Showing all 13 reviews by Ole | |
Review of: Super-Multi-Coated Takumar/Super-Takumar 85mm F1.9 by Ole on Sun January 31, 2010 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 161808
Reviews: 23 |
I have the Super-Multi-Coated version. This is a wonderful lens with a pleasing bokeh and 3D effect and it focuses reasonably close as illustrated here:
(Non working link removed)
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Review of: SMC Pentax-A 100mm F4 Macro by Ole on Sun April 5, 2009 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 90066
Reviews: 12 |
This is a great little macro lens. Although it has just 5 elements it is tack sharp as witnessed by this test photo:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/gallery/images/77/1_090404_40k_43k_wes1s100x1024sRGB.jpg
The build quality is top notch.
The lens only goes to 1/2x magnification, to get closer you need extension tubes. I would probably grab my D FA 100 f/2.8 for 1:1 work due to the larger max. aperture which makes focusing easier at 1:1.
At the 1/2x magnification focusing the A lens is no problem at all with the K10D.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-A 16mm F2.8 Fish-Eye by Ole on Sun January 11, 2009 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 50877
Reviews: 6 |
I have mainly used this lens on a dSLR for shooting indoors in available light when I needed a super wide angle. The fisheye effect isn't too pronounced on a DSLR and easily corrected in software. Build quality is excellent, and so is the optical quality.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-A* 135mm F1.8 by Ole on Sun May 18, 2008 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 133013
Reviews: 18 |
I agree with the former reviewers, this lens is soft wide open but excellent when stopped down. It has a beautiful bokeh which creates a surreal "3D" effect of a quality similar to the FA 31mm f/1.8 limited.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-F 70-210mm F4-5.6 by Ole on Wed May 30, 2007 | Rating: 8 | View more reviews | |
Views: 275937
Reviews: 55 |
I first got the A70-210, then a year later the F70-210. I didn't find the A sufficiently sharp (in distant foliage for example), and went and retook the pictures a year later with the F. The F was much better - sharper and crisp pictures. It also handles better. The only issue I have with it that it reproduces color visibly different than my other lenses. It's quite some work sometimes to adjust the color balance to match the other lenses.
It is solidly built, and I have the dedicated rubber hood RH-RB49. When the hood is folded for transportation the lens with hood is quite compact.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-FA 28mm F2.8 AL by Ole on Tue February 6, 2007 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 162866
Reviews: 31 |
This lens excellent. Very sharp with very pleasing color rendition. Lightweight and compact but still of a very good build quality. Of course, it isn't metal lens barrel as the FA 31mm Limited, but then perhaps you tend to use the 28mm more often because it is so much more compact.
It is (for me) a very much useable focal length on a digital SLR as well as on film.
Combine it with the FA 20mm f/2.8 and FA*24mm f/2.0, and you have a great set of wide angle lenses, all of about the same excellent optical quality and color reproduction.
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Review of: SMC Pentax 45-125mm F4 by Ole on Tue January 16, 2007 | Rating: 7 | View more reviews | |
Views: 75241
Reviews: 16 |
This was my first zoom, acquired in the 1970'es for use with my Pentax ME and K1000.
Back then I used slide film and I was very satisfied with the sharp results produced by this lens. When used on the K1000 it was convenient that the f-stop does not change while zooming.
It is very solidly built, the barrel all metal. On the down side it is quite front heavy, and there is significant distortion at the extreme ends, so this lens is not suitable for architecture photography. On other types of objects the distortion is not noticeable. The close focusing distance is 150 cm which is somewhat lame.
My version came with a close-up attachment, which screwed into the filter thread and alleviated the close focusing problem somewhat. My version thus had a third distance scale for use with this close up attachment.
The lens hood is available in two versions: A two piece hood as described by Dana G below, and a more recent (I guess) one piece hood. Both types are all-metal.
It's a ten for build quality, probably a nine for sharpness but the distortion drags my rating down; I give it a seven+ overall. It is available for very little money and hence an excellent value despite the drawbacks.
Here is an image which I shot with this lens for Pentax World Day:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/gallery/index.php?n=5610
On the original image the antennas on the mountain top show very clearly - this lens is very sharp for a zoom.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-A 645 35mm F3.5 by Ole on Tue January 16, 2007 | Rating: 0 | View more reviews | |
Views: 108297
Reviews: 19 |
I checked this lens out in a store with a 645, but have no practical experience with it and can therefore not rate it. But I wanted to report on the following:
The image in the finder is somewhat dark for an f/3.5, and the corners are very dark. At first I thought there was a fault with that particular lens, but various sources indicate that the dark corners are caused by the fresnel lens on the focusing screen combined with the high angle with which the light rays hit the screen and that the actual pictures have no vigneting.
I have not checked the finder image with a 645N or Nii.
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Review of: SMC Pentax-FA 20mm F2.8 by Ole on Sun January 7, 2007 | Rating: 10 | View more reviews | |
Views: 188409
Reviews: 25 |
This is a 10.
I consider it a must-have:D .
Optically I rate it at the level of the FA Limited and the FA* series lenses. The barrel is polycarbonate, not metal, but it is nevertheless built very well.
It is tack sharp and has the pleasing color rendering of the FA Limited lenses.
As any other FA lens it can be used on film as well as digital bodies, another big plus.
The only downside is the lens hood:( . It is a round metal screw-in hood; rather unwieldy like a plate for a tea cup with a hole in the center! It makes it difficult to store the lens with hood in the bag. And who wants to mess with unscrewing a hood in the field?
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Review of: SMC Pentax-A 50mm F2.8 Macro by Ole on Sun January 7, 2007 | Rating: 9 | View more reviews | |
Views: 184483
Reviews: 37 |
This macro lens is small and compact and a pleasure to use with its smooth focusing and all-metal lens barrel construction. It focuses down to 24 cm and provides 0.5 magnification on a film camera. It must be used with an extension tube to get to life size (1:1) magnification. It is very easy to fine tune focus. The lens can also be used as a normal lens, but focusing is a bit more difficult on faraway objects than on a standard 50mm lens, which has a one or one and a half stop advantage over the macro.
Optically and mechanically I can't find any flaws at all. This lens is SHARP:
http://www.pbase.com/ooest/image/37872621
For macro photography I do prefer a longer focal length, though, at least 100mm which allows for more distance to the subject.
Max. aperture: 2.8
Min. aperture: 22
No. of aperture blades: 6
Closest focusing distance: 24 cm
Max. magnification: 0.5
Filter size: 49mm
Weight: 220g
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Review of: SMC Pentax-FA 28-90mm F3.5-5.6 by Ole on Sun January 7, 2007 | Rating: 7 | View more reviews | |
Views: 93122
Reviews: 18 |
The smc Pentax-FA 28-90mm f/3.5-5.6 is an inexpensive zoom lens and it often came bundled with a Pentax film SLR. It performs rather well considering that it was priced below $100. It is an auto-focus zoom and can be focused manually despite the lack of a distance scale. The lens barrel and lens mount are made of plastic and build quality is below average - even the bayonet is made of plastic. In return it weighs only 195 grams. It comes with no lens hood and you must take care to avoid flare when shooting backlit objects.
I prefer the FA 24-90 over the FA 28-90. The 24-90 is better built and goes down to 24mm, which is significant in particular on a digital body.
I would rate it 5 or 6 for build quality, but it takes sharp and contrasty pictures, so the rating for optical quality is at least an 8 giving an overall rating of 7.
Sample photos:
http://themotec.com/Ole/WEB_Gallery20/ | |
Review of: SMC Pentax-FA 24-90mm F3.5-4.5 AL [IF] by Ole on Sun January 7, 2007 | Rating: 8 | View more reviews | |
Views: 132874
Reviews: 24 |
This is my favorite all-round lens for Pentax digital, where it corresponds to a 35-135mm zoom. It is quite compact for its reach and aperture. Center is very sharp already wide open. It should be stopped down to about 8 so as to yield excellent sharpness also at the edges. At 90mm it is still a respectable f/4.5 so the viewfinder image stays bright. It focuses down to a convenient 50 cm, and comes with a sturdy, detachable lens hood.
The build quality is average; it is not at the high level of M and A lenses, but it doesn't seem to afftect the optical quality.
The hood must be removed when using the camera's built-in flash.
Max. aperture: 3.5 at 24mm, 4.5 at 90mm
Min. aperture: 22 at 24mm, 28 at 90mm
No. of aperture blades: 8
Closest focusing distance: 50 cm
Max. magnification: 0.30
Filter size: 67mm
Weight: 354g
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Review of: SMC Pentax-F 17-28mm F3.5-4.5 Fish-Eye by Ole on Sun January 7, 2007 | Rating: 8 | View more reviews | |
Views: 96470
Reviews: 16 |
Fisheye zooms are a Pentax specialty. No other manufacturer has anything like it (except that Tokina is now (January 2007) marketing a rebranded Pentax DA 10-17mm for Canon and Nikon mounts).
The smc Pentax-F 17-28mm was designed for film cameras where it at 17 mm covers 180 degrees diagonally. On the Pentax digital SLRs the coverage is much less, actually just a little bit more than a rectilinear 15mm lens, which still is respectable. Being a fish eye zoom it naturally exhibits heavy barrel distortion in particular at the wide end. It has a built-in lens hood and it does not take any filters.
It is fun to use although it isn't the sharpest lens around. Being this compact you tend to carry it with you at all times. At least I did that until I acquired the DA fisheye zoom.
The lens barrel is made of polycarbonate but the lens is nevertheless built very well.
This photo from the area along the Semmering Railway in Austria illustrates the field of view on a digital SLR. Focal length: 17mm, 1/500 f/8, *istD.
[imgwide]https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/members/77-ole/albums/596-illustrations/picture50499.jpg[/imgwide]
There wasn't much space in the locomotive shed at the Deutsche Dampflok Museum in Germany, so the 17-28mm came in handy since I wanted a picure of all of the proud BR10 locomotive (focal length again 17mm)
[imgwide]https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/members/77-ole/albums/596-illustrations/picture50500.jpg[/imgwide]
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