| Latest Review Posted | SMC Pentax 67 75mm F2.8 AL
Purchased mint, uncirculated, this is a very expensive MF lens for what it is, it nevertheless has a reputation for delivery of quite impressive images when used skillfully. Like the 90mm f2.8, this lens features a very squat, comfortable working size with superb balance.
A sweet spot definitely exists around f8-f13.5 where sharpness is uniform across the view, with noticeable diffraction introduced beyond f16. Suppression of chroma is very good 1 stop down from open and this is consistent with the performance of many MF aspheric lenses. This lens shares No.1 spot of two of my go-to standard wide-angle primes, the other being a 90mm f2.8. The inclusion of a drop-away trapdoor in the petal lens hood to facilitate adjustment of a circular polariser is an exceptionally well thought out idea that is relatively uncommon in many systems. Some barrel distortion is noticeable with any considerable movement up or down, and this is expected within this lens price range, as to construct a rectilinear and aspherical lens in this size would result in a significantly heavier and more expensive lens.
The 67mm filter size means this lens can share filters with the other very common short lens, the SMC Pentax 90mm f2.8. Very fluid, smooth focusing and a light-touch aperture ring make this an exceptionally easy-going lens to use in-situ. :) |
