automatic, 9 blades (rounded)
Optics
17 elements, 12 groups
Mount Variant
KAF3
Check camera compatibility
Max. Aperture
F2.8
Min. Aperture
F22
Focusing
AF (in-lens motor)
SDM
Quick-shift
Yes
Min. Focus
38 cm
Max. Magnification
0.2x
Filter Size
82 mm
Internal Focus
Yes
Field of View (Diag. / Horiz.)

APS-C: 61-23 ° / 53-19.5 °
Full frame: 84-34.5 ° / 74-29 °
Hood
PH-RBD82
Case
S120-150
Lens Cap
O-LC82
Coating
HD,SP
Weather Sealing
Yes (WR)
Other Features
Zoom Lock
Diam x Length
88.5 x 109.5 mm (3.5 x 4.3 in.)
Weight
787 g (27.8 oz.)
Production Years
2015 to present (in production)
Pricing
$1196 USD current price
$1299 USD at launch
Engraved Name
HD PENTAX-D FA 1:2.8 24-70mm ED SDM WR
Product Code
21310
Reviews
User reviews
In-depth review
Notes
One anomalous-dispersion-glass aspherical element, three aspherical elements and three ED elements.
No autofocus on older bodies (*istD series, K100D, K110D, and film).

Features:
Supersonic AutofocusQuick ShiftWeather SealedInternal FocusingAutomatic ApertureFull-Frame Support
Purchase: Buy the HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
In-Depth Review: Read our HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR in-depth review!
Price History:



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Sort Reviews by: Date | Author | Rating | Recommendation | Likes (Descending) Showing Reviews 1-15 of 26
New Member

Registered: May, 2017
Location: Kiev
Posts: 12

4 users found this helpful
Review Date: January 27, 2021 Recommended | Price: $1,200.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Convenient lens focal lengths. Beautiful bokeh. Splash protection. Good balance in weight and dimensions on K1.
Cons: There is no excellent sharpness at a focal length of 24mm, with an aperture of f2.8 (at other apertures and focal lengths, everything is fine with the lens's sharpness).
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 9    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 10    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: К1   

This lens, like many others, interested me after reading a review about it on this site. I also read about this lens on other sites. And I often noticed that many of the photos that I like on flickr were photographed with this lens. Only it was not clear to me why the overall assessment of this lens is not large enough here.
Now about the lens itself. At first it seemed to me too large in size and heavy in weight. But everything is learned by comparison. And if you want to know what a heavy lens is, then hold in your hands the new 70-200 * star. And my first impression about 24-70 was wrong. This lens is not that heavy. And if you spend the whole day carrying a camera with 24-70, then this delivers less inconvenience than, for example, with the Fa100 f2.8 macro. And the dimensions of the photo lens 24-70 are actually quite handy when wearing the K-1. Together they look beautiful and are perfectly balanced.
I really liked the 24-70 focal length range at K-1! It is a very convenient and versatile lens. And for most of my photo lens needs, it fits perfectly. An excellent option for use as a standard lens. Autofocus is quite fast and accurate (on the K-1).
Also, pictures from 24-70 have beautiful and rich colors. And good sharpness and resolution. As for the sharpness, it may not be very sharp only at 24mm + f 2.8. If you change the focal length to any other, then the sharpness is excellent even at wide open aperture.
the hood of this lens is small and not deep. It does not increase the overall length of the lens when worn. As do deep hoods on many other lenses.
Back at 24-70, I love the fact that it's all weather and waterproof.
I read in the 24-70 reviews that some people don't like its bokeh. And I was afraid that I, too, might not like the bokeh of this lens. But my fears were in vain. Because actually his bokeh is very good and pleasant! Of course, not as flawless as the bokeh from top-end Pentax prime lenses. But with bokeh everything is great! I like! So I gave 24-70 10 points. He deserves it.
The small drawbacks of this lens, I find minor. And overall I really liked it! And I advise everyone to get this lens for whom its focal length is suitable.
In general, I can say that all the lenses of the D-fa series from Pentax are very good in quality and give an excellent picture.

   
New Member

Registered: May, 2019
Location: Roma
Posts: 10

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: October 2, 2019 Not Recommended | Price: $850.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Colori splendidi senza Flare ottimo contrasto
Cons: <il peso
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 10    Value: 10    New or Used: New    Camera Used: &lt;pentax K1   

E' IL MIO OBIETTIVO MIGLIORE, E' FAVOLOSO IN OGNI SITUAZIONE E COMBINATO CON LA k1 E' EFFICACE ANCHE A TEMPI MOLTO BASSI CON OTTIMA RISOLUZIONE
   
New Member

Registered: May, 2014
Posts: 1
Review Date: October 11, 2017 Recommended | Price: $1,000.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: very high quality
Cons: very high weight
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 9    Autofocus: 9    Handling: 8    Value: 8    New or Used: Used    Camera Used: K-3   

I am very enthusiastic about this zoom. It replaces my Sigma 17-70 and suggests this by lengths. No AF adjustment is necessary. Simply attach to the K-3 and take pictures. This is often not the case with sigma lenses.The AF speed is fast enough to make action photos of my dog. I like this lens.
   
Site Supporter

Registered: January, 2014
Location: St Petersburg
Posts: 402

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: March 15, 2017 Recommended | Price: $1,100.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Handling, Sats, No Backfocus, Qshift, No Wobble
Cons: Wish it was an IF

Extensively tested with LensCal and Yves' calibrators. At both ends of zoom range and using LensCal stand offs and Yves' lengths, and a close up test, all were dead zero +- .3. Tight and crisp. Unexpectedly good. My DA* 16-35 wasn't even close, in performance at same Focal lengths and especially not in build...

Colors, sats, MF in the field also Exceptional, nearly as good as the 16-50 (which was stellar). For my hands, handles better than DA*16-50 in size and smoothness...

Nicely Done Tamron .... OOPS Pentax contractor !


   
New Member

Registered: January, 2016
Location: between Toulouse and Pyrenees Mountains
Posts: 2

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: August 23, 2016 Recommended | Price: $1,473.36 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: sharp et fast
Cons: a backfocus
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 9    Value: 10    New or Used: New    Camera Used: k-3   

After k200d > k-5 and k-3 I will buy the k-1 next year, but I bought this lens to use it with the k-3 in the interval.

This lens would be used on the two cameras
24-70 on k-1
and 36-105 on k-3

it's a great lens on the k-3, my best zoom in anyway.
just a big backfocus (corrected by a +7 ) and after that it's my new walkaround/portrait lens

Edit: Just an other negative point : the flower shaped hood doesn't get strongly attached to the lens, take care of it if you walk a lot
   
Site Supporter

Registered: July, 2008
Location: Cleveland, OH, USA
Posts: 292

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: August 1, 2016 Recommended | Price: $1,297.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Sharp, color, bokeh
Cons: Big and heavy
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 9    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1   

First, let me dispense with the negatives. Yes, it's huge and heavy. I don't know much about lens design but I thought that even with F2.8 it could be made a little bit smaller and lighter. OTOH, you get used to it (especially right after changing from DFA 70-200 )

This lens has quite a few positives: it's sharp, it's bright, color transmission is very good, very good bokeh, didn't notice any CA.
AF is fast and quiet.
This lens has a very useful feature - zoom lock; I didn't notice any zoom creep, though.
Mechanically it feels very solid.

The location of the zoom ring is a bit confusing but you get used to it pretty soon.

Another detail to be aware of is a bit of vignetting when using a regular (vs low profile) filter.

Overall, I'm very happy with the lens and highly recommend to anyone with K-1 (haven't used it on any other camera).
   
Senior Member

Registered: June, 2016
Location: Paris
Posts: 124

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: June 26, 2016 Recommended | Price: $1,250.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: sharp & fast
Cons: WR is bad
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 10    Value: 10    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1   

Ok, so i bought this lens for 2 reasons:
i) i didn't like my FA* 28-70mm 2.8 not being IF ( the rotating front element bothered me)
ii) i wanted something better than my almost 3 year old screwdriven excellent Sigma EX DG Macro 24-70mm 2.8, with pentax WR and better coating, as my sigma seemed to blow highlights wide open.
But:
It's not sharper than the Sigma. It's not AF faster either. They're equal. It's only better for highlights.
And i am deceived by the WR after 2 months of usage. It has dust particle inside the rear element. And a tiny something 0.5cm white hair-like thing under the front element.
The Sigma, not WR rated, survived tropical rains, salted ocean & sea water splashes, very dusty and sandy environnements and even oil paint splashes, and is today intact.

But I may have a rare bad copy of the Pentax and a rare good copy of the Sigma, so i still rate the Pentax 10 all over.
   
Veteran Member

Registered: December, 2007
Location: Prague
Posts: 1,199

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: May 25, 2016 Recommended | Price: $1,300.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Relibably stunning IQ
Cons: Heavy, large 82mm filter
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 8    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1   

One must love this lens. It delivers superb IQ all across the zoom, all across the frame. No exception. If you don't like the picture taken with this lens in combination with the K-1, it is probably because the photographer failed. The gear is as close to flawless as it gets.
All that said I prefer the construction and handling of the old Canon 24-70, the reverse zoom. But that lens just can't deliver the sharpness as well. I love the contrast and bokeh of this Pentax "kit lens".
   
Veteran Member

Registered: April, 2011
Location: San José, Costa Rica
Posts: 794
Review Date: February 16, 2016 Recommended | Price: $1,300.00 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Sharpness, WR, fast, Build Construction, Silent
Cons: nothing to complain
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 9    Autofocus: 9    Handling: 9    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K3   

I love this lens, since you take it out of the box you can tell that this is something "real". Well build, big glass, smooth controls.. image quality, colors, sharpness is great.. This is a most have lens for any FF body or even APS-C.

Filter size is 82mm so it is big, and a little heavy if you compare it with another Pentax lenses.. but it is totally worth it.
   
Veteran Member

Registered: March, 2009
Location: Lithuania
Posts: 1,203

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: December 4, 2015 Recommended | Price: $1,192.71 | Rating: 10 

 
Pros: Fast, sharp, WR, fast focusing
Cons: waits a ton!
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 10    Handling: 9    Value: 10    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K5   

This one big lens! So much glass! Sharp, focus fast. Must get lens if you getting ready for FF.
   
New Member

Registered: February, 2021
Location: Gard France
Posts: 15

1 user found this helpful
Review Date: June 18, 2021 Recommended | Price: $890.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Sharp, luminous, cheaper as other brands, silent, quick
Cons: Heavy, AFS wavering (I shoot AFC though)
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 7    Autofocus: 8    Handling: 10    Value: 9    New or Used: Used    Camera Used: Pentax K1   

Very good lens that I love to use all the day.

The biggest cons for me is hesitating AF in AFS that gives some shots for more a second... Though I shoot AFC and that's fine.

a great all to do lens !!
   
New Member

Registered: October, 2016
Posts: 4

3 users found this helpful
Review Date: April 30, 2020 Recommended | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Fast AF, Accurate AF, Nice Colours
Cons: Zoom is not internal
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 9    Bokeh: 9    Autofocus: 9    Handling: 8    Value: 8    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1 K-3   

My workhorse lens, great all rounder.

Build quality is not as good as a * lens and it's a bit overpriced compared to the Tamron original

My full review is a video at https://youtu.be/CGwGJX4IxYw
   
Site Supporter

Registered: April, 2013
Location: Bucharest
Posts: 4,626

13 users found this helpful
Review Date: April 8, 2020 Recommended | Price: $990.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: Flexibility, sharpness, WR
Cons: Size, weight
Sharpness: 9    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 7    Autofocus: 8    Handling: 8    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1   

Shortly after switching to full-frame (from K5IIs to K-1), I found myself in need of a wide-angle lens, since I mostly shoot landscapes. For a while I have been using the DA 15mm in crop mode, but one does not get the K-1 to use it with DA 15. I couldn't find a second hand FA 20mm and the only FA* 24mm that I could find was way too expensive so in the end I chose to buy this lens new. I was a bit skeptical about this lens being a Tamron design, I am not exactly sure how much of the lens is Tamron and how much is Pentax. Most likely it's Tamron optical design with some Pentax elements added, coatings and maybe even the glass is Pentax (although I was not able to confirm this). In the end, the genuine Tamron version had good reviews so I went on with it.

Build quality and handling
Out of the box, first things that I've noticed were the size and weight. The biggest lenses that I used were the DA 16-45mm and the Sigma 35mm Art. This lens is more than twice the weight of DA 16-45, a bit bigger and heavier than Sigma and a true behemoth compared to DA 15, which is to be expected from a f/2.8 full-frame zoom with a lot of glass. Still, it balances pretty well on the K-1 and I had no problems using it on my old tripod. The lens is entirely made of plastic but the build quality is very good, no unwanted movements or wobbling. There is even a zoom lock at 24mm which I engage all the time lens is in the camera bag. The zoom ring is quite large and located towards the far away end of the lens which I like as it's easier to balance the lens when using it. The amount of friction is just right and it seems to be well-dampened, so the ring is easy to operate with just two fingers. Focus ring is much smaller and does not rotate when using AF. There is a focus distance window with markings in meters and feet, and the white text on a black background gives good contrast and is easy to read. Lens mount is solid metal. Overall I was happy with the build quality and handling, it feels nice and solid, the only thing which I don't like it's the hood because I think it's too narrow, but I guess this is in order to accommodate the wide field of view at 24mm. WR also does its job well, I have used this lens in rain and snow with no problems at all.

Focus and Autofocus
The AF speed is impressive as compared to all the lenses that I have used before and AF is completely silent with no hunting. However when it comes to precision, I'm a bit confused. Using single point select, I had a lot of failures during daytime in good light conditions, the focus seemed to be just a little bit off. However, when shooting low-light events like concerts and such which should be more challenging by nature, I had almost no failures at all so I don't know what to make of it. I should mention that I did not bother to calibrate the lens. Landscapes are not a problem since I use contrast AF in live view.

Image quality and sharpness
Central sharpness is decent wide open and I don't really care if the corners are not that sharp when shooting portraits. For landscapes I tend to stop down to f/8-f/11 and then this lens gets very sharp edge-to-edge, quite a bit sharper as compared to my DA15 so I was very happy. It has nice contrast and beautiful colors resulting in very good image quality with minimal processing work.

Bokeh
Long story short, I don't like the bokeh of this lens. I know this is kinda subjective, but I think it's just too busy for my taste. It's not atrocious but it's definitively no FA 77 either. However I didn't buy this lens for its bokeh and it's definitively usable for casual shots, so I'll just move on with it.

Vignetting, distortion, fringing and flare resistance
There is considerable amount of vignetting when using this lens wide open on a full frame sensor, especially at the wide end. This is not a problem for me, because for portraits again I don't care and for landscapes I will most likely stop down beyond f/5.6 and the problem disappears. There is however a considerable amount of barrel distortion at the wide end, but I was able to manage that in post-processing. So far I haven't seen any purple fringing. Flare resistance was a pleasant surprise - I was expecting this lens to do much worse considering the amount of glass that it has. Shooting straight into the sun with this lens is not advisable, but if the sun is partially obscured by something, the lens does not flare that much and the resulted starburst is quite nice.

Filters
So far I haven't used any filters on this lens so I can't really comment on it. Although the lens hood has no removal window, it's quite narrow so you should be able to spin a polarizing filter.

Overall I'm very satisfied, I think this is a reliable workhorse which does its job very well and then some, as long as you don't have unreasonable expectations. Below I have added some of my favorite pictures taken with this lens.





Fog Alley by Hattifnattar, on Flickr


George by Hattifnattar, on Flickr





   
Veteran Member

Registered: January, 2011
Location: Paris, France
Posts: 3,217

4 users found this helpful
Review Date: January 10, 2020 Recommended | Price: $1,200.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: fast focusing, sharp, silent, WR
Cons: weight
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 10    Bokeh: 10    Autofocus: 9    Handling: 8    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-1   

Overall : All the reviews said is true : the lens is fast to focus, silent, very sharp from wide open to stopped down, color rendition is very good and stable as you stop down, BUT the lens is a bit heavy.
On the weight side : basicaly a K1+24-70 very much feels like a bigger k3II + 16-50.

Details :
- Sharpness : the lens is sharp. At f2.8 be it 24mm, 40, 50, 70, if you take a portrait, you'll see the skin port of the subject.
wide open : The sharpness is very good on the 2/3 of the frame, with a transition to less sharp for the corner. To be honest, i'm a bit picky with this kind of thing, and the lens does a very good job. transition is very subtle.
stopped down : it's really sharp, but then every lens is good at f8 nowadays.

-Aberration : coming from the 16-50, i have to say the 24-70 is another league. No aberrations so far. And i shot in high contrast scene most of the time : outdoor wth sun and shade in the frame almost every time.

- Bokeh : This one is smooth, good transition from sharp to blur. Very different from the Sigma's one for instance. Pretty much in the style of the DA*55.

- Autofocus : It's fast. and i don't mean "quick" i really mean fast. Nothing to envy to the Canon or Nikon world for instance. It's even better on the K-1 II. Compared to the 16-50 i can say it's really faster. Day and night. Faster and more precise than the Tamron 70-200/2.8 that is quite fast.
I shoot rock climbing wich implies lots and lots of micro-movements from climbers, and now i don't have the problem of misfocused frame between small moves, or during big movements, swings and stuff like that.

- Handling : Handling is normal. nothing special to say. The lens is well balanced on the K1, no front or back heavy when mounted.
I like the "Lock" switch for transport.
When reversed, the hood prevents you from using the lens, so i mount it every time.

- Value : If you need a workhorse, something that does the job well, is reliable, with no quirks or suprises, that will last 10 years, that's the lens you need. it's a workhorse, plain and simple.

There is cheaper alternatives, of course, and if you're not confortable spending 1K $ (new) or 700$ (second hand), that's perfectly fine, take another lens. If you're Ok with the idea of spending that much, and just want something that will work for a long time, then, that's the lens you need.
   
Junior Member

Registered: July, 2014
Location: Tenryu
Posts: 29

2 users found this helpful
Review Date: March 18, 2017 Recommended | Price: $1,200.00 | Rating: 9 

 
Pros: detail, sharpness
Cons:
Sharpness: 10    Aberrations: 8    Bokeh: 9    Autofocus: 8    Handling: 9    Value: 9    New or Used: New    Camera Used: K-3   

I've shot a wedding, night concert, conferences, and now a graduation with this lens. I can say that when the image is in focus, it's extremely sharp. For the graduation photos here in Japan, I had to tone down the clarity in Lightroom because I got every single pore and skin flaw every girl had. The night photos came out great and had very nice character to them. For the conference photos, I've been torn between this lens and my Sigma Art 18-35. The Art has a 1.8 aperture and renders beautiful image quality, but is in need of calibration for front and back focusing. The Pentax has a more accurate autofocus plus the longer reach so it tens to be on my camera more often.
Add Review of HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR Buy the HD Pentax-D FA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR



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