| Author: | | Forum Member Registered: October, 2008 Location: Georgia Posts: 91 | | Review Date: December 23, 2008 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Pretty sharp wide open,Pretty good bokeh (to me), All metal construction, It was free! | | Cons: | Only slightly heavier than kit lens, original hood could be a little longer | |
Haven't seen any of these besides ones on Ebay. Hopefully someone else has one of these, imo its really good glass. Major problem for me is steadying the camera good using this lens without a tripod, it seems very sensitive. Other than that i didnt pay anything for it so Im very happy with the lense, and especially the build quality. All metal construction, hood as well although the hood could be a little longer. Over all image quality is good, and it seems to be pretty sharp wide open, also seems to have pretty good bokeh as well. Also the lens serial # is MK84751748
| | | | | | | Senior Member Registered: December, 2008 Location: Southern Oregon Coast Posts: 127 | | Review Date: April 8, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $15.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Solid as a rock, clarity is good when stopped down a bit | | Cons: | Chromatic aberrations pretty apparent, wieghty | |
I got this lens in a small camera shop for $15.
Color is accurate for the most part.
Durability cannot be questioned.
Works well on my K200D as a 200MM telephoto.
I have not seriously tried to use it for portraits but plan on doing so.
I reached essentially the same conclusions the last poster did, it is a solid, excellent lens, especially for the price.
The physical appearance of my lens is different from the images shown above, my serial # is 85723185.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2008 Location: Western Missouri Posts: 429 | | Review Date: April 10, 2009 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Very sharp with nice colors, nice wide open | | Cons: | Barrel distortion, won't mount directly on K200D | |
I've read one reference that stated this lens was made by Kiron but I'm not certain. I received mine in the K1000 kit I bought at JCPenney in January 1987 so it wasn't expensive when new.
I see quite a bit of barrel distortion with mine when shooting close subjects but it's visible only with strong vertical lines in the frame.
My lens has an extended aperture lever protector which prevents it from mounting properly on my K200D. It works very well on my A1.4x TC though. My lens is an A-type and it functions properly on my TC.
It's very sharp with nice color and does well at wider apertures. It's a good lens that is a true bargain at $10 to $15.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: April, 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 499 | | Review Date: May 29, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $35.00
| Rating: 7 |
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This lens takes solid pictures and is a value overall. Color rendition, sharpness, and bokeh are all good quality. The speed of the lens is also nice.
| | | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: February, 2011 Location: Murfreesboro Tennessee Posts: 3,458 | | Review Date: June 4, 2011 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | sharp good ,color rendition | | Cons: | loose fit on my ist DL | |
I got this lens in 1978 in a kit with my k1000,and50mm 1:2 lens.
It is as sharp as the 50mm. For many years it was my longest lens. I still use it today even tho I have lenses that cover its range.
It is sharp through out its aperture range.
It feels loose on my istDL, but no light bleed and still sharp
Being made of metal and glass it is a bit heavier than my newer lenses (plastic) ,but not overly so.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: October, 2009 Location: Texas Posts: 384 | | Review Date: July 7, 2011 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Sharp photos! | | Cons: | none so far. | |
I got this with a Pentax K1000 both in mint condtion along with 50mm SMC Pentax F/2, I pay like $19 for them and it's a real bargan 
Worth the money even if the lens don't sell for alot.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: February, 2009 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 3,757 | | Review Date: October 30, 2011 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | fast, very sharp, useful range, solid build | | Cons: | heavier than Pentax 135mm 3.5 | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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My copy is very sharp wide open, and extremely sharp above, say, f4--no complaints here. I got it new, in box (old stock). Bokeh is ok, but not good. Very solid lens, with useful incorporated hood. CA is unnoticeable. (I had a Sears 135mm which was horrible in this respect.) In some situations it displays a kind of brownish cast, but colors come out good most of the time. Overall, an excellent 135mm for cheap. Try to get one with the A setting. (Mine has auto-aperture.) No complaint with this lens.
Pics taken with this lens, here:
Rio Lagartos 1, Rio Lagartos 2
Changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns, Arlington National Cemetery | | | | | New Member Registered: April, 2014 Posts: 17 | | Review Date: May 6, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $10.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, bokeh | | Cons: | underexposes | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K3
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Takes good sharp images with great bokeh. My copy underexposes a bit, so I use +1EV
 | | | | | Forum Member Registered: July, 2014 Location: SF BAY AREA Posts: 63 | | Review Date: March 9, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $30.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | build, IQ, slightly fast | | Cons: | a little dark, not too fast | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 7
Value: 9
Camera Used: K100D, K50
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Bought on ebay. Pleased with this lens because of low price and nice images. The focal length on a crop sensor DSLR is a bit long for everyday use. But if you haven't used a 135mm, the perception at this focal length makes pleasing depth and 3d-like images and with portraits. And at F2.8 you can go do some artsy stuff with the depth of field and cloudy days and shade.
The images to me seem smooth and colors are crisp. Here are my samples:
 | | | | | Site Supporter Registered: May, 2013 Posts: 63 | | Review Date: July 13, 2017 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Sharpness, bokeh | | Cons: | Focus can be fiddly, purple fringing | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K3
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I don't remember where or when I got this lens. Maybe with my K1000? I've probably had it for at least 20 years and never used it until recently. It's the only 135mm lens I have, so I wanted to try this focal length. It can take really good pictures but I get more duds with this one than my other manual lenses. And it can have terrible purple fringing when shooting toward light. When it's sharp, though, it's really sharp. The bokeh and colors are nice also. And of course, the build quality is excellent.
I posted some pictures taken with this lens at https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/members/60327-alpeterson/albums/11892-jc-penney-135mm-f-2-8-lens/
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