| Latest Review Posted | SMC Pentax-A* 600mm F5.6 ED [IF]
The A*600/5.6 ED was released in 1984, it was Pentax’s first 600mm prime lens for the 35mm format. The manual-focus A*600/5.6 was still available alongside the auto-focus F/FA* 600/4 versions up to 2000, when the A*600/5.6 was finally discontinued.
Sometime near the end of the A*600/5.6 production run, Pentax released a black version of this lens reportedly for a Japanese Police force. The black version also has a removable lens hood, where the regular version had a built-in hood. There appears to be around six black versions produced, in the s/n range of 5964962 to 5964967.
There is more info on the black version of this lens, in this forum thread:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/10-pentax-slr-lens-discussion/362468-prototype-smc-pentax-600mm-f-5-6-ed-if.html
One thing to note is that the black version is NOT a prototype as sometimes mentioned.
Optics:
Excellent optics! The A*600/5.6 has eight elements in six groups and features extra-low dispersion “ED” elements that help in controlling aberrations.
Focal Length:
For me 600mm is a perfect focal length on film for shooting waterfront subjects, like boats, landscapes and sometimes people. I’m minutes from the water, so do most of my shooting with long telephoto lenses near there. I’m not really into wildlife shooting, unless a seagull happens to land near where I’m shooting.
Atmospheric haze is an issue when shooting distant subjects, over water or from higher elevations. Depending on the fil... |
